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Before baseball’s first half could say goodbye, some history needed making. Let’s start in the Big Apple with the New York Yankees. In an otherwise ho-hum day in the Bronx, Aaron Judge belted his 350th homer of his career. By doing so, Judge became the fastest player in MLB history to reach the number, beating Mark McGwire’s previous record by 192 games. The former A’s slugger took 1,280 games. Judge needed just 1,088. More history was made in Minnesota as Byron Buxton hit for the cycle. Though it was the 12th cycle in Twins history and the latest since 2019, the real milestone is that it’s the first to happen at Target Field.
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Today’s Headlines
The CG in Complete Game Stands for Crochet, Garrett
When the Red Sox traded for Garrett Crochet, this is what they hoped for: A complete game, nine strikeouts, 14 swinging strikes, and no runs or walks allowed. It was like watching Van Gogh paint the Mona Lisa or seeing the filming of Citizen Kane. It also felt fitting that his battery mate, Carlos Narváez, registered the Red Sox’s only run. The catcher skittered an RBI single in the fourth, and that was it. And frankly, with Crochet pitching, that’s all they needed. The 1-0 win is one of many signs that the Sox have found themselves. The team will ride a nine-game winning streak into Sunday’s first-half finale.
Dodgers Dodge Eighth Straight Loss
Losers of seven straight entering Saturday, things have been rough for the Los Angeles Dodgers. And while every concern wasn’t erased yesterday, the Dodgers did one thing right: They won. Credit for that mostly goes to the team’s pitching. Shohei Ohtani delivered three strong innings, Emmet Sheehan was beautiful as the bulk man, and Alex Vesia and Tanner Scott sealed things with peaceful eighths and ninths. Offensively, the Dodgers didn’t go to war. The team scored just two runs all afternoon and went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position. Nonetheless, the 2-1 win is a welcome feeling.
Astroworld
The Houston Astros took a winding road toward last night’s 5-4 win. They required a Josh Hader blown save, a scoreless 10th, and an 11th-inning deficit. Most of all, they needed a hero. Veteran infielder Zack Short slid into the role with practiced grace and performed the walk-off hit, peppering a sinker down the right-field line. Cam Smith scored easily while the rest of the Astros serenaded Short with water, slaps on the back, and hugs. Houston is 56-39 with one game to go.
Reds Squeeze Past Rockies
The Rockies recorded one error on Saturday. Unfortunately for them, it came at the worst possible time. With Cincinnati’s Will Benson on third, Noelvi Marte hit a simple grounder to Orlando Arcia at second. All Arcia needed to do was throw home to try and gun the running Benson down at the plate. Yet Arcia couldn’t even do that. The ball escaped his grasp, fell back onto the infield dirt, and Benson slid home harmlessly for a 4-3 victory. It’s a Thank-God level win for the Reds and a Why-Me level loss for a Rockies fanbase that’s had about 50 of them this season.
Brewers Battle Back
Ahead 5-3 and with closer Kyle Finnegan on the hill, the Washington Nationals felt confident entering the bottom of the ninth. But the Milwaukee Brewers stole it at-bat-by-at-bay en route to a 6-5 walk-off win. It started innocently enough with a leadoff single from Jackson Chourio. It then grew serious with a walk from Christian Yelich. Andrew Vaughn followed and fired a Finnegan fastball deep into center for a game-tying double. Though Vaughn wasn’t on the basepaths for the rest of the comeback, being subbed for Andruw Monasterio, he had front-row tickets in the dugout to Caleb Durbin’s walk-off single. Milwaukee’s now won six straight and is riding high headed into the All-Star Break.
Atlanta Edges It Out
Atlanta and St. Louis engaged in a back-and-forth that ended with the latter folding. For that, Atlanta has two swings to thank. The first comes from Sean Murphy, and it was a doozy. Down 3-5 in the bottom of the eighth, Atlanta’s catcher catapulted a Phil Maton cutter for a three-run shot. Later, after St. Louis tied the game in the eighth, came Atlanta’s second knock, this courtesy of Jurickson Profar. The outfielder skipped a grounder with runners on the corners that was deep enough to score Atlanta the lead. Raisel Iglesias handled the rest, reeling in a comeback 6-5 win.
Seattle Scores Big
Casey Mize looked nothing like an All-Star yesterday, and he shockingly has the Seattle Mariners to blame for it. Needing just six hits and a walk, the M’s scored six on Detroit’s starter and knocked him out after just three innings pitched. Luke Raley specifically delivered the deathblow, darting a splitter into the right-field seats for a three-run home run. Not content yet, Seattle kept scoring, ending things finally 15-7. High scores are a new, albeit welcome development for this Seattle team that’s averaging 8.2 runs over its last five games.
