The Texas Rangers aim to match their season-high winning streak of five games on Thursday afternoon when they bid to record a four-game sweep of the spiraling Chicago White Sox in Arlington, Texas.
The Rangers followed up a trio of one-run victories by igniting their offense in a 10-2 romp over the White Sox on Wednesday night.
Corey Seager homered among his four hits and Nathaniel Lowe drove in four runs to propel Texas to its 11th win in its last 15 games.
The ascending Rangers have moved within three games of the American League West-leading Houston Astros and 5 1/2 games of the Kansas City Royals for the final AL wild-card spot.
"We're heating up at the right time," Lowe told Bally Sports Southwest. "We're playing some pretty good ball. We did a nice job of putting that team away tonight."
Texas' Adolis Garcia showed signs of snapping out of his pronounced slump, during which he went 2-for-26 in his previous seven games. Garcia ripped an RBI double in the fifth inning as part of his three-hit performance on Wednesday. He added a run-scoring groundout during a six-run eighth inning.
"It was good to see us break out. Some guys had a great night tonight," Texas manager Bruce Bochy said. "You look at (Adolis), and of course Corey, and really throughout the lineup. A lot of good things happened out there offensively."
The Rangers' only five-game winning streak this season occurred July 5-9.
The woeful White Sox, in turn, have lost 10 in a row -- marking their second double-digit skid of the season. Chicago, which is 50 games below .500, is four setbacks shy of matching its 14-game losing streak from May 22-June 6.
"We're not proud of our record, we're not going to be proud of our record at the end of the season," White Sox general manager Chris Getz said, per the Chicago Sun-Times. "But we knew there were going to be struggles and challenges along the way."
The White Sox mustered just four hits and struck out 13 times on Wednesday.
They will look to ignite their sputtering offense against right-hander Max Scherzer (1-3, 3.99 ERA) on Thursday.
Scherzer, who turns 40 on Saturday, fell to 0-3 in his past five trips to the mound after allowing four runs on five hits in two innings of an 8-4 setback to the Baltimore Orioles last Saturday. The three-time Cy Young Award winner was dealing with arm fatigue while making his sixth start after missing the first 2 1/2 months of the season recovering from back surgery.
Scherzer is 14-6 with a 2.50 ERA in 25 career starts against the White Sox.
Chicago will counter with rookie right-hander Jonathan Cannon (1-4, 4.58 ERA).
Cannon, 24, fell to 0-3 in his past five outings after permitting four runs on eight hits in six innings of a 6-1 setback to the Royals on Saturday. He has yet to face the Rangers in his young career.
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The Arizona Diamondbacks have plenty of suitors for third baseman Eugenio Suarez. A new team has reportedly entered the market for his services. Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the Phillies have reached out regarding Suarez. While Lauber did not provide any indication as to whether or not those talks have gained traction, the Phillies are an intriguing suitor for the Diamondbacks' third baseman. The Phillies' interest may be a recent development. Jon Heyman of the New York Post speculated on Friday that the Phillies could emerge as a suitor in the wake of third baseman Alec Bohm landing on the injured list with a fractured left rib. Suarez is in the midst of what is arguably his best season thus far. He has produced a .249/.321/.587 batting line in 421 plate appearances entering Saturday with 36 homers and a major league-leading 87 RBI. Suarez would be more than just another powerful bat in the lineup. Designated hitter Kyle Schwarber and first baseman Bryce Harper are both left-handed hitters — adding Suarez would provide more balance in the batting order. He would also provide a counter against opposing managers bringing in a lefty reliever to face Schwarber and Harper. The biggest question would be how the Phillies would handle an eventual logjam on the roster. Bohm is expected to return from the IL in mid-August and would not have a clear path to regular at-bats if Suarez were acquired. Schwarber could theoretically return to left field to open up playing time at the DH spot, but his outfield defense is mediocre at best. However, as the Phillies are also looking to upgrade the outfield, where Max Kepler and Brandon Marsh have been disappointments, adding Suarez could solve several problems in one fell swoop.
