García crushes 27th homer in loss to Astros

The scoring was finished in the third inning in this one, allowing Nola to get the victory in a game in which he recorded just 15 outs, He’s yielded exactly one run in four of his last seven starts and a total of 11 runs during the span, which has lowered his ERA from 5.82 to 4.93. He’s a pretty reasonable mixed-league option right now, though a matchup against the Braves on Sunday isn’t quite ideal.

Duran allowed a couple of soft singles, but he then got Gabriel Moreno to ground out to end the 2-1 game. It’s his 29th save. He’s thrown 32 pitches in the three days since he missed Saturday’s game with a stomach issue, so it’s possible he’ll be down Tuesday.

Pfaadt, who struck out just one, allowed two runs or fewer for the 10th time in 12 starts since rejoining Arizona’s rotation, but since there was little run support to be had tonight, he took his first loss since way back on Apr. 11. He definitely hasn’t been as impressive recently as he was in his first six weeks back in the majors, so those in daily leagues might have better options than to start him in Houston on Sunday.

Since taking part in his first All-Star Game, Marsh has hit .195/.265/.263 in 40 games, dropping his OPS from .829 to .744. He’s still a solid enough player who will probably rebound to post decent numbers in September, but for those who thought he took step forward at age 28... nope.

Grissom’s last hit was a 391-foot double to left that would have been a homer in 26 ballparks. In Angel Stadium, it really ought to have been caught, but Cody Bellinger just didn’t get a good jump on it. Grissom’s .249/.311/.389 line isn’t especially impressive, and his future as a long-term regular is far from secure. Still, his approach is pretty good, and at age 25, he could get a little stronger. He should be close to clinching a spot on the 2027 Angels, even if he might not deserve to be penciled into the starting lineup.

Ureña’s command still comes and goes, but it wasn’t an issue tonight. He walked none and allowed just one extra-base hit — a Spencer Jones homer — to the 25 Yankees he faced tonight. The victory evened his record at 9-9 to go along with a 2.85 ERA. He’d be a Rookie of the Year candidate in many seasons, but he’s behind Parker Messick and a couple of bats in this year’s AL class. He’ll likely face the Pirates on Sunday.

Rodríguez emerged as an excellent prospect last year and has been quite good in Triple-A this season, but his six major league starts have produced an 0-3 record, a 5.40 ERA and a 21/16 K/BB in 26 2/3 innings. He’ll likely head back to Triple-A after this one, though he might make a spot start or two in September.

What has happened here? Ballesteros’s future as a catcher has been in question forever, but he certainly seemed like a very solid bat coming into 2026 and through the first month of this season. Now, though, he’s hitting .145 and slugging .184 in his last 203 plate appearances. It’s good that he’s still just 22, but he needs to be so, so much better than this to be of use as a catcher or a DH.

Rice ended up hitting .184/.304/.337 in August. He’s hit .216/.313/.432 over the last three months. Most everyone is still treating him as an ascendent star, but his bat speed and exit velocity numbers are all worse than last year and his strikeout rate has taken a big jump in the wrong direction. He’s definitely a good player, but he seems like a worst bet going forward now than he did a year ago.

Salas wouldn’t be called up unless he was going to play, so expect him to do a lot of the catching over Freddy Fermin. Luis Campusano could function as more of a DH with Gavin Sheets and Luis Rengifo on the IL. Salas, still just 20 years old, has shaken off a couple of injury-filled seasons to hit .296/.374/.448 with 10 homers and 17 steals between Double- and Triple-A this year. He probably won’t be of use in one-catcher mixed leagues right away.