All-Star Studs Set
The All-Star pitching matchup is set. Detroit Tigers ace and reigning Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal will get things going for the AL. It’s the no-brainer of no-brainers for manager Aaron Boone. The right-hander is rocking a 10-3 record, 2.23 ERA, and a 1.22 WHIP with 153 strikeouts over 19 starts. NL manager Dave Roberts wasn’t pressed for an answer either and will ride with Pittsburgh Pirates star Paul Skenes. Skenes, at just 23 years old, will start for the NL for the second straight year. Despite his 4-8 record, Skenes touts a 2.01 ERA and 0.93 WHIP with 131 strikeouts over his 20 starts. The MLB All-Star Game is this Tuesday.
The Future Is Now
The MLB Futures Game offers fans a first-hand look at tomorrow’s promise. And no one showed more of it yesterday than Dodgers prospect and Futures Game MVP Josue De Paula. The 20-year-old outfielder came to the dish with the NL down 2-0 and got all of a Noah Schultz breaking ball for a three-run bomb. The hit would go a long way in deciding the 4-2 final score. Other standouts include Arizona outfield prospect Slade Caldwell for a sweet catch, Mets pitching prospect Jonah Tong, who sat the AL down one-two-three, and Mariners switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje. Cijntje, as the name implies, pitched with his left and right hands and made Futures Game history doing so.
Best Moments From Yesterday
Judge Hits 350
Here’s Aaron Judge with his record-breaking 350th home run. And as if that weren’t enough, the longball was Judge’s 34th of the season, breaking his franchise record of most homers before the All-Star break.
Career home run No. 350 for Aaron Judge! 👨⚖️ pic.twitter.com/UNoIs97b07
— MLB (@MLB) July 12, 2025
Overruled
Speaking of Judge, Pete Crow-Armstrong got his revenge on Saturday.
Pete Crow-Armstrong takes a hit away from Aaron Judge❗️ pic.twitter.com/YSZnjpCnbd
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) July 12, 2025
Bux in the Clutch
If you score 12 runs, someone’s doing damage. For the Twins, it was Byron Buxton. The star outfielder went 5-5 and, with this seventh-inning homer, hit for the cycle.
THE HOME RUN THAT COMPLETED BYRON BUXTON'S CYCLE!!!! pic.twitter.com/bhFUoSYDaT
— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) July 12, 2025
Merrill the Monster
Zack Wheeler is usually the immovable object. Unfortunately for him, Padres outfielder Jackson Merrill was an impossible force.
Jackson Merrill hits his SECOND game-tying homer of the night! pic.twitter.com/AWqt7debtf
— MLB (@MLB) July 13, 2025
Soto Splash and a Skip
Juan Soto sent this one a scorching 435 feet. Thankfully, he let it cool off afterward.
Juan Soto into the FOUNTAINS 😤 pic.twitter.com/a4pzKvqdNo
— MLB (@MLB) July 12, 2025
Toro, Toro, Toro
Garrett Crochet tossed a shutout with some help from Abraham Toro.
After further review… WHAT A PLAY BY TORO 😤 pic.twitter.com/JMHU2mSIcK
— NESN (@NESN) July 12, 2025
Injuries and Other Moves
⚾ Though Yankees ace Max Fried left Saturday’s match early, ‘tis but a flesh wound. The starter had a blister on his left index finger he couldn’t pitch through it after three innings. Fried is uncertain how the ailment will heal but hopes it’ll be resolved following the All-Star break.
⚾ Atlanta infielder Austin Riley is going to the 10-day IL with an abdominal strain, the team announced on Saturday. Riley’s injury is the latest for an Atlanta team that’s been snakebit this season, previously losing key contributors Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, and Reynaldo López. Riley is very much a part of that list, hitting .274/.324/.441 with 14 home runs, 48 RBIs, and a .765 OPS. Other moves include the promotion of pitcher Joey Wentz and infielder Nacho Alvarez Jr., while pitcher Nathan Wiles went down to Triple-A.
⚾ San Francisco Giants slugger Rafael Devers has been struggling. Now we might know why. According to Janie McCauley of the Associated Press, Devers is battling through a disk injury in his lower back. The Giants hope Devers will avoid the IL but aren’t ruling out the possibility.
⚾ The Boston Red Sox announced that rookie starter Hunter Dobbins tore his ACL during his last start and will subsequently miss the rest of the 2024 season. The tear came innocuously on a routine play as Dobbins covered first base for an easy out. The timing of it all is especially cruel, as Dobbins just returned from the 15-day IL. With the right-hander gone, the Sox and their rotation will turn to Richard Fitts.
⚾ The hits keep coming for the New York Mets and their pitchers. The team opened Saturday with the announcement that reliever Dedniel Núñez will undergo Tommy John Surgery and miss the rest of this season and most of next. More than a loss for the Mets, it’s a personal nightmare for Nunez, who already underwent the surgery once in his career and now has to rehab from it again.
⚾The Cincinnati Reds opened Saturday with a swap. Outfielder Jake Fraley is off the 10-day IL, and infielder Christian Encarnacion-Strand is going down to Triple-A.
Articles You Should Read
2025 MLB All-Star Game: Building All-Time Lineups For All 30 Teams – Fox Sports.
Mock draft: MLB Pipeline’s final predictions – MLB.com, Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis
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