Los Angeles got its everyday catcher back Tuesday, and that is the one overnight item that actually changes a lineup card before first pitch. Will Smith, Dalton Rushing and Justin Wrobleski all came off the injured list, one day after St. Louis put a 13-8 number on the Dodgers. If you are scanning MLB best bets today, start there and work outward: the Dodgers who take the field for the 10:11 PM ET finale are not the Dodgers who got beat up on Tuesday.
Name the mechanism, because that is what matters. Smith is the starting catcher, the guy who runs the game plan. Rushing gives the club a real backup, which means they no longer have to squeeze every inning out of one body in a month that still has a month left in it. Wrobleski is bullpen inventory, and a staff that just surrendered 13 runs needs inventory the way I need coffee at 6 a.m. That is not a footnote. That is a roster.
I will say the honest part too: three activations do not erase a 13-8 loss, and September rosters swell until every bench looks deep. But depth is exactly the thing that decides late innings in the last month, and Los Angeles just got three pieces of it in one afternoon.
Nationals vs Braves recap: Washington's call-ups won 9-5
Washington beat Atlanta 9-5 with a roster full of minor league promotions, and the two names to file away are Yohandy Morales and Jared Simpson. Morales had three hits including a home run. Simpson threw three perfect innings and took the win. The two clubs finish it at 1:06 PM ET, a getaway matinee in the District.
Nothing deleted, nothing cherry-picked: one night from two young players does not move my Atlanta number much, and I am not about to rebuild a team rating off nine runs in early September. But a short-turnaround early start against a club that just got run out of its own dugout is the exact shape of spot I keep a browser tab open for.
What happened in MLB last night
| Game | Final | What carries into today |
|---|---|---|
| Cardinals at Dodgers | STL 13, LAD 8 | Smith, Rushing, Wrobleski activated ahead of the 10:11 PM ET finale |
| Braves at Nationals | WSH 9, ATL 5 | Morales 3 hits, 1 HR; Simpson 3 perfect innings; 1:06 PM ET getaway |
| Phillies at Diamondbacks | PHI 7, ARI 1 | series continues at 3:41 PM ET in Arizona |
| Mariners at Red Sox | Seattle won, final not on my desk | plate umpire Will Little left in the sixth |
Plate umpire Will Little exited the Mariners win over Boston after a sixth-inning foul tip caught him under the chin and knocked off his throat guard. No jokes from this desk on that one. Hope he is fine.
Roster moves that touch today's slate
Milwaukee activated catcher Bo Naylor and reliever JoJo Romero, both deadline acquisitions, before heading to Wrigley for a 7:41 PM ET meeting with the Cubs. Romero is the one I care about: a lefty arm added to a bullpen in the last month is a manager's late-inning option, and options show up in run distributions before they show up in box scores.
San Diego selected the contract of 20-year-old catcher Ethan Salas from Triple-A El Paso, making him the youngest active player in the majors. The Padres open the day at 12:41 PM ET in Cincinnati. Twenty years old and catching big league pitching in a pennant month. Baseball still does that to you.
Cleveland added reliever Carlos Hernandez to the roster after a January car crash in Venezuela that left him with multiple career-threatening injuries. He disclosed he was texting while driving. He is telling it as a warning, and it deserves to be heard as one.
And the biggest business story of the year: Stan Kroenke has an agreement to buy controlling interest in the Angels from Arte Moreno at a reported record $4 billion valuation, ending a 23-year run. Mike Trout called it a needed fresh start and pointed to the new owner's other clubs. It does not change a thing about the Yankees at Anaheim at 9:39 PM ET, and it may change everything about the five years after it.
What I'm watching
Nothing cleared my number this morning. No qualifying plays on my card, and I am not going to invent one out of three IL activations and a 9-5 game. The math says pass, and passing is a position.
What I want to see before I take a side: whether Smith actually catches the finale or Rushing gets the start while Los Angeles eases him back, how Atlanta's lineup card reads at 1:06 PM ET after that beating, and how quickly Milwaukee goes to Romero at Wrigley. Answer those three and I have a real conversation by the afternoon.
September is the noisiest month on the calendar: expanded rosters, kids getting looks, veterans getting days. Treat it like the entertainment it is, keep the variance in mind, 21+ where legal.