2026 PLAYER / PITCHER OF THE WEEK #24

Chicago broke the game open in the 6th inning with a staggering power display, as Riley Greene, Jackson Chourio, and Xavier Edwards all hit home runs off relief pitcher Steven Okert. Alex Bregman added a late solo shot in the 8th to seal the victory. Meanwhile, Columbus starter Will Warren took the loss, allowing two runs over five innings.

Final Score: Chicago 7 – Columbus 1

Win: Roki Sasaki 1-3 (3.34)
Loss: Will Warren 4-11 (3.73)

Chicago struck early as Yordan Alvarez, Riley Greene, and Jackson Chourio all swatted home runs off Columbus starter Nathan Eovaldi, who surrendered four big flies before exiting in the 5th inning. Alvarez capped off his night with a two-run shot in the 7th to slam the door shut. On the mound, Chicago starter MacKenzie Gore delivered six solid innings with six strikeouts, allowing just two runs to claim the victory.

Final Score: Chicago 7 – Columbus 2

Win: MacKenzie Gore 4-9 (6.25)
Loss: Nathan Eovaldi 10-4 (2.01)

Columbus did all of its damage via the long ball, as Chicago starter Jesus Luzardo endured a bizarre outing where he gave up each run scored by Columbus on a solo home run—five in total. Jordan Beck, Chase Meidroth, Ty France, Dansby Swanson, and Nathan Lukes each launched solo shots against Luzardo, who suffered his eighth loss of the season.

Columbus starter Brayan Bello earned the win after taking a no-hitter into the 6th inning, ultimately allowing just one run over 6.2 innings. Abner Uribe slammed the door in the 9th to nail down his 30th save.

Final Score: Columbus 5 – Chicago 3

Win: Brayan Bello 6-9 (4.59)
Loss: Jesus Luzardo 13-8 (3.55)
Save: Abner Uribe #30

Hunter Brown delivered a dominant performance on the mound, hurling seven shutout innings while allowing just two hits and striking out six to pick up his 12th win of the season. After five scoreless frames, Chicago broke the game wide open in the late innings. Willy Adames led the offensive surge with a pair of home runs and four RBIs, while Alex Bregman added a bases-clearing three-run triple during an explosive six-run 7th inning. Columbus starter David Peterson took the loss.

Final Score: Chicago 10 – Columbus 0

Win: Hunter Brown 12-9 (2.24)
Loss: David Peterson 11-10 (3.87)

Chicago starter Noah Cameron delivered a dominant performance, pitching eight brilliant innings of three-hit ball with four strikeouts to pick up his 13th victory. The Mobsters broke the game wide open during a massive six-run 6th inning, highlighted by a two-run home run from Yordan Alvarez and a three-run dinger by Yandy Diaz. Jackson Chourio also delivered early damage with a two-run triple in the 2nd. Columbus starter Shane Smith took the loss, surrendering three runs over 4.2 innings.

Final Score: Chicago 11 – Columbus 2

Win: Noah Cameron 13-4 (2.59)
Loss: Shane Smith 12-8 (3.45)

On the mound, Chicago starters completely neutralized Columbus’ dangerous lineup. Rookie sensation Roki Sasaki set the tone by capturing his first career MWBL win, while rotation aces Hunter Brown and Noah Cameron delivered dominant gems—combining for 15 innings and allowing zero earned runs in 10-0 and 11-2 blowout victories. Columbus’ lone bright spot came in Game 3, where they launched five solo home runs to secure a 5-3 win, but Chicago ultimately commanded the series in emphatic fashion.

DALLAS, TX — The Fremont Cannons used a devastating first inning and dominant pitching from Tarik Skubal to defeat the Dallas Cougars 4-1 in the first game of a six-game set at The Park on Thursday.

The Turning Point: Top of the 1st The game was effectively decided before the Cougars even came to bat. Dallas starter Lucas Giolito, aiming for his 12th victory, struggled immediately with command and velocity.

On just the second pitch of the game, Shohei OHTANI launched a towering solo home run to right field, his 38th of the season, giving the Cannons a quick 1-0 lead.

The nightmare inning continued for Giolito. Vladimir Jr. Guerrero reached on an error by first baseman Kyle Manzardo, and Daylen Lile followed with a hit-by-pitch. Two batters later, Byron BUXTON broke an 0-for-13 homerless streak by crushing a three-run shot to deepest center field, extending Fremont’s lead to 4-0.

