Mike Gianakos Articles - Page 34

The Chicago White Sox are slogging through an historically awful season. The White Sox set a franchise record with their 107th loss of the year Sunday. On Tuesday, the team found a creative new way to demonstrate its remarkable incompetence. In the bottom of the second inning, White Sox starter Nick Nastrini was attempting to […]

The Atlanta Braves are confident that they’ll make the playoffs this season despite being plagued by injuries. The Braves are leaning into their rotation, hoping the team’s pitching can power a postseason run. And Atlanta could have starting second baseman Ozzie Albies back in the lineup in the coming weeks. Albies is set to do […]

The New York Mets are in the midst of a disappointing season. Mets star Francisco Lindor recently conceded the bumpy nature of the 2024 campaign for New York. While Lindor is performing well for an up-and-down team, pitching has been a different story. After an All-Star season in 2023, Mets’ starter Kodai Senga has been […]

The Baltimore Orioles have been devastated by injuries this season, particularly to the pitching staff. The Orioles lost starters John Means, Tyler Wells and Kyle Bradish for the season due to Tommy John surgery. More recently Zack Eflin and Grayson Rodriquez hit the 15-day injured list with shoulder ailments. In Saturday’s game against the Colorado […]

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman missed the team’s three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles with a broken right middle finger. However, the eight-time All-Star made an explosive return from the injury in Friday’s series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks with a first inning home run. In Saturday’s game against the Diamondbacks Freeman would […]

The Seattle Mariners have a problem. Despite sporting one of the best starting rotations in all of baseball, the Mariners have struggled offensively all season. The lack of production at the plate caused the team to lose its lead in the AL West and now Seattle is at risk of missing the playoffs altogether. The […]

The Kansas City Royals have had a busy weekend. The team claimed outfielders Tommy Pham and Robbie Grossman off waivers on Saturday before landing veteran first baseman Yuli Gurriel in a deal with the Atlanta Braves. The Braves and Royals were able to make this deal long after the trade deadline because Gurriel hasn’t played […]

Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase is the frontrunner to win AL Reliever of the Year this season. The three-time All-Star has been so dominant in 2024, he has entered the Cy Young Award conversation. No relief pitcher has won the Cy Young since Eric Gagne in 2003. And Clase’s incredible campaign reached new heights on […]

The Philadelphia Phillies got beat up by the Houston Astros on Wednesday in an ugly game that led to the Phillies demoting Taijuan Walker to the bullpen. The Phillies bounced back against the Atlanta Braves on Thursday with a 5-4 win. However, the team lost starting third baseman Alec Bohm in the process. The 27-year-old […]

The St. Louis Cardinals are long shots to make the postseason but the team did manage to beat the San Diego Padres in dramatic fashion on Wednesday thanks to a Nolan Arenado walk-off single. On Thursday the Cardinals beat the Padres again behind a strong pitching performance by Sonny Gray. After picking up the victory […]

The Houston Astros lost starting right fielder Kyle Tucker to a shin injury in early June. During his near three-month absence from the lineup the Astros have been uncertain about a return timeline for Tucker. However, the latest injury update is encouraging. Tucker said he’s been able to do light running on the bases as […]

The Philadelphia Phillies got blown out by the Houston Astros on Wednesday. The terrible pitching performance by Taijuan Walker caused Phillies manager Rob Thompson to question Walker’s future in the rotation. On Thursday the team announced that Walker would move to the bullpen as a long reliever, per The Athletic’s Matt Gelb. Tyler Phillips is […]

Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani are in the midst of historic seasons. Ohtani has already joined the exclusive 40/40 club and could become the first player ever to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season. Judge is having the best year for a power hitter since Barry Bonds and could become […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers are determined to give the people all the Shohei Ohtani they can handle this season. The Dodgers hosted their second Ohtani bobblehead giveaway of the season Wednesday. This time the collectible features the two-time MVP and his dog Decoy. In honor of his own bobblehead night, Decoy was invited to throw […]

The Baltimore Orioles have been hit hard by injuries as they attempt to chase down the New York Yankees for the division crown. The team lost key rotation pieces Grayson Rodriquez and Zach Eflin to the 15-day injured list with shoulder ailments. While Rodriguez and Eflin are expected to be back with the team in […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers created a sensation with their first Shohei Ohtani bobblehead night earlier this season. Crowds lined the street as more than 50,000 fans packed Dodger Stadium hoping to get their hands on one of 40,000 figurines the team was giving away. On Wednesday Los Angeles will host their second Ohtani bobblehead night […]

After a disappointing first half of the season the Arizona Diamondbacks have caught fire. The team has played its way back into the postseason picture and surged up to number six in the most recent MLB Power Rankings. The Diamondbacks have continued their winning ways despite injuries to All-Star second baseman Ketel Marte and Gold […]

The Cleveland Guardians have dominated the American League Central since mid April. The Guardians have often looked like legitimate title contenders as the top dog in a highly competitive division. However, a late summer swoon has left Cleveland clinging to a one game lead in the AL Central entering play on Tuesday. The team dropped […]

The St. Louis Cardinals upgraded their bullpen at the trade deadline by bringing in reliever Shawn Armstrong in a deal that sent Dylan Carlson to the Tampa Bay Rays. The Cardinals were buyers at the deadline with the hope of making a playoff push over the second half of the season. In a bit of […]

