2026 PLAYER / PITCHER OF THE WEEK #27

Chicago brings a balanced, high-octane attack spearheaded by dynamic superstar Julio Rodríguez and on-base machine Yandy Díaz, with ace Hunter Brown set to anchor the mound. But Hollywood counters with one of the most feared offenses in the league, powered by the towering presence of Aaron Judge alongside switch-hitting sparkplug Ketel Marte.

With two 80-plus-win titans colliding and October seeding hanging in the balance, expect playoff intensity and pure fireworks from the opening pitch.

The Mobsters’ offense backed him with timely power. Jackson Chourio launched a two-run homer in the fourth, followed immediately by an Alex Bregman solo blast in the fifth. Yordan Alvarez chipped in a pair of sacrifice flies to keep the pressure on Drew Rasmussen. Chicago’s bullpen clamped down late to seal the victory.

Final Score: Chicago 5 – Hollywood 1

Win: MacKenzie Gore 6-10 (5.36)
Loss: Drew Rasmussen 13-7 (3.00)

Jack Dreyer earned the win, stifling Chicago over 6.1 sharp innings before departing with a shoulder issue. Roki Sasaki went the distance for the Mobsters, racking up 13 strikeouts but struggling with eight walks. Chicago mustered only a Yandy Díaz solo homer and a late Jackson Chourio sacrifice fly.

Final Score: Hollywood 7 – Chicago 2

Win: Jack Dreyer 6-3 (2.13)
Loss: Roki Sasaki 1-4 (4.28)

Merrill Kelly was in complete control on the mound, allowing just one run on four hits over six quality frames. Riley Greene provided Chicago’s lone spark with a first-inning solo home run.

Final Score: Hollywood 13 – Chicago 1

Win: Jack Dreyer 6-3 (2.13)
Loss: Roki Sasaki 1-4 (4.28)

Hunter Brown settled in after the opening frame, tossing seven innings of three-run ball for his 15th victory. Mobsters manager Stray Corrado aggressively maneuvered through his bullpen over the final two frames, culminating in Aroldis Chapman retiring Luke Keaschall for his 29th save.

Final Score: Chicago 5 – Hollywood 3

Win: Hunter Brown 15-9 (2.24)
Loss: Michael McGreevy 8-11 (3.83)
Save: Aroldis Chapman #29

Landen Roupp kept Chicago off balance across 7.2 innings to earn the win. The Mobsters rallied late behind a Riley Greene solo home run in the eighth and an RBI single from Luis Arraez in the ninth, but Josh Hader entered to retire the final two batters and lock down his 19th save.

Final Score: Hollywood 7 – Chicago 5

Win: Landen Roupp 11-7 (3.18)
Loss: Jesus Luzardo 14-10 (3.78)
Save: Josh Hader #19

The Mobsters answered with a decisive five-run fifth inning, highlighted by a go-ahead, three-run homer from Willy Adames off Dustin May. Riley Greene provided insurance in the sixth with a two-run shot to cap a 4-RBI day for Yandy Díaz and the Chicago offense. MacKenzie Gore earned the win despite a shaky start, while Aroldis Chapman closed out the ninth to secure his 30th save.

Final Score: Chicago 9 – Hollywood 6

Win: MacKenzie Gore 7-10 (5.33)
Loss: Dustin May 7-9 (4.89)
Save: Aroldis Chapman #30

Hollywood flexed its potent lineup throughout the set, powered by a dynamic power surge from Ketel Marte, Aaron Judge, and Adrian Del Castillo—highlighted by a dominant 13-1 blowout in Game 3 behind Merrill Kelly. However, Chicago continually answered the bell. The Mobsters relied on strong outings from MacKenzie Gore (two wins) and ace Hunter Brown, alongside clutch long balls from Jackson Chourio, Willy Adames, and Riley Greene. Closer Aroldis Chapman locked down two crucial saves to slam the door in tight contests, ensuring both 90-plus win titans walked away with three hard-fought victories as October nears.

EXPOS 2 / 5 / 0
COMETS 4 / 8 / 1
WP – Sheehan (4-4)
LP – Baz (6-16)
S – Phillips (17)

EXPOS 3 / 10 / 0
COMETS 0 / 3 / 2
WP – Morton (3-8)
LP – Birdsong (2-9)

EXPOS 8 / 11 / 0
COMETS 3 / 12 / 1
WP – Francis (1-6)
LP – Soriano (6-14)
S – Montero (2)

EXPOS 9 / 12 / 1
COMETS 2 / 10 / 1
WP – Arrighetti (4-4)
LP – Horton (7-7)

EXPOS 1 / 3 / 2
COMETS 4 / 7 / 2
WP – Priester (11-5)
LP – Gray (8-15)
S – Akin (1)

EXPOS 2 / 7 / 0
COMETS 4 / 7 / 1
WP – Wrobleski (4-2)
LP – Borucki (3-1)

Gainesville threatens early with a walk and a throwing error putting runners on 1st and 3rd, but Ryan Jeffers flies out to end the threat. A walk and groundout put a runner at 2nd for GST in the second, but again they fail to score. Cantillo continues to issue the walks, two straight with two outs in the third, but Jeffers fouls out to keep it scoreless.