Although Giolito settled down to retire the side, the four-run deficit proved insurmountable against the Fremont pitching staff.

Skubal’s Masterclass Fremont starter Tarik Skubal was untouchable. Entering the game as the league leader in ERA, the left-hander stifled the potent Cougars offense, which leads the league in batting average and runs scored.

Skubal carried a perfect game into the third inning and a no-hitter into the fourth. He allowed only two hits in his seven brilliant innings of work, racking up nine strikeouts and issuing zero walks. His only blemish was a solo home run to Kyle MANZARDO (his 26th) in the bottom of the third, which cut the lead to 4-1.

The Giolito-Suter Response After the disastrous first, Lucas Giolito settled in and provided quality innings, keeping Dallas within striking distance. He allowed only one more hit after the first inning, finishing his night with 7 strikeouts over 6.0 innings of work.

Reliever Brent Suter tossed a scoreless seventh, highlighted by a sharp defensive play in which he snared a line drive and doubled off OHTANI at second base. Tristan Beck also pitched well in relief for the Cougars, throwing two scoreless frames.

Missed Opportunities The Cougars’ offense could not muster a rally against Skubal or Cannons closer Anthony Bender, who retired the side in order in the eighth.

The Cannons threatened in the top of the eighth after Elly De La Cruz singled and stole second. However, the inning ended on an aggressive double steal attempt when Bo Naylor struck out swinging and Victor Caratini threw out De La Cruz trying to advance to third.

Final Score: Fremont Cannons 4, Dallas Cougars 1
Winning Pitcher: Tarik SKUBAL (14-6) Losing Pitcher: Lucas GIOLITO (11-6)
Key Homers (Fremont): Shohei OHTANI (38), Byron BUXTON (29) Key Homers (Dallas): Kyle MANZARDO (26)

DALLAS — It took four hours and fifteen minutes, but the Dallas Cougars finally put an end to a historic pitchers’ duel on Tuesday, defeating the Fremont Cannons 3-2 on a walk-off RBI single by Miguel Rojas in the bottom of the 15th inning.

A Pitcher’s Duel to Start The afternoon began as a crisp matchup between starters Emerson Hancock (Dallas) and Carmen Mlodzinski (Fremont). Dallas struck first in the bottom of the first. Jarren Duran and Miguel Rojas opened with consecutive singles, and Sal Frelick walked to load the bases. Nick Kurtz grounded into a double play, but Rojas scored for an early 1-0 lead.

Fremont immediately responded in the top of the second. Mike Yastrzemski walked, followed by singles from Carlos Correa and Bo Naylor to load the bases. However, Hancock induced Luis Urias to ground into a crucial 6-4-3 double play, limiting the damage to zero and preserving the slim lead.

Mlodzinski and Hancock settled into a rhythm through the middle innings. Fremont finally broke through in the top of the fifth. After a one-out walk to Urias, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. delivered a clutch two-out double down the left-field line, tying the game at 1-1. Hancock kept the game tied in the seventh by striking out Guerrero Jr., his ninth strikeout of the afternoon.

Bullpen Dominance and Missed Chances Following the departure of the starters after seven strong innings apiece, the bullpens took center stage, turning the contest into a high-stakes game of chicken where scoring opportunities were scarce and squandered. The theme of the evening was clearly runners left on base.

Through the first 14 innings, the teams combined to leave nearly two dozen runners on base. Fremont wasted a leadoff triple by Daylen Lile in the 10th. Dallas failed to capitalize on a leadoff walk in the 12th. The Cannons also squandered a two-out double by Elly De La Cruz in the 13th, and Dallas stranded a two-out double by Duran in the 15th.

Defensive Gems and Baserunning Blunders The stalemate was maintained by stellar defense on both sides. Dallas first baseman Kyle Manzardo made a spectacular play in the ninth, reaching over the railing to steal a foul ball from a fan for the first out of the inning.

Baserunning also played a pivotal role. In the seventh, Dallas’ Andres Gimenez stole second to put the go-ahead run in scoring position with two outs, but Rojas was caught looking to end the threat. Fremont also utilized their speed, with Buxton stealing second in the eighth and Shohei Ohtani swiping second in the 12th, but neither could convert the scoring chance into a run.

