Sports
Pirates add infielder for flexibility ahead of Brewers doubleheader
Jun 30, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Chicago White Sox first baseman Jacob Gonzalez (7) doubles in the seventh inning against the Chicago White Sox at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Lexi Thompson-Imagn Images The Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t stand pat on Friday despite seeing their scheduled series opener against the visiting Milwaukee Brewers rained out.
Pittsburgh sent the 34th overall pick in the upcoming MLB Draft and left-hander Jaden Woods to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for infielder Jacob Gonzalez and left-handed pitcher Brandon Eisert. The trade will give the Pirates some flexibility as they deal with the absence of infielder Konnor Griffin (torn finger tendon).
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington was pleased with the trade.
“We believe in this team and discussed multiple ways to use the comp pick to strengthen it,” Cherington said.
“Jacob Gonzalez can complement Nick Gonzales and Jared Triolo on the left side of the infield in Konnor Griffin’s absence. He’s also a versatile left-handed hitter who has taken significant steps this season and who we believe in long-term.
“Brandon Eisert makes us even deeper in left-handed relief.”
Back to matters on the field, the starters for Saturday’s first game of the doubleheader were not immediately known, although Pirates All-Star Braxton Ashcraft (9-3, 3.24 ERA) likely will square off against fellow right-hander Brandon Sproat (3-4, 5.13) of the Brewers.
Milwaukee planned to send rookie left-hander Shane Drohan (4-2, 2.97 ERA) to the mound for Game 2 against Pittsburgh right-hander Bubba Chandler (3-8, 4.82).
Ashcraft has given the Pirates such length this season, pitching at least six innings in 12 of his 18 starts. He has 122 strikeouts over 108 1/3 innings this season.
“He’s one of the best pitchers in the game, and I don’t really think you can argue that,” teammate Paul Skenes said about Ashcraft. “All the numbers say that, too. Obviously, he’s having a good year. Recognition and going to the All-Star Game is not the end-all, be-all by any means. But he deserves it, and he’s not the only one.”
Ashcraft was named an All-Star replacement with Skenes unable to pitch in the Midsummer Classic since he is scheduled to start this Sunday. Pittsburgh is 12-6 this season in games Ashcraft starts, and he has allowed two runs or fewer in 13 of his 18 starts.
Ashcraft will make his second career start against Milwaukee. On June 23 of last year, he received a no-decision after allowing one hit over three scoreless innings.
The Brewers have won each of the past four times Sproat has pitched. That includes Sproat’s most recent outing this past Sunday against Arizona, which was not his most efficient. Sproat, who has never faced the Pirates, threw 92 pitches in four innings, walked three, struck out four and gave up one run on five hits in his team’s 3-2 win.
While Milwaukee did get quality starts from most of its rotation during its four wins against the St. Louis Cardinals this week, it could use a better performance from Sproat.
The Brewers continue to find ways to win, even though they entered Thursday’s game batting .209 as a team with runners in scoring position over a 17-game stretch, which ranked 28th out of 30 MLB teams.
“We find a way in ‘winning time’ in those last few innings to push something across,” Milwaukee designated hitter/outfielder Christian Yelich said. “We manufacture something even though things aren’t going our way the last few weeks. You run into those stretches during a baseball season, and you have to find ways to survive them.”
Drohan picked up his first win in nearly one month on Monday after allowing three runs (one earned) over six innings in a 4-3 victory over the Cardinals. In his second career game back in April, he faced the Pirates and pitched the sixth through ninth innings of a 6-0 loss, surrendering three runs (one earned) on four hits.
Chandler endured his second straight rough outing on Sunday after yielding four runs on six hits and four walks in four innings of a no-decision versus the Washington Nationals. He was blitzed in his lone career meeting with Milwaukee, permitting nine runs on nine hits in 2 2/3 innings of a 10-2 loss on Sept. 7.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Wyatt Langford helps Rangers uncork 4-run 8th to beat Astros
Jul 10, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers left fielder Wyatt Langford (36) bats against the Houston Astros during the first inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Wyatt Langford slugged a tiebreaking home run as the Texas Rangers exploded for four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning en route to a 7-3 win over the Houston Astros on Friday in Arlington, Texas.
Langford answered the Astros’ rally from a three-run deficit with his ninth homer of the season. He drilled a 1-0 fastball from left-handed reliever Bryan King 404 feet to left field, marking the first homer King (2-2) has allowed to a right-handed hitter this season.
Three batters later, Jake Burger joined Langford in that exclusive category. After Langford supplied the Rangers with a 4-3 lead, King walked Josh Jung and surrendered a single to Brandon Nimmo before Burger smacked his 16th homer to left-center. King had not allowed more than one run since April 21 before Texas hung a four-spot on him.
Trailing 3-0 entering the top of the sixth, the Astros mounted their comeback against Rangers starter Cal Quantrill, who had retired eight consecutive batters. Yordan Alvarez blasted his 30th home run of the season and 200th of his career leading off the sixth, a 455-foot shot to right.
Yainer Diaz clubbed a two-run homer off Texas reliever Chris Martin that knotted the score at 3-3 in the seventh.
