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MLB News & Moments You Should Know: 8/4/2024

White Sox lose 19th in a row, just 2 shy of AL record, 4 of MLB mark.

Steve Drumwright
MLB Morning News 8/4/2024

Stay updated on everything baseball with our morning MLB News & Moments articles. We’ve got you covered to keep you in the know.

With the Summer Olympics happening in Paris right now, it isn’t hard to dream of 2028, when Los Angeles will again host the Olympics. And in L.A., baseball will be part of the program, even with an uncertain Olympic future after that (you hope the 2032 Brisbane Olympics will have baseball). What will that roster look like? Hard not to think of someone such as Paul Skenes throwing to Adley Rutschman, with Aaron Judge in the middle of the lineup and Mason Miller closing. What other young stars will emerge in the next four years? Who knows, but it will be fun to watch.

 

Today’s Headlines

 

White Sox Drop 19th Straight

Remember the All-Star break a couple of weeks ago? Well, the Chicago White Sox haven’t won a game since before the break. A few games before. The White Sox lost their 19th game in a row, falling 6-2 to the Minnesota Twins. It is the longest streak since the 2021 Baltimore Orioles dropped 19 consecutive. The Orioles also hold the American League record for most consecutive losses. That came when they started the 1988 season 0-21. The MLB record is 23, set by the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies.

30-30 For Shohei

Believe it or not, Shohei Ohtani did something he had never done before. The Los Angeles Dodgers superstar stole three bases, the second one giving him 30 for the first time in his MLB career (his previous best was 26 in 2021). Paired with his NL-best 33 homers, that gives him his first 30-30 season and well within reach of 40-40. Ohtani is tied for the third-fewest games to reach 30-30, doing it in 108 to match San Francisco Giants outfielder Bobby Bonds in 1973. The Dodgers beat the Oakland A’s 10-0.

Mariners Walk Off Slumping Phillies

Mitch Haniger started the Seattle Mariners‘ comeback, then put the cherry on top. Haniger hit a solo home run in the fifth inning for Seattle’s first run and, after a four-run sixth inning, won it by drawing a bases-loaded walk off new closer Carlos Estévez to beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-4 in 10 innings in a battle of division leaders. The Mariners have taken the first two in the three-game series with the Phillies, who have the best record in the NL but have now dropped six straight.

Reds’ Greene Stays Hot

Hunter Greene was always known for the velocity on his fastball, consistently reaching triple digits. But the Cincinnati Reds‘ right-hander looks to be finally fulfilling the promise from when he was taken No. 2 overall in the 2017 MLB Draft. After watching his team get no-hit the night before by the Giants’ Blake Snell, Greene shut down San Francisco, striking out 11, walking one, and allowing just one hit in six shutout innings in the Reds’ 6-4 triumph. He has allowed just one run in his last 33 innings, including a 21-inning scoreless streak.

Ramirez On A Roll

Reason No. 1 why the Cleveland Guardians have the best record in the AL continues to be José Ramírez. He is on one of those streaks, hitting his fifth homer in five games in a 7-4 loss to the Baltimore Orioles.

Rangers Ready For A Run?

Nobody expected the Texas Rangers to be a dominant team this season. Starting pitching was a concern entering 2024, with reinforcements expected in the middle of the season. Here we are in the early days of August and the defending World Series champs are still within striking distance in the AL West. Thanks to back-to-back homers by Jonah Heim and Leody Taveras, not to mention a strong bullpen performance, the Rangers pulled out a 7-4 win over the Boston Red Sox. While it did stop a three-game losing streak, it felt like one of those victories that could help a team turn a corner. Heim’s three-run blast in the fourth inning tied it, with Taveras putting the Rangers on top.

 

Best Moments From Yesterday

 

Judge’s Chamber

When you are as hot as New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, teams start treating you a bit differently. So after Judge hit his MLB-leading 41st homer of the season in the first inning against the Toronto Blue Jays, Judge was issued an intentional walk in the fourth inning. The quirk? Two were out and nobody was on base. The Jays trailed 4-1 at the time of what would become an 8-3 loss. Judge is the first person to draw an intentional pass with no one on this season and the first since Minnesota Twins rookie catcher Glenn Borgmann in 1972 to do it with two out and nobody on.

Leyland Inspires Tigers

When new Hall of Famer Jim Leyland tells you to go out and effing win, you go out and effing win — even if it takes you 11 innings. Leyland’s No. 10 was retired by the Tigers, and then Wenceel Pérez won it with a two-out single to cap a two-run inning for a 6-5 comeback win over the Kansas City Royals.

POV: Bullpen Entrance

We always see the relievers trot in from the bullpen from the cameras behind home plate. Rarely do we see it from the reliever’s perspective. Jhoan Duran’s entrance to close out the 6-2 win over the White Sox was made extra special by the crowd’s participation. It came on a night when the Twins honored their newest Hall of Famer, Joe Mauer, with a statue at Target Field.

Pillar Doing Pillar Things

Sure, he might be with the Los Angeles Angels now, but that doesn’t mean Kevin Pillar has stopped playing defense.

 

Injuries and Other Moves

 

⚾ Former MLB pitcher Doug Creek died recently following a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 55. Creek, a left-hander, had a 5.32 ERA in 279 career appearances, all but three in relief, over nine seasons with seven teams.

⚾ Atlanta left-hander Max Fried (left forearm neuritis) will be activated from the 15-day injured list and start Sunday’s game.

⚾ Los Angeles Angels second baseman Luis Rengifo went back on the 10-day IL with wrist inflammation. Rengifo was sidelined for three weeks in July with the same issue.

⚾ The Detroit Tigers will call up left-hander Brant Hurter, who will make his MLB debut as a reliever Sunday. Hurter is the Tigers’ No. 14 prospect, according to Baseball America.

 

Articles You Should Read

 

If only for a day, Snell makes Zaidi look really good — John Shea, San Francisco Chronicle

Slap hitters no more: 4 find power with new approach — Mike Petriello, MLB.com

Roku hopes to alter TV sports landscape with MLB deal — Travis Sawchik, The Score

 

Fantasy Baseball Coverage

 

Starting Pitcher Roundup

Hitter Performances

Reliever Ranks

Starting Pitcher Streamers

 

Steve Drumwright

Steve Drumwright is a lifelong baseball fan who retired as a player before he had the chance to be cut from the freshman team in high school. He recovered to become a sportswriter and have a successful journalism career at newspapers in Wisconsin and California. Follow him on Twitter and Threads @DrummerWrites.

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