Tomoyuki Sugano bested by Dodgers once again

The 31-year-old slugger jammed his thumb while sliding into second base during Wednesday’s victory over the O’s. As of now, there don’t appear to be any plans to place him on the injured list, but it sounds like he may need a couple of days off. Jose Caballero will start in his place at the hot corner on Thursday and will bat ninth against Orioles’ right-hander Kyle Bradish.

Freeman has only been sidelined since August 9 due to pain in his lower back, so he shouldn’t need too many at-bats there before he’s ready to rejoin the big league roster. It’s possible that he could be ready to join the Rockies before the weekend is through.

The 27-year-old infielder was pulled from Thursday’s game due to tightness in his right hamstring, but it sounds like it’s only a minor issue that he’s dealing with. It’s possible that he may miss a game or two over the weekend, but the club is optimistic that he won’t require a trip to the injured list. He’s considered day-to-day.

Bailey exacted revenge against his former club in the opening inning, smacking a two-out RBI single that increased the Guardians’ lead to 3-0 and proved to be the difference in the ballgame. He then singled in the fourth inning and swiped second base before being stranded there. Bailey also walked in the sixth and scored on an RBI knock by Steven Kwan. With his two-hit afternoon, the 27-year-old backstop is now hitting .189/.247/.295 with six homers, 26 RBI and three stolen bases on the year.

Kwan ignited a three-run rally in the first inning with a leadoff walk. He then came around to score the game’s first run on an RBI single off the bat of Jose Ramirez. The 28-year-old outfielder then drove in a run of his own with a two-out RBI single in the sixth that increased the Guardians’ advantage to 4-2. For the season, he’s now slashing .265/.372/.327 with just two homers, 24 RBI and nine stolen bases across 486 plate appearances.

Smith made it interesting once again in this one, issuing a pair of two-out walks that brought the tying run to the dish in the form of Rafael Devers. Not to worry though, as the 27-year-old stopper got the Giants’ slugger on a fly ball to center field to put the game away. He has now converted 32 of his 37 save chances on the season while compiling a stellar 2.21 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and an 80/20 K/BB ratio across 57 innings of work.

Williams racked up an impressive 11 strikeouts on the afternoon while issuing a pair of free passes. The only damage done against him came on a two-run blast by Willy Adames in the fourth inning. The 27-year-old hurler generated 18 swings and misses on 96 pitches on the day — seven of those on his fastball — while posting a strong CSW of 36 percent. He’ll look to keep the good times rolling as he carries a 3.72 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and a 201/48 K/BB ratio (154 2/3 innings) into Tuesday’s battle against the Angels in Los Angeles.

Adames did his damage in the fourth inning of this one, ambushing a first-pitch fastball from Gavin Williams for a 418-foot (103.4-mph EV) two-run blast that got the Giants on the board and pulled them to within a run at 3-2. That would be the extent of their offense. Adames finished the afternoon 1-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. He’s had a disappointing season at the dish, slashing just .229/.288/.421 with the aforementioned 20 long balls and 50 RBI.

His blast off Ian Seymour was projected at 442 feet. Cameron, who opened this year in Korea before signing a minor league deal with the Jays last month, is 4-for-11 with two extra-base hits since being called up as Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s replacement on Saturday. He still might be the choice to go when Guerrero returns, unless maybe Brett Bateman requires an IL stint.

Bieber struck out a season-high seven and completed seven innings for the second time in 11 starts this season. the first time was also against the Rays in a 3-1 victory four weeks ago. He’s 3-0 with a 2.96 ERA in four starts this month, and he’ll be a nice fantasy option against the Royals next week.