Quantrill stranded Jeremy Pena and Isaac Paredes in the first after Pena was doubled off at second base on a Christian Walker flyout to left field. Jose Altuve and LaMonte Wade Jr. stroked consecutive singles to open the second, only for Quantrill to retire the subsequent three batters.
After Alvarez singled with one out in the third, Quantrill hit his stride before Alvarez struck a bigger blow. Quantrill allowed one run on five hits and one walk with one strikeout in six innings.
The Rangers struck for two runs in the bottom of the first against Astros right-hander Hunter Brown. Nimmo plated Langford on a single and Burger followed with a run-scoring groundout that drove home Jung.
Joc Pederson stretched that lead to 3-0 with his leadoff homer in the fifth, his 15th of the season.
Brown labored but completed six innings, allowing three runs on four hits with five walks and four strikeouts.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Aaron Donald works out with Rams as comeback rumors swirl
Former Pittsburgh Panther and retired NFL defensive tackle Aaron Donald waves to the crowd while walking out onto the field during his jersey number retirement ceremony during halftime of the Pittsburgh Panthers vs Notre Dame Fighting Irish game at Acrisure Stadium in Pittsburgh, PA on November 15, 2025. Former Los Angeles Rams All-Pro Aaron Donald has made rumblings about a potential comeback in 2026 after the 10-time Pro Bowler retired in 2024.
The chances of the standout defensive tackle coming out of retirement look significantly more likely after TMZ released photos of Donald working out at the Rams’ facilities on Friday.
?? EXCLUSIVE: Deep breath, Rams Nation … Aaron Donald was spotted working out at the team’s practice facility on Friday — as the retired NFL superstar continues to mull a comeback! (?? @TMZ_Sports ) pic.twitter.com/IHjQP5akmD
— TMZ (@TMZ) July 11, 2026
A dominant presence for the Rams with eight All-Pro selections over a 10-year career, Donald has been out of action since he last suited up and recorded eight sacks in the 2023 season.
Speculation about a potential comeback has ramped up since the Rams traded for the reigning NFL Defensive Player of the Year, Myles Garrett. Should Donald be able to play anywhere near his own stellar standards, a Donald-Garrett pairing would be a dynamic force for the Rams.
Head coach Sean McVay did little to throw water on the situation last month, saying in part he had “talked to (Donald) about the opportunity to bring him on board.”
“If Aaron decides he wants to dust ‘em off at the age of 35,” McVay said, “I bet you he can still do it at a pretty high clip.”
Donald, who had 111 sacks, 543 tackles and 176 tackles for loss in his career, acknowledged at the time that McVay’s pitch had piqued his interest.
“It for sure got me thinking,” Donald told media personality Pat McAfee.
Garrett, 30, owns the NFL record for sacks in a season with 23 last year. He has played nine seasons and 134 career games and recorded 412 career tackles, 125.5 sacks, 23 forced fumbles and six fumble recoveries, all with the Cleveland Browns.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Sonny Gray-led Red Sox top Mets for 7th straight victory
Jul 10, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; Boston Red Sox designated hitter Masataka Yoshida (7) hits a two run double against the New York Mets during the first inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Wilyer Abreu had three hits, including a two-run homer, Friday night as the Boston Red Sox capped an eventful day by beating the host New York Mets, 6-2, in the opener of a three-game interleague series.
The first pitch was pushed back from 7:15 to 7:51 p.m. ET after the Red Sox didn’t land at nearby LaGuardia Airport until after 4 p.m. ET. Boston’s flight out of Chicago was delayed almost 24 hours due to multiple mechanical issues on the club’s charter plane.
Anthony Seigler was 2-for-5 with a two-run homer for the Red Sox, who won their seventh straight. Masataka Yoshida was 2-for-4 with a two-RBI double while Tsung-Che Cheng also had two hits.
Sonny Gray (11-1) won his ninth straight decision after giving up one run on five hits and one walk while striking out three over six innings.
Brett Baty homered and went 3-for-4 as he extended his career-long hitting streak to 10 games for the Mets, who lost for the second time in six games. New York scored 42 runs in its previous five contests.
Juan Soto had a sacrifice fly while Jared Young and A.J. Ewing finished with two hits each.
Starter Nolan McLean (6-6) allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out seven over six innings.
Seigler’s leadoff fly to left glanced off the glove of Soto for a two-base error. Seigler went to third on a bunt by Ceddanne Rafaela and Abreu walked before both runners scored on Yoshida’s two-out double down the third base line.
The Mets built a run in the third. Baty singled and stole second before Zack Short worked a walk. Baty went to third when Short was forced on A.J. Ewing’s grounder and raced home on Soto’s fly to left.
Seigler hit a two-run shot just fair down the left field line against A.J. Minter in the seventh. Abreu hit his two-run homer off Cionel Perez in the ninth.
Baty homered with two outs in the ninth.
–Field Level Media
Wyatt Langford helps Rangers uncork 4-run 8th to beat Astros
Aaron Donald works out with Rams as comeback rumors swirl
