August 6th, 2025

⚾ Headlines Around the League

Red Sox 6, Royals 2 — Crochet Dominates as Boston Stays Hot

Vaughn Extends Tear as Brewers Run Wild in Statement Win Over Braves

Guardians Sneak Past Mets with Seventh-Inning Rally

Reds’ Newcomers Shine as Littell Dazzles, Steer Delivers in 5–1 Win Over Cubs

Eovaldi Dominates Yankees as Rangers Score Late Off The Bullpen

What a night for Shea Langeliers. He went 5-for-6 with 3 homers in his first game hitting leadoff, absolutely unreal. Look, the A’s may not be a contender right now, but they’ve got some legit bats. Don’t be surprised if they’re in the mix next year.

Now for the best things I saw on Tuesday, a few moments really stood out:

First, check out this home run from Lourdes Gurriel Jr. off Mason Miller. The Padres ended up blowing out the D-backs in extras, but at the time, this homer tied the game and was just an absolute tank. So sick:

Next up, Nathan Eovaldi absolutely shoved against the Yankees. He’s been as good as any ace in baseball this year. The AL Cy Young race is so stacked with guys like Skubal and Crochet (who also pitched great last night), so Eovaldi might not be getting the love he deserves, but last night he LOWERED his ERA to 1.38 through 19 starts. That’s just ridiculous.

The moment though happened by his defense. Check this incredible catch by Josh Smith. One of the toughest plays you can make, and he made it look effortless.

Thanks for reading today’s edition of First Pitch. If you are enjoying the newsletter, please do me a favor and share it with a friend today.

Appreciate all the support, let’s have a great Wednesday! - Ryan

🔥 Notable Performances

Hitting

Pitching

📊 Final Scores and Highlights

Red Sox 6, Royals 2

Garrett Crochet returned from a nine-day break and delivered seven strong innings to lead the surging Red Sox to their seventh straight win, backed by clutch hitting from Trevor Story and Wilyer Abreu.

🔑 Key Moments

• Duran breaks through — Jarren Duran doubled home Romy Gonzalez in the third to open the scoring

• KC ties it up — Bobby Witt Jr. tripled and later scored on a Maikel Garcia RBI double in the fourth

• Story cashes in — Trevor Story ripped a two-run single in the sixth to put Boston back on top

• Crochet’s big strikeout — With the tying run on second in the seventh, Crochet ended his night by blowing a 96.7 mph fastball past Luke Maile for his eighth strikeout

• Abreu adds insurance — Wilyer Abreu drove in two runs with a seventh-inning single to cap a three-run frame

📊 Notable Stats

Red Sox

• Garrett Crochet: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K (13th win, MLB leader)

• Trevor Story: 2-for-4, 3 RBI

• Wilyer Abreu: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, double

• Jarren Duran: 2-for-4, RBI double

Royals

• Maikel Garcia: 2-for-3, RBI double, walk

• Randal Grichuk: 1-for-3, RBI double

• Bobby Witt Jr.: 1-for-4, triple, run

Brewers 7, Braves 2

The MLB-best Brewers kept rolling with a sixth straight road win and capped off a historic 60-game stretch with a 7-2 victory in Atlanta, led by Andrew Vaughn’s two-run single, Christian Yelich’s spark, and a relentless running game.

🔑 Key Moments

• Perkins sparks the rally — In the third, Blake Perkins singled and stole second to ignite a four-run inning that featured three infield hits and aggressive baserunning

• Yelich ties it — With the bases loaded and two outs, Christian Yelich legged out an infield single to make it 1-1

• Wild pitch opens the floodgates — A high-and-tight fastball skipped to the backstop, scoring Joey Ortiz and giving Milwaukee a 2-1 lead

• Vaughn cashes in — On the 12th pitch of a battle, Andrew Vaughn laced a two-run single to left, pushing the lead to 4-1

• Collins adds on — Isaac Collins tripled in a run in the sixth and scored later to make it 6-1

• Mears slams the door — With the bases loaded in the sixth, Nick Mears got Jurickson Profar to swing through strike three and end the threat

📊 Notable Stats

Brewers

• Freddy Peralta: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K (MLB-leading 13th win)

• Andrew Vaughn: 1-for-3, 2 RBI, walk

• Christian Yelich: 1-for-4, RBI, 2 R, walk

• Isaac Collins: 2-for-4, 3B, 2 RBI

• Joey Ortiz: 2-for-3, 2 R, SB

Braves

• Eli White: 2-for-4, solo HR (7), double

• Drake Baldwin: 2-for-4, walk

• Jurickson Profar: 1-for-4, walk

Guardians 3, Mets 2

The Guardians did what they do best — play “Guards Ball” — as they used soft contact and sharp execution to pull off a gritty 3-2 win over the Mets at Citi Field. Clay Holmes was sharp but it was not enough.

🔑 Key Moments

• Alonso’s sac fly opens scoring — Pete Alonso drove in Francisco Lindor with a sacrifice fly in the 1st, giving the Mets an early lead.

• Taylor adds on — In the 2nd, Tyrone Taylor’s RBI single plated Mark Vientos, extending New York’s lead to 2-0.

• Manzardo gets Cleveland going — The Guardians got on the board in the 4th with a line drive RBI single from Kyle Manzardo that scored Steven Kwan.

