MLB Player News

The Braves entered the seventh inning locked in a 1-1 tie. Marcell Ozuna untied it with a leadoff solo homer to give the Braves the lead, then Acuña Jr. delivered the dagger with a mammoth two-out 432-foot (107.4 mph) bomb to make it a 4-1 ballgame. He also walked in the contest, but did not steal a base. The early front-runner for National League MVP honors, he’s now slashing a robust .328/.403/.568 to go with 17 homers, 49 RBI and 35 stolen bases on the year.

Team USA, managed by Mike Scioscia, will play in Mexico from Nov. 9-14. If it advances out of the group stage, the Super Round will take part in Tokyo from Nov. 21-24. Touki Toussaint, Dan Altavilla, Dylan Covey and Anthony Gose are among the other major league veterans on the roster. Top prospects include Carson Williams (Rays), Matt Shaw (Cubs), Termarr Johnson (Pirates), Justin Crawford (Phillies) and Drake Baldwin (Braves).

Cortes last pitched on Sept. 18 and was diagnosed with a flexor tendon strain a week later. He’s expected to serve as a reliever in the World Series, and he could take Marcus Stroman’s roster spot after Stroman went unused in the ALCS.

Boone was mum on the rest of the rotation. Most likely, Carlos Rodón will go in Game 2 and Clarke Schmidt in Game 3, but Boone does have the option of flip-flopping them if he likes the idea of starting Schmidt in Game 2 and being extra aggressive with the bullpen before the off day.

The winner won’t have to make a special trip to pick up his hardware, since both Judge and Ohtani will be in attendance, of course. We imagine Judge will be the pick here, but we’ll see. Other so-called “finalists” for the awards are Judge, Witt and José Ramírez for AL Outstanding Player; Ohtani, Francisco Lindor and Marcell Ozuna for NL Outstanding Player; Emmanuel Clase, Logan Gilbert and Tarik Skubal for AL Outstanding Pitcher; Chris Sale, Paul Skenes and Zack Wheeler for NL Outstanding Pitcher; Wilyer Abreu, Colton Cowser and Austin Wells for AL Outstanding Rookie and Jackson Chourio, Jackson Merrill and Skenes for NL Outstanding Rookie.

Treinen dominated in the eighth, and while he did give up an RBI single in the ninth to Jeff McNeil, it came with the Dodgers holding a six-run lead. He still gets the save because he entered with a three-run lead. He’ll get a chance to add to his three playoff saves beginning Friday against the Yankees.

Ohtani smashed an RBI single to extend the Dodgers’ lead to 7-3. The presumed MVP is now 18 for his last 21 with runners in scoring position, and that’s an .818 average. Incredible. Ohtani will now get a chance to show off his immense skills in the World Series against the Yankees on Friday.

Vientos took Ryan Brasier deep in the fourth inning to make it a 6-3 game. It was the fifth homer of the postseason, but unfortunately for the Mets the last with Los Angeles winning the series 4-2. Vientos had a very strong regular season, but was at a different level this October with a slash of .327/.362/.636. Vientos should be a strong fantasy option for 2025 and beyond.

Smith gave the Dodgers a 6-1 lead with a homer off Phil Maton in the third inning with Max Muncy on base. He also drew a walk, and the Dodgers have to be thrilled to see some offensive production considering his struggles in the postseason. Even with the strong contest, he’s slashing just .158/.289/.316 over his 10 games in the playoffs. He will get a chance to get going in the World Series beginning Friday against the Yankees.

Edman lined a two-run double off Sean Manaea to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead in the first inning. Two frames later, he took Manaea deep with a runner on to extend the lead to 4-1, and it was essentially all Los Angeles from that point on. With the win, the Dodgers advance to the World Series against the Yankees beginning Friday. Edman has been outstanding in the postseason with a .477 slugging percentage, 341 average and 12 RBI over 10 games, and he was named NLCS MVP for his efforts.

Manaea’s final start was a disappointment, and he has Tommy Edman to “thank” for most of the trouble. He gave up a two-run double to Edman in the first, and a two-run shot to him two innings later. The southpaw still had a fantastic season with a 3.47 ERA and 184/63 K/BB over 32 starts, and he pitched excellent in the postseason prior to Sunday’s struggles. Manaea will be back with the Mets next year — barring something unforeseen — and likely will pitch near the top of their rotation to begin 2025.