The 15th Inning Breakthrough The marathon finally ended in the bottom of the 15th. With two outs and nobody on base, Cougars catalyst Jarren Duran sparked the decisive rally with a clutch double into the right-center gap against Fremont’s fifth pitcher of the night, Robert Stephenson (0-1).

That set the stage for Rojas. Having already collected three hits on the day, the veteran right-hander lined a 1-2 fastball into right field. Cannons outfielder Byron Buxton played the long bounce, but Duran, running on contact, never broke stride and slid home safely ahead of the throw, sending the home dugout and the remaining fans into a frenzy.

Arms Go the Distance The game saw a combined 12 pitchers used. Dallas reliever Victor Vodnik (4-4) was masterful, twirling three hitless, shutout innings to pick up the victory. Fremont’s bullpen, utilizing a parade of arms including Will Vest, Anthony Bender, and ultimately Stephenson, matched them zero for zero until the final moments.

Rojas finished the marathon 4-for-7 with the game-winning RBI. Duran went 3-for-7 with two runs scored, including the winner. For Fremont, Vladimir Jr. Guerrero tallied three hits in a losing effort, and Mike Yastrzemski reached base four times via walks.

The Cannons and Cougars have now split the first two games of their six-game series.
FINAL SCORE:CANNONS 2, COUGARS 3 (15 innings)WP: Victor Vodnik (4-4) LP: Robert Stephenson (0-1)

DALLAS — Victor Caratini launched a dramatic three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth inning, but the Dallas Cougars’ comeback bid fell short in a 7-5 loss to the Fremont Cannons on Tuesday night at the park.

Cannons Strike Early and Often Fremont jumped out to an early lead against Corbin, who struggled with command. In the top of the first, Corbin allowed a leadoff single to Shohei Ohtani and a walk to Vladimir Jr. Guerrero. After Elly De La Cruz reached on an infield single to load the bases, Corbin escaped the jam by inducing Yoan Moncada into an inning-ending double play.

However, the Cannons broke through in the fourth. Following a leadoff double by Byron Buxton, Teoscar Hernandez delivered a crushing two-run double to give Fremont a 2-0 lead. Nolan Gorman followed with an RBI single, extending the margin to 3-0.

Dallas gifted the Cannons two more runs in the fifth. With runners on second and third and two outs, catcher Victor Caratini committed a costly throwing error on a chopper in front of the plate, allowing both Ohtani and Buxton to score, making it a 5-0 game. Moncada added an RBI single later in the inning to cap the rally.

Cantillo Shuts Down Dallas On the mound for Fremont, left-hander Joey Cantillo (5-2) turned in a dominant performance. He stifled the potent Cougars offense, allowing just two runs on two hits over seven strong innings, while striking out seven.

Dallas managed little against Cantillo until the fifth, when Kyle Manzardo launched a solo home run to right field, his 27th of the season. The Cougars added another run in the seventh on an RBI sacrifice fly by Andy PAGES.

Ohtani capped the scoring for Fremont with a solo blast in the sixth, his 39th home run of the year.
Corbin took the loss, lasting 5.1 innings and giving up six runs (four earned) on nine hits. Tristan Beck was solid in relief for Dallas, throwing 1.2 hitless innings.

Cannons Pull Away Late Fremont held a comfortable 6-2 advantage entering the ninth. The Cannons extended their margin in the top of the frame against Cougars reliever Daniel Palencia. Shohei Ohtani reached on an error by pitcher Brent Suter and later scored on a clutch RBI single by Elly De La Cruz, pushing the lead to 7-2.

Caratini Makes It Interesting Facing Cannons closer Robert Stephenson in the bottom of the ninth, the Cougars showed life. With one out, Carlos Cortes lined a single into right field. After Andy Pages struck out, Kyle Manzardo drew a walk to keep the inning alive.

Caratini followed by crushing a fastball deep over the right-field wall for a three-run homer, cutting the deficit to 7-5. However, Stephenson recovered to retire Andres Gimenez on a groundout to second, ending the threat and the game.

FINAL SCORE:CANNONS 7, COUGARS 5
WP: Joey Cantillo (5-2) LP: Patrick Corbin (9-8) SV: Robert Stephenson (1)
Key Homers (Fremont): Shohei OHTANI (39), Key Homers (Dallas): Kyle MANZARDO (27), Victor CARATINI (13)

DALLAS — Carlos Rodon cemented his status as the hottest pitcher in baseball on Tuesday night, turning in another dominant performance to lead the Fremont Cannons to a 4-0 shutout victory over the Dallas Cougars at the park.