In the fifth, it’s Gallen’s turn to issue the walks. A pair of singles and a walk loads the bases with no outs. PH Yoan Moncada walks to bring in a run. A Shohei Ohtani sac fly brings in another. Gallen walks two more, loading the bases, then bringing in a run. Gallen is able to get by Byron Buxton and Elly de la Cruz to limit the damage to a 3-0 Fremont lead.

Despite the walk troubles, Cantillo takes a no-hitter into the sixth until Drake Baldwin singles. Yuki Matsui continues the control problems in the sixth, with a single and two walks loading the bases for Fremont. Ohtani can only ground one into a force at home, but Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singles to bring home two more.

Edwin Uceta comes in for Cantillo in the seventh and gives up a walk and HBP with no outs before he is yanked; then Robert Stephenson shuts the Swamp Things down. Jorge Soler adds a consolation HR in the ninth, but Fremont wins 5-1. Gallen becomes the first 20-game loser in the AL.

W: Joey Cantillo (7-2)
L: Zac Gallen (3-20)

HR: GST- Jorge Soler (11); FRE- none

Fremont gets the first real chance in the third as a single and double put two runners on with no outs. Bo Naylor flicks one that Gleyber Torres is able to catch and fire back for a double play. The Swamp Things don’t completely escape the inning, as Shohei Ohtani follows up with a triple to put Fremont up 1-0. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singles him home to make it 2-0. An infield single and a walk loads the bases, then Yoan Moncada puts a charge into one… “SUZUKI races to the wall with his back to the plate … he leaps… whoa, baby! … what a catch! … that’s grand theft homer! … MONCADA was robbed for the third out!”

A walk and error gives GST their first real chance in the fourth, but a groundout ends it. Flaherty struggles in the bottom of the inning with 3 walks to load the bases, but Ohtani grounds into a double play. Senga puts two on in the fifth with a walk and an HBP, but the Swamp Things fail to score.

Gainesville gets two on in the seventh, sending Senga out of the game, but Jared Koenig is able to get Colt Keith to ground out. The Swamp Things are only able to muster a walk over the final two innings, and Fremont wins 2-0. Flaherty struck out 10 in the hard-luck loss.

W: Kodai Senga (7-6)
L: Jack Flaherty (8-14)

HR: none

The Swamp Things get going right away in the first, as a Spencer Steer single and Seiya Suzuki double put two on. Drake Baldwin steps up and singles them in for the early 2-0 lead. A walk and two singles loads the bases for Fremont in the bottom of the inning, and a two-out walk from Petty brings in the first FRE run. Petty strikes out Carlos Correa to end the threat, as the Cannons don’t seem to be able to do much in bases-loaded situations if they don’t get walked.

A walk and infield hit in the fourth gives Gainesville their next chance, but Max Kepler pops out. Fremont gets two on in the bottom of the inning but is also undone by a popout. Fremont gets two on with one out in the bottom of the fifth, but Byron Buxton grounds into the double play. The Cannons get runners at 1st and 3rd in the sixth thanks to a pair of hits and a throwing error, but Petty gets PH Yoan Moncada swinging.

Still with the 2-1 lead, Petty walks Shohei Ohtani to lead off the bottom of the seventh. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. grounds one to Petty, but he fires it past the first baseman for an error. Ohtani flies into home to tie it up 2-2. After an IBB to Byron Buxton, a blooper from Elly de la Cruz brings in two more. Parker Messick comes on in relief and promptly serves up a 2-run HR to PH Teoscar Hernandez making it 6-2 Fremont. A solo HR from Drake Baldwin in the ninth cuts the lead to 6-3, but that is as close as they get as Fremont closes out the win. Hernandez’s pinch-hit HR is the first time Fremont goes deep this series.

W: Carmen Mlodzinski (7-5)
L: Chase Petty (0-3)

HR: GST- Drake Baldwin (10); FRE- Teoscar Hernandez (20)

Fremont is first on the board thanks to Mike Yastrzemski’s solo HR in the second. Gainesville comes back in a big way in the fourth. They get started with a muffed grounder for an error by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. A walk and a passed ball put runners at 2nd and 3rd. After a foul out, a broken-bat single from Addison Barger ties it at 1-1 and leaves runners at 1st and 3rd. An RBI single from Ryan Jeffers gives the Swamp Things the lead 2-1. Max Kepler then thumps one over the fence for a 3-run HR, giving Gainesville the 5-1 lead. A flustered Skubal then gives up a walk and HBP before finally retiring the side.

The Cannons get one back in the bottom of the inning as Byron Buxton homers, making it 5-2. They strike again in the sixth, as two singles and a HBP loads the bases. Mike Yastrzemski delivers with a 2-run single to cut the GST lead to 5-4. With two runners still on, Fernando Cruz comes on and strikes out two to end the inning.

