Seth Lugo strikes out five in win over Blue Jays

After letting up two runs in the first inning before recording an out, Lugo appeared to settle in nicely afterwards. Following three straight hits to start the game, he retired 12 of the next 13 hitters he faced and he picked-off the only one who reached. Then, the floodgates opened back up in the fifth when four straight singles turned into three more runs. Such is life for a pitcher like Lugo who doesn’t miss many bats anymore. On the season, he has a 4.71 ERA, 111 strikeouts, and 46 walks through 145 1/3 innings pitched. Next up, he’s scheduled for a two-start week against the Blue Jays and Guardians with both starts on the road.

Lugo struck out four hitters on the night and didn’t walk a batter. He cruised through the first two innings unscathed but ran into a buzzsaw in the third inning. The Angels loaded the bases with one out against him when Lugo struck out Mike Trout. Nolan Schanuel followed with a three-run double though and Zach Neto added an RBI single to push four runs across. The Halos added another run while chasing him in the fifth. Lugo got seven whiffs on 86 pitches on the night, posting a CSW of 29 percent. He’ll bring a disappointing 4.59 ERA and 1.38 WHIP into Wednesday’s matchup against the Athletics.

This is Lugo’s victory for the month of August, if form holds; he had one in March/April, one in May, one in June and one in July. Oddly enough, four of his five victories have come against NL teams. His only previously win in American League game came in May versus the Mariners. Given all this, it seems nearly impossible that he’ll beat the Angels next weekend. Though, maybe the fact that he’s facing the Angels will trump all of that.

Lugo really struggled to locate his stuff Sunday, as he issued five walks and threw just 52-of-99 pitches for strikes. The right-hander has been a significant disappointment in 2026, and this lackluster effort now has his ERA up to 4.41 to go with a 4-7 record. Assuming he’s not moved before the deadline — which is hard to envision right now — Lugo will be back on the bump against the Cubs over the weekend.

Lugo allowed six hits and walked a pair, and he fanned just two. Even without much swing-and-miss, the 36-year-old was able to keep the Twins off the board sans an RBI single in the fourth by Josh Bell. It’s been a disappointing season for Lugo by his standards, but he has now gone four straight starts without allowing more than three runs, and it’s lowered his ERA to 4.22 in the process. He’ll face the Rockies in Colorado on Sunday.

In what had been a scoreless game, Lugo allowed a run in the sixth and then two in the seventh, seemingly putting himself in line for a loss. However, the Royals came back with five in the bottom of the seventh and got Lugo his first win since June 19 and fourth in 21 starts this year. He’ll carry a 4.36 ERA into his next start in Minnesota.

It felt dicey at times, but Lugo grinded his way to a quality start here. While he allowed nine hard-hit balls, most of those were on the ground as he did a good job of keeping the ball low. It was also fun to see the wily vet reach back and pull out four of his eight hardest pitches – and his only one above 95 mph – in a fifth inning where the Padres rallied. He now has a 4.39 ERA with 89 walks and 36 strikeouts through 110 2/3 innings on the season and is lined up to face the Giants at home next time out.

Lugo piled up six strikeouts on the afternoon while walking two batters. He struggled with his command though, needing 89 pitches to navigate four innings, which caused his early exit. The damage done against him came on a two-run blast by Leody Taveras in the second inning. Lugo got 11 swings and misses on the afternoon, posting a CSW of 31 percent. He wraps up an inconsistent first half with a 4.56 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and an 86/34 K/BB ratio over 104 2/3 innings through his first 19 starts.

Lugo made his own trouble in the first, when he committed the first of the Royals’ three errors on a three-run infield debacle. After that, though, it was mostly just him getting hit hard. A.J. Ewing hit a two-run homer in the second, and Juan Soto delivered a three-run blast in the fourth. It’s the third time this year that Lugo has given up at least seven runs. He’s allowed two earned runs or fewer in 10 of 18 turns, but the blowups have left him with a 4.56 ERA. He’ll face the Orioles on Sunday.

Lugo gave up two homers, two doubles and five singles, but he was able to limit the damage by walking none (though he did hit a batter) and striking out seven. He still hasn’t fanned more than seven in a game this season, but he has now reached that total four times. The quality start tonight was his 10th, yet he has a 3-6 record to show for it. He’ll face his old friends the Mets in New York next week.