Rodon (17-6) allowed just three hits over seven shutout innings, striking out nine without issuing a walk.
De La Cruz and Correa Provide Early Cushion The Cannons wasted no time jumping on Dallas starter Adrian Houser (9-6). After a one-out walk to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and a single by Daylen Lile in the top of the first, shortstop Elly De La Cruz stepped up with two outs and crushed a towering three-run home run to right field, his 15th of the year, giving Fremont a quick 3-0 lead.

Fremont added to the margin in the second inning when Carlos Correa connected for a solo shot to deep left-center, his sixth homer of the season, making it 4-0.

Houser settled in after the rocky start, allowing only that unearned run over his remaining four innings of work, but the early four-run deficit proved to be insurmountable for the Dallas offense.

Rodon and Bullpen Finish the Job Rodon was in complete control throughout his outing, allowing only singles to Jarren Duran in the first and Andres Gimenez in the sixth, along with a triple by Josh Jung in the fifth. The Cougars’ only real threat against Rodon came in that fifth inning when Jung tripled with one away, but Rodon responded by retiring Victor Caratini on a fly ball and striking out Warming Bernabel to escape the jam.

Fremont’s bullpen continued the shutout bid. Will Vest worked a perfect eighth inning, and Victor Vodnik allowed a ninth-inning single to Jonah Heim before reliever Brent SUTER came in to strike out Shohei Ohtani with a runner on third to end the top of the ninth.

In the bottom of the ninth, Cannons reliever Jared Koenig worked around a one-out single by Heim, retiring Luis E. Matos and Brooks LEE to secure the victory and a combined three-hitter.

With the win, the Cannons (72-64) have now taken three of the first four games in the six-game series against the wild-card leading Cougars (82-54).

FINAL SCORE:CANNONS 4, COUGARS 0WP: Carlos Rodon (17-6) LP: Adrian Houser (9-6)
Key Homers (Fremont): Elly DE LA CRUZ (15), Carlos CORREA (6)

DALLAS — Brooks Lee launched a two-run home run, and left-hander Kris BUBIC turned in a stellar pitching performance as the Dallas Cougars defeated the Fremont Cannons 4-1 on Tuesday night at the park.
Lee, Rojas Provide Support for Bubic Dallas jumped on Cannons starter Kodai Senga early. In the bottom of the first, Jarren DURAN led off with a triple and scored on a Miguel ROJAS single to give the Cougars a quick 1-0 lead.

The Cougars added another run in the fifth. DURAN doubled with one out and later scored on a sacrifice fly by ROJAS, extending the margin to 2-0.

Lee broke the game open in the sixth with a towering two-run blast to center field, his 15th home run of the season, pushing the Dallas lead to 4-1.

Bubic Stifles Fremont On the mound, BUBIC (6-2) was nearly untouchable. The left-hander carried a shutout into the sixth inning and stifled the Cannons’ offense throughout his outing, allowing just one run on five hits while racking up 14 strikeouts over 6.1 innings of work.

Garrett WHITLOCK and Will VEST combined to hold the Cougars hitless over the final 2.2 innings of relief, but the damage had already been done.

Cannons Rally Falls Short Trailing 4-1 entering the eighth, the Cannons mounted a comeback against Cougars reliever Adrian Morejon. Shohei Ohtani led off with a triple and scored on a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. RBI single. Following a Byron Buxton fielder’s choice, Yoan Moncada singled to put the tying runs on base with two outs. However, manager Jarl Jackson turned to closer Daniel Palencia, who struck out Teoscar Hernandez to end the threat.

Daniel Palencia struck out Shohei Ohtani and induced a game-ending strikeout from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the top of the ninth inning, securing a tense 4-2 victory for the Dallas Cougars over the Fremont Cannons on Tuesday night.

FINAL SCORE:COUGARS 4, CANNONS 2
WP: Kris Bubic (6-2) LP: Kodai Senga (5-6) SV: Daniel Palencia (30)
Key Homers (Dallas): Brooks LEE (15)

DALLAS — A tense pitchers’ duel turned into a Fremont offensive outburst in extra innings as the Cannons erupted for five runs in the 10th to pull away for a 7-2 victory over the Dallas Cougars on Saturday.
After the teams battled through nine innings tied at 2-2, Shohei Ohtani wasted no time breaking the deadlock. Leading off the 10th against Brent Suter, Ohtani launched his 40th home run of the season into the right-center field seats, giving Fremont a 3-2 lead.