The St. Louis Cardinals lost catcher Willson Contreras to a fractured finger when he was hit with a 95 mph four-seam fastball from the Minnesota Twins’ Pablo Lopez. The pitch tailed inside and caught Contreras on the right middle finger. Now the Cardinals expect to be without their catcher for at least three weeks, according […]

The Philadelphia Phillies were the best team in baseball over the first half of the season. The Phillies sent an MLB-best eight players to the All-Star game, including three starters for the first time in four decades. However, the team has backslid since returning from the All-Star break, going just 15-20. But the Phillies picked […]

The Chicago Cubs are a long shot to make the postseason. The Cubs dropped down to the 19th spot in the most recent MLB Power Rankings and are on the outside looking in at the Wild Card race. But the team brought its running game for the series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Cubs […]

After missing out on the playoffs last year, the St. Louis Cardinals are fighting to reach the postseason in 2024. Despite the confidence of starting pitcher Miles Mikolas who believes the Cardinals can win 17 straight if necessary, the reality is St. Louis is a long shot to make the playoffs. The team is trying […]

After a hot start to the season the Pittsburgh Pirates have fallen out of the playoff picture with a rough second half. The brutal drop off will likely keep Pittsburgh out of the postseason for the ninth straight year. Pirates manager Derek Shelton is on the hot seat as the team is on pace for […]

Houston Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez was forced to miss Friday’s game against the Baltimore Orioles due to neck pain. After taking some pregame swings the following day, the pain persisted and Alvarez was held out of Saturday’s game as well. “He’s still a bit uncomfortable in that area. He wasn’t available,” Astros manager Joe Espada […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers broke the bank to land Shohei Ohtani prior to the 2024 season but the two-time MVP has been worth every penny so far. Ohtani joined the ultra-exclusive 40/40 club with a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. On Saturday, the […]

The Seattle Mariners’ playoff hopes are slowly dwindling. The Mariners attempted to salvage their season by firing long-time manager Scott Servais and replacing him with former player Dan Wilson on Friday. In the first inning of the Wilson era, Seattle lost outfielder Victor Robles to a finger injury. Robles was hit with a 95 mph […]

Toronto Blue Jays fans have had precious little to celebrate this season. The team is out of the playoff picture and sits in last place in the AL East. The Blue Jays were labeled baseball’s biggest disappointment by their own top executive. Still, pitcher Bowden Francis gave Toronto fans something to cheer about when he […]

The Boston Red Sox were forced to scratch outfielder Tyler O’Neill from Friday’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks due to inflammation in his finger. The Red Sox just got O’Neill back from the injured list last week. Now the team announced he’ll be out of the lineup again on Saturday, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith. “[O’Neill’s] […]

The St. Louis Cardinals are a scrappy team. Despite going just 3-7 over their last 10 games, the Cardinals earned the respect of Brewers manager Pat Murphy when St. Louis won back-to-back games against Milwaukee. Even with the wins against their division rivals, the Cardinals are a game under .500 and 10 games behind the […]

The Milwaukee Brewers were riding a hot streak when they came to St. Louis to begin a three-game series Tuesday. The Brewers took the first game behind the excellent pitching combo of starter Frankie Montas and reliever Devin Williams who combined for eight innings of shutout baseball. The win was Milwaukee’s sixth straight. However, the […]

The baseball world is still reeling from the surprise firing of Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais. The Mariners fired their long-time skipper on Thursday and replaced him with former player Dan Wilson. While the dismissal no doubt stung, the way Servais learned he was losing his job was also brutal. Servais found out he was […]

American League MVP frontrunner Aaron Judge crushed his MLB-leading 48th home run for the New York Yankees in Thursday’s win over the Cleveland Guardians. The victory kept New York atop the division and kept Judge on pace for his second 60-home run season. If Judge can continue his prodigious power streak, he would become just […]

The Baltimore Orioles were forced to scratch starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez minutes before his scheduled start on August 6 due to right lat/teres discomfort. The following day the second-year starter was placed on the 15-day injured list with the shoulder ailment and was shut down to allow the strain to heal. While the Orioles expect […]

The Los Angeles Angels are enduring yet another miserable season. The Angels lost three-time MVP Mike Trout for the season with a torn meniscus and the team is also without the services of infielder Luis Rengifo who’s done for the year following wrist surgery. Los Angeles is 19 games below .500 and 14.5 games behind […]

Veteran starting pitcher Johnny Cueto made his season debut for the Los Angeles Angels in Wednesday’s game. The 38-year-old righty had his contract selected by the Angeles and he kicked off his 17th season in the big leagues at a familiar stadium. Cueto’s first start of 2024 came against the Kansas City Royals. The veteran […]

The Los Angeles Dodgers are clinging to a slim lead in the NL West as the red-hot San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks have closed the gap. The Dodgers have been beset by an endless string of injuries to their starting pitchers. Most recently LA lost Tyler Glasnow to the 15-day injured list and the […]

The New York Yankees are neck and neck with the Baltimore Orioles in the AL East. As the team fights for division supremacy, Juan Soto has caught fire. Former MVP Aaron Judge even called Soto the greatest hitter in baseball. Soto has stayed hot and in the first inning of Wednesday’s game against the Cleveland […]

The Chicago White Sox are on pace to finish with the worst record in modern baseball history. In the midst of a catastrophic season, the White Sox fired manager Pedro Grifol and named former player Grady Sizemore interim manager of the dysfunctional team. While no manager could possibly turn things around for Chicago this season, […]