• Arias ties it up — Later that inning, Gabriel Arias slapped an RBI single to right to bring in José Ramírez, knotting the game at 2.

• Kwan delivers the go-ahead knock — With two outs in the 7th, Steven Kwan lined a soft single to center, scoring C.J. Kayfus and putting Cleveland up 3-2.

• Cade Smith slams the door — Pitching on back-to-back nights, Smith retired the Mets in order in the 9th to notch his 4th save.

📊 Notable Stats

Guardians

• Steven Kwan: 2-for-4, RBI, R

• Kyle Manzardo: 1-for-3, RBI

• Gabriel Arias: 1-for-4, RBI

• Logan Allen: 5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 6 K

• Cade Smith: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K (4th save)

Mets

• Pete Alonso: 1-for-3, RBI sac fly

• Tyrone Taylor: 1-for-3, RBI

• Juan Soto: 0-for-2, 2 BB, 2 K, SB

• Clay Holmes: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K

Reds 5, Cubs 1

Cincinnati leaned on fresh faces and late fireworks to take down the Cubs at Wrigley.

🔑 Key Moments

• After walking a tightrope in the 1st, Zack Littell struck out the next three batters—including Kyle Tucker and Pete Crow-Armstrong—to set the tone for a dominant debut.

• Miguel Andujar, in his Reds debut, singled and scored the game’s first run on Spencer Steer’s RBI knock in the 5th.

• The Cubs answered quickly as Matt Shaw launched a solo homer to tie it in the bottom half of the inning.

• With two on in the 7th, Steer crushed a go-ahead three-run homer to left center, putting Cincinnati up for good.

• In the field, Ke'Bryan Hayes came off the bench to make a slick barehanded play at third in the 7th, helping stall a potential Cubs rally.

📊 Notable Stats

Cincinnati Reds

• Zack Littell: 7.0 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 8 K (joins exclusive Reds club for debut performance)

• Spencer Steer: 2-for-4, HR (13), 4 RBI

• Miguel Andujar: 2-for-4, 2 R

• TJ Friedl: 2-for-4

Chicago Cubs

• Matt Shaw: 1-for-3, HR (7), RBI

• Shota Imanaga: 6.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 K

Rangers 2, Yankees 0

“Big Game Nate” delivered again with a masterclass on the mound, and the Rangers made just enough noise late to secure a crucial win. Tellez comes through with an INSANE at 10 pitch at bat and delivers the go ahead punch.

🔑 Key Moments

• Nathan Eovaldi set the tone early, striking out Aaron Judge in the 1st and cruising through eight scoreless innings with just one hit allowed—a soft double from Anthony Volpe in the 3rd.

• The Rangers loaded the bases in the 8th after a walk to Wyatt Langford, setting up Rowdy Tellez, who delivered the game’s only runs with a clutch two-run single to center.

• Joc Pederson sparked that rally with his second hit of the game, while Adolis García raced home as the lead runner.

• Phil Maton closed the door in the 9th, aided by a smooth double play started by Corey Seager to erase the Yankees’ final threat.

• Eovaldi’s outing marked the lowest ERA (1.38) through 19 starts in Rangers franchise history, drawing comparisons to legends like Kenny Rogers and Vida Blue.

📊 Notable Stats

Texas Rangers

• Nathan Eovaldi: 8.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K (ERA down to 1.38)

• Rowdy Tellez: 1-for-4, 2 RBI

• Joc Pederson: 2-for-2, 2 BB, 1 R

• Josh Smith: 2-for-3, BB

New York Yankees

• Anthony Volpe: 1-for-2, 2B

• Ryan McMahon: 1-for-3

• Yankees held to just 2 hits, 0 walks, and 7 strikeouts

Other scores around the league:

Astros 7, Marlins 3
A. Blubaugh: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 5 SO, 1 BB
J. Altuve: 2-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Twins 6, Tigers 3
Z. Matthews: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 6 SO, 1 BB
J. Topa: 1.0 IP, 1 SO

Giants 8, Pirates 1
L. Webb: 6.0 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 10 SO
W. Adames: 2-5, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Athletics 16, Nationals 7
S. Langeliers: 5-6, 4 R, 3 HR, 3 RBI
L. Severino: 6.0 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 5 SO, 2 BB

Phillies 5, Orioles 0
T. Walker: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 4 SO
M. Kepler: 2-4, 2 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Blue Jays 10, Rockies 4
D. Varsho: 3-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 6 RBI
J. Berrios: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 5 SO, 1 BB

Rays 7, Angels 3
R. Pepiot: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 6 SO, 2 BB
C. Fulmer: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 5 SO, 1 BB

Mariners 8, White Sox 3
B. Woo: 7.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 9 SO
J. Naylor: 2-3, 3 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI

Padres 10, Diamondbacks 5
L. Gurriel: 2-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 4 RBI
R. Suarez: 1.2 IP, 1 SO, 1 BB

Dodgers 12, Cardinals 6
E. Sheehan: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 5 SO, 1 BB
M. Muncy: 4-5, 3 R, 2 HR, 4 RBI

Like this newsletter? Help us keep the content free by sharing our newsletter and supporting our sponsors.

Thanks for reading!