Sunday marked the last day of Week 1 of Pittsburgh Steelers training camp. The next time the team takes the field, it will be with pads, on Tuesday. Before we get there, however, let's take a look at everything of note from day four of Steelers training camp practice in Latrobe... Offensive Takeaways LT Broderick Jones leaves 7 Shots after getting his lower body looked at. Sits out individual drills and is replaced by Dylan Cook for the rest of the practice Rookie TE/FB DJ Thomas-Jones injures ankle RT Troy Fautanu was yanked from 7 Shots after a false start WR Roman Wilson continues to work outside, opposed to the slot Rookie QB Will Howard receives first team reps in 7on7 What it means No one player will have a bigger impact on the Pittsburgh Steelers' offense, and frankly, the team in general, than Broderick Jones. He needs not only to be urpight, but to be good. Mike Tomlin said both Jones and WR Montana Lemonious-Craig have soft tissue injuries, while DJ Thomas-Jones seems to have one that is a little more severe. Similar to what happened with Zach Frazier yesterday, the Steelers are proving they have no time for growing pains after pulling Troy Fautanu on Sunday. Fautanu and Frazier may only be second-year players, but the team needs them to perform like seasoned professionals. It's been interesting to see the alignment of the WRs in Pittsburgh through the first four days of practice, as Roman Wilson has dominated the outside role compared to Calvin Austin, who is playing the slot. After making some nice plays in practice yesterday, Will Howard took some first-team reps in the team's 7on7 period on Sunday. The arrow contimues to point up for the sixth rounder. Defensive Takeaways Defense wins 7 shots 4-3 Cole Holcomb and Ryan McCollum get into scrum and go to the ground Rookie Yayha Black has multiple pass breakups on Mason Rudolph What it means The first four practices in Pittsburgh were dominated by the defense. The same proved true on Sunday as the team won 7 Shots yet again. We'll see if that changes when the pads come on next week. While the real fights will probably start in the dog days of camp, the Steelers had their first big scrum in Latrobe on Sunday, and it featured Cole Holcomb and center Ryan McCollum. Continuing the trend of rookies making an impact, Yahya Black helped set that tone on Sunday with multiple pass breakups at the line of scrimmage against Mason Rudolph. Tough to ask for a better start to camp than what the Steelers' rookies put forth.
Notre Dame’s quarterback battle is one of the more compelling storylines entering the 2025 college football season. With Steve Angeli transferring after spring practice, the competition is down to two names: Kenny Minchey and five-star freshman CJ Carr. ESPN’s Rece Davis believes Carr is the favorite to win the job, though he emphasized it’s just speculation based on public perception. “I think most believe it will be Carr, ultimately,” Davis said. “That’s not Pete Thamel news breaking it... I’m just saying the outside perception for those of us who watch think it will probably be Carr.” Carr, the son of former Michigan QB Jason Carr and grandson of ex-Wolverines coach Lloyd Carr, made headlines after a strong showing in the spring game. But ESPN insider Pete Thamel added some nuance to the situation, revealing that those inside the program have been impressed with Minchey throughout the offseason. “Everyone saw Carr crush the spring game, and I think that’s where sentiment and perception came from,” Thamel said. “But Minchey is an impressive guy, and he hits better with what Mike Denbrock has done.” Minchey, a redshirt freshman, brings more mobility to the table, something Denbrock has used to his advantage in past offenses with Jayden Daniels at LSU and Riley Leonard at Duke. Carr, meanwhile, is a polished passer who fits the mold of a traditional pro-style quarterback. Denbrock previously coached at Notre Dame twice (2002 to 2004 and 2010 to 2016). Notre Dame's new offensive coordinator may influence the final decision, but the schedule adds pressure. Freeman and the Fighting Irish open the season at Miami, in what could prove to be their toughest opponent during the regular season. Davis says nothing’s off the table: “I asked Marcus that. His response... was ‘I will do whatever it takes to help this team win football games.’” Whether that means a two-quarterback system or not, Notre Dame needs a clear leader at the helm if it wants to stay in the playoff hunt.
For the past two seasons, Joel Embiid has been dealing with a knee issue. The former MVP underwent surgery in April to try to repair his meniscus, the second time he's received such surgery in the past 12 months. Embiid recently sat down for a tell-all interview with ESPN's Dotun Akintoye, where he detailed the struggles his body is currently going through. "We're not going to push anything," Embiid said. "For my whole career, I felt like we never took that approach ... We don't have a timeline. Hopefully, sooner rather than later ... It's all about the results ... If I come back early enough and I'm still not myself, guess what? You're not winning any games." Embiid's struggles have left the Sixers in a precarious situation. President of basketball operations Daryl Morey has built the entire roster around the star center's unique skill set. Philadelphia has constructed a team to go as far as Embiid can take it. It makes sense, then, that Embiid is just as frustrated with his injury-induced absences as the rest of the Sixers fanbase. In a July 27 appearance on Sirius XM Radio, Sixers beat writer Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer shared a unique take on the big man's recent interview and the messaging he's been putting out recently. "I think Joel may know that the end is near, and this is just me saying, and it's kind of like explaining to people what he's been going through," Pompey said. "Because rarely do you have a guy tell you how much pain (they're in) and how much they're going through. The thing I took from it was no matter who is there, the culture is the same. And I feel like Joel Embiid knows that it may not be this season, but the end is near. Maybe he feels as though he can't play to the level he used to. I could be wrong. He could come out and have another MVP season. But that was my takeaway." Embiid is probably one more lost season away from making such a difficult decision. He's only suited up for 58 games over the past two seasons, 39 in 2023-24 and 19 in 2024-25. Embiid doesn't project as the sort of player who would accept a decline while still cashing enormous checks that limit his team's ability to compete. The problem for Embiid is that injuries are only half the battle. Even when healthy, conditioning has been his Achilles heel. So, not only would he need to stay injury-free, both with his knee and his back, but he would also need to get into the best shape of his life. Anything less, and the Sixers could be doomed to repeat their failures of the past. Embiid is still working his way through a long road of recovery. However, he may also be coming to terms that the NBA chapter of his life is on the final few pages, and that must be a daunting reality to face.
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