Shohei Ohtani singles in the seventh but is thrown out at second as Guerrero Jr. fails to come through on the hit-and-run for the second time in the game. Drake Baldwin leads off the eighth with a double, then advances to third on a sacrifice. After an intentional walk to Ryan Jeffers, Nick Allen whiffs on the squeeze play, and the runner is out at home. Skubal gets a strikeout to end the inning. The failed insurance run looms big when Buxton’s homer (2nd of the game) in the bottom of the inning ties it up 5-5.

A one-out double from Austin Hedges in the ninth gives Fremont a chance for a walkoff, but the Swamp Things get out of the jam and send it to extra innings. Gainesville gets a runner on with a HBP in the tenth, then Addison Barger doubles with two outs to bring him home for the 6-5 lead. The Cannons threaten with a two-out walk and steal, but Yastrzemski flies out to seal the 6-5 Gainesville win in 10. The loss proves doubly disastrous for Fremont, as I failed to account for the two extra batters faced due to errors, leaving Skubal unable to pitch in the final week of the season.

W: Steven Cruz (4-1)
L: Robert Suarez (6-3)
S: Chase Shugart (6)

HR: GST- Max Kepler (14); FRE- Byron Buxton 2 (32); Mike Yastrzemski (13)

The Swamp Things are first on the board in this one. A walk and single in the second sets up a Nick Allen RBI single for the 1-0 lead. With runners on 1st and 3rd, Max Kepler nearly brings in more, but Byron Buxton makes the shoestring catch. Buxton then leads off the bottom of the inning and moves to second after an infield hit from Mike Yastrzemski. Elly de la Cruz follows with a big three-run HR to give Fremont the 3-1 lead. The Cannons get two more singles in the inning before Vladimir Guerrero Jr. pops out.

Drake Baldwin sends one to the fence in the third; Yastrzemski makes the catch but is knocked out for the rest of the series. Bo Naylor adds to Fremont’s lead in the fourth with a solo HR, making it 4-1. Gainesville gets two on the fifth but leaves empty-handed. A Nick Allen double in the sixth is likewise fruitless.

The Cannons finally put it away in the eighth. A pair of walks puts two on, then PH Nolan Gorman blasts a two-out, three-run homer and Fremont goes up 7-1. A Chas McCormick double is all that the Swamp Things muster in the ninth, and they fall 7-1 to the Cannons. Ohtani survives 5 walks allowed to pick up the victory.

W: Shohei Ohtani (3-3)
L: Ben Brown (2-11)

HR: GST- none; FRE- Elly de la Cruz (18), Nolan Gorman (8); Bo Naylor (7)

Shohei Ohtani leads off the bottom of the first with a double, but Gallen gets a flyout and a pair of strikeouts to close the inning. A walk and HBP in the third puts a runner in scoring position for the Cannons, but Gallen gets the groundout to strand the runners. Instead, it’s the Swamp Things who are the first to score in the fourth inning. Seiya Suzuki‘s solo HR puts them on the board. Drake Baldwin doubles, and Ryan Jeffers singles him in. A throwing error on a grounder leads to runners on 1st and 3rd, and Max Kepler singles in another to make it 3-0 GST.

Fremont comes right back in the bottom of the inning with back-to-back HRs from Elly de la Cruz and Carlos Correa to cut the lead to 3-2. Fremont continues with the long ball in the fifth with a Luis Urias HR to tie it up. Ohtani singles, then moves to third when Vladimir Guerrero Jr. gets on base from Gallen’s throwing error. Byron Buxton singles him home to give the Cannons the 4-3 lead.

Gainesville answers in the top of the sixth with an Addison Barger double and Nick Allen RBI single to tie it 4-4. Allen steals second but is stranded. A single and sacrifice put a runner on for Fremont in the bottom of the inning, then an infield hit puts runners at the corners, but Guerrero Jr. grounds out before any damage is done. Chas McCormick leads off the seventh with a double and moves to third on a sacrifice. Anthony Bender is able to get a foul out and ground out to strand the runner.

Daylen Lile leads off with a triple in the bottom of the inning. After an intentional walk to Buxton, Teoscar Hernandez singles him home to give the Cannons the 5-4 lead. Chase Shugart is then able to get two strikeouts and a flyout to keep it a one-run game. A two-out double in the eighth from Ryan Jeffers is nullified with Robert Suarez striking out Nick Allen to end the inning. After a pair of long flyouts in the ninth, Suarez is able to get Gleyber Torres on a grounder to secure the 5-4 Fremont win. Seiya Suzuki hits HR #35 in the loss. Elly de la Cruz homers in back-to-back games.

W: Anthony Bender (2-3)
L: Chase Shugart (1-1)
S: Robert Suarez (18)

HR: GST- Seiya Suzuki (35); FRE- Elly de la Cruz (19), Carlos Correa (8); Luis Urias (5)

For the final week, Gainesville gets an interleague series at Valdosta, and Fremont hopes to secure the AL East at division-rivals Southwest Detroit.

Cincinnati’s lone win comes from a complete-game, two-hit, four-strikeout effort from Hunter Dobbins. Ironically, the game-winning run comes courtesy of a ground-ball double play. Fitting.