The Cannons weren’t finished.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. followed with a single, Daylen Lile added another base hit, and Elly De La Cruz delivered the knockout blow with a towering three-run homer, his 16th of the season, extending the lead to 6-2. Mike Yastrzemski doubled later in the inning before Joey Bart capped the five-run rally with an RBI single, giving Fremont a commanding 7-2 advantage.

The Cannons had taken the game’s first lead in the second inning. After De La Cruz walked and Yastrzemski singled, both runners advanced into scoring position. Carlos Correa then lined a two-run single to center, scoring both runners for an early 2-0 edge.

Dallas finally broke through in the fifth when Nick Kurtz crushed his 33rd home run of the year, trimming the deficit to 2-1. The Cougars evened the score an inning later after Miguel Rojas walked, Jarren Duran was hit by a pitch, and Brooks Lee singled to load the bases. Ramon Laureano lifted a sacrifice fly to center, allowing Rojas to score the tying run.

That was all the offense Dallas could muster.

Cannons ace Tarik Skubal was outstanding despite settling for a no-decision. The left-hander allowed just two hits and two runs over seven innings while striking out eight. He escaped several jams, including a spectacular defensive highlight in the third when Byron Buxton robbed Jonah Heim of a home run with a leaping catch at the right-field wall.

Lucas Giolito matched Skubal for much of the afternoon, scattering five hits and allowing two runs over eight strong innings while striking out five.

Fremont’s bullpen slammed the door from there. Anthony Bender worked a scoreless eighth, Jared Koenig earned the victory with a perfect ninth, and Will Vest navigated around two walks in the 10th to finish off the win.

Correa led the Cannons’ offense, going 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBIs. Yastrzemski collected two hits and scored three times, while Guerrero added two hits. Ohtani’s milestone 40th homer and De La Cruz’s decisive three-run blast highlighted Fremont’s 11-hit attack.

Kurtz accounted for one of Dallas’ three hits with his solo homer, while Rojas added a double and Lee chipped in a single.

The victory gave Fremont four wins in the six-game series and improved the Cannons to 73-65 on the season, while Dallas dropped to 42-22 at home with the extra-inning loss.

FINAL SCORE: COUGARS 4, CANNONS 2
WP: Jared Koenig (3-3) LP: Brent Suter (2-2)
Key Homers (Fremont): Shohei OHTANI (40), Elly DE LA CRUZ (16) (Dallas): Nick Kurtz (33)

ROAD RUNNERS 2 / 6 / 1
COMETS 1 / 5 / 1
WP – Bassitt (9-10)
LP – Birdsong (2-8)
S – Maton (4)

ROAD RUNNERS 0 / 1 / 1
COMETS 3 / 8 / 0
WP – Sheehan (2-4)
LP – Sugano (4-21)
S – Suarez (15)

ROAD RUNNERS 3 / 7 / 2
COMETS 6 / 8 / 2
WP – Wrobleski (2-2)
LP – Smith-Shawver (1-3)
S – Suarez (16)

ROAD RUNNERS 7 / 6 / 1
COMETS 3 / 5 / 0
WP – Woo (10-6)
LP – Priester (8-5)

ROAD RUNNERS 6 / 13 / 2
COMETS 13 / 15 / 1
WP – Soriano (6-13)
LP – Burke (4-15)

ROAD RUNNERS 4 / 8 / 0
COMETS 2 / 6 / 2
WP – Bassitt (10-10)
LP – Rogers (3-6)
S – Maton (5)

Bottle Rockets Rally from Four-Run Deficit to Take Game 2

In a wild back-and-forth affair, Tijuana erased a 4-0 deficit to defeat Motor City 7-6 and take a 2-0 series lead. The Muscle jumped ahead early on Jackson Holliday‘s two-run homer and Ceddanne Rafaela‘s two-run shot in the second inning. But Tijuana answered with seven runs in the bottom of the second, highlighted by Isaac Paredes‘ three-run homer, to take a 7-4 lead. Motor City fought back, closing to 7-6 in the sixth, but couldn’t complete the comeback. Spencer Strider was roughed up for 5 runs in 4 innings for Tijuana. Marcus Stroman earned the win in relief, while Ben Casparius took the loss.