Detroit promoted center fielder Max Clark — the No. 3 overall pick from the 2023 Draft — from Triple-A Toledo on July 30, and he delivered instantly: 3-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI, and two runs scored in a 13-1 blowout on Friday. Clark posted a .276/.368/.434 slash line with 11 home runs, 21 stolen bases, and a 16% strikeout rate across 90 Triple-A games this season, including a torrid July (.338 BA, 5 HR).
Tigers two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal is widely expected to be dealt before Monday's 6 p.m. ET deadline, with ESPN's Jeff Passan reporting flatly that he will be traded. Detroit sits at 51-58, effectively eliminated from playoff contention, and multiple contenders are circling — the Brewers have emerged as the frontrunner after the Dodgers appeared to cool off, with the Cubs, Phillies, Braves, and Yankees also connected.
Shohei Ohtani has not taken the mound since July 3 due to a left knee issue — a problem compounded by an emerging biceps concern — and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts now says a return to pitching is targeted for mid-to-late August at the earliest, calling it 'highly unlikely' the team has seen the last of him on the mound this season. Ohtani continues to hit as the Dodgers' designated hitter, where the knee bothers him considerably less.
St. Louis left-hander Quinn Mathews — the Cardinals' No. 7 prospect — makes his major league debut today in Toronto against Kevin Gausman and the Blue Jays. In 19 Triple-A starts in 2026, Mathews posted a 3.13 ERA and 1.14 WHIP with 111 strikeouts in 92 innings (29.8% K rate), and his last 43.1 innings since late May produced an eye-popping 1.87 ERA and 0.85 WHIP.
Who's Hot This Week
Anderson is running one of the best minor-league pitching lines in baseball — 9-1, 1.27 ERA, 0.64 WHIP, 115 K in 77.2 innings — but is stuck behind a healthy Seattle rotation. Trade deadline maneuvering is reportedly targeting Mariners arms (Luis Castillo, Emerson Hancock), which could open a rotation slot at any moment. NBC Sports called him 'next in line' after Max Clark's debut. His ceiling is Skenes-level — add him now in all deep formats before the door opens.
Worth Reading
Cross covers every must-add hitter and pitcher available under 40% on Yahoo heading into Week 19, with Cooper Pratt leading the hitter section on a .324 July and nine steals since his June debut. Pitcher recommendations focus on streamers with favorable matchups and arms locking down rotation spots.
Barner singles out Christian Scott and Clay Holmes as the two headline adds for Week 20, citing Scott's 28.8% strikeout rate and a stretch of near-dominant starts in his return from Tommy John surgery. The piece surveys the full waiver landscape for managers chasing pitching ratios and saves in the final weeks.
Pitcher List's daily wire column tops its add board with Roki Sasaki (9 Ks vs. the Mets, sub-0.90 WHIP over three starts) while flagging Max Clark as an 18%-owned stash ahead of his debut. The column covers one-day streaming targets and longer-horizon holds for all league sizes.
McClanahan exited his July 31 start after facing just two batters with lower back tightness and was officially placed on the 15-day IL. The Rays are hopeful he misses only two starts, but any back issue carries added risk given the context of his Tommy John surgery history.
Rutschman was placed on the 10-day IL (retroactive to July 19) with left wrist inflammation suffered on a swing in Houston — his third IL stint of 2026. He began hitting again on August 1 and is targeting a rehab assignment the week of August 3, with a mid-August return projected.
Dunn will undergo season-ending elbow surgery, with Tommy John remaining a possibility that could sideline him into 2027. He had been on the IL since late June with a right elbow sprain and suffered a setback during rehab before the procedure was confirmed.
Joey Cantillo (Cleveland Guardians) has methodically lowered his arm angle from 55 degrees in 2024 to 51 degrees in 2026. The flatter release has added meaningful horizontal sweep to his curveball — now generating 10-11 inches of glove-side break versus 9 inches earlier this season — and his slider has sharpened to produce more whiffs against right-handed hitters. The results align with a deliberate pitch-mix overhaul: in July, Cantillo has leaned on his curveball (39.2% usage) while scaling back his four-seam fastball to 25.1%, down from over 30% in April and May.
The performance jump is real and sustained. Since June 1, Cantillo's K-BB% has risen from 8.6% to 18.3% and his SIERA has dropped from 4.86 to 3.67, matching a late-June stretch where he posted a 1.88 ERA and 0.96 WHIP over 24 innings. The mechanical adjustment isn't a gimmick — it's backed by Statcast data showing improved plate discipline and softer contact rates across the board.
The article also flags David Weathers (an eight-degree arm-angle drop, boosting fastball run and breaking-ball depth) and Kumar Rocker (Rangers), whose slider is breaking 2-3 inches more downward in June and July than his early-season profile, giving him a legitimate swing-and-miss secondary that was previously inconsistent.
Paul Sewald was stripped of the D-backs' closer role after three blown saves and a 7.16 ERA since June 1 — his most recent implosion a squandered 6-3 lead — with Lovullo announcing a matchup-based ninth going forward, leaving Brandyn Garcia first in line. Elsewhere, the Angels remain without a defined closer as Ben Joyce rehabs in Triple-A (1-2 weeks away), and Edwin Díaz returned to save games for the Dodgers on July 29 after an 85-game absence, stepping immediately back into the full-time closer role.
Read the full Ledger →| Closer | Team | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brandyn Garcia / Jonathan Loaisiga | ARI | 🔴 Committee | Sewald officially demoted after 3 BS and a 7.16 ERA since June 1; Lovullo going matchup-based — Garcia leads against lefties, Loaisiga and Kevin Ginkel also in the mix. Two viable saves sources in Arizona now. |
| Ryan Zeferjahn / Sam Bachman / Kirby Yates | LAA | 🔴 Committee | Ben Joyce on Triple-A rehab, expected back in 1-2 weeks, but this three-way committee has no defined closer in the interim. Saves are available but unpredictable. |
| Gregory Soto | CIN | 🟡 Watch | Allowed a game-winning run in a tied ninth on July 30 for his third loss of the season; ERA trending up and the manager has used a committee when Soto has been unavailable. |
| Jordan Romano | COL | 🟡 Watch | Preferred option after a midseason turnaround, but Antonio Senzatela, Jimmy Herget, and Brennan Bernardino remain committee threats. Any stumble could open the role. |
Will Warren scatters four hits over 6.2 scoreless innings as the Yankees shut out the Cubs 2-0, with Spencer Jones and Amed Rosario each hitting solo home runs off Shota Imanaga to provide all the offense.
Just Baseball's Ryan Finkelstein and Clay Snowden break down full MLB trade deadline predictions ahead of the August 3 cutoff, mapping likely buyers and sellers and examining the fantasy impact of where Tarik Skubal and Freddy Peralta land.
Baseball America's live trade deadline hotline tracks all rumors, prospect capital, and deal structures being discussed in real time as contenders finalize negotiations before August 3, including prospect package details for every reported move.
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