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The First Pitch: October 17, 2025
The Brewers are beaten, bloodied and against the ropes as the opposing Dodgers take a three-games-to-none lead in the NLCS with a 3-1 victory at Los Angeles.
Pitching once again is key for the Dodgers, as Tyler Glasnow (5.2 innings) and four relievers limit the Brewers to just four hits; in the series’ first three games, Milwaukee batters have just nine hits in 89 at-bats for a .101 average.
The Dodgers break a 1-1 tie in the sixth with a two-run rally, finally breaking through against rookie Brewers pitcher Jacob Misiorowski—who had taken over for opener Aaron Ashby with one out in the first and the first run having already scored. In five innings, Misiorowski strikes out nine, a postseason record for a rookie doing relief.
Whatever slim chances that the Brewers have of bouncing back are further handicapped as outfielder Jackson Chourio hops on one leg into the dugout in the middle of a seventh-inning at-bat, having re-aggravated his hamstring. However, Chourio says after the game that he cramped up and should be ready for Game Four.
Max Scherzer is unleashed onto the ALCS stage, and no one’s going to stop him. Not the Mariners, who can only manage two runs on three hits through 5.2 innings. And not Toronto manager John Schneider, who with two outs in the fifth attempts to remove Scherzer—only to be barked at and backed off by the 41-year-old veteran, who gets three more outs, and credit for the 8-2 win, before finally acquiescing to a departure.
Seattle starter Luis Castillo has no such luck talking manager Dan Wilson into the staying in. Castillo is removed after allowing five of six Toronto batters to reach in the third—including a two-run homer from Andres Gimenez, his second in as many nights—and a subtle but seemingly intense exchange between Castillo and Wilson. With Castillo out, Gabe Speier, his replacement, next walks in a third run.
From there, the Blue Jays build up their lead and never look back to even the series at 2-2, with all games won by the road team. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. adds insurance with his fifth homer of the postseason, breaking a team record held by Jose Bautista in 2015.
The 48 pitches thrown by Castillo are a career low.
In his previous six starts dating back to late August, Scherzer was 1-3 with a 9.00 ERA.
This is the first time in 230 games that the top four batters in the Seattle lineup (which in this game consists of Randy Arozarena, Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodriguez and Jorge Polanco) each fail to get a hit.
The offseason is barely a week old for the Yankees, and already the injuries are piling up for the start of the 2026 season. Carlos Rodon, who pitched his way to an 18-9 record this past year, underwent surgery to clean up his throwing elbow and is likely to miss Opening Day. Meanwhile, shortstop Anthony Volpe is recovering from surgery on his shoulder and is also a question mark for the start of next season.
There was also talk that über-slugger Aaron Judge would also go under the knife for a bothersome elbow that diminished his throwing velocity (but not his bat speed), but it’s confirmed that he will focus instead on offseason rehab.
It Was Whatever-Something Years Ago Today
1927: American League founder Ban Johnson is ousted by his fellow owners after 27 years of rule. Johnson had become increasingly erratic and was not thrilled to be second in command behind commissioner Kenesaw Mountain Landis.
1971 and 1979: The Pirates clinch their only two world titles—both over the Baltimore Orioles—in the 60 years since conquering the Yankees on Bill Mazeroski’s home run. In 1971, the stars are Series MVP Roberto Clemente (solo homer in the fourth) and Steve Blass (four-hit complete game) in a 2-1 victory; eight years later, it’s Willie Stargell, who caps his triumphant vintage effort at age 38 with a single, two doubles and a home run to power the Bucs to a 4-1 victory.
1989: The Giants and A’s are minutes away from playing the first World Series game at Candlestick Park since 1962 when a 7.1 earthquake, centered 50 miles to the south, shakes the stadium, severs power and postpones Fall Classic activity for 10 days. Miraculously, the structure holds and none of the 60,000 fans in attendance are hurt—thanks in part to a seismic retrofit completed just a few years earlier.
1995: Dennis Martinez outduels Randy Johnson as Cleveland wins ALCS Game Six at Seattle, 4-0, securing the Indians’ first pennant in 47 years. They’ll go on to lose to the Florida Marlins in a tight seven-game World Series.
2004: In one of the most remarkable turnarounds in postseason history, the Red Sox are one out away from being swept by the archrival Yankees in the ALCS—but a steal of second by Dave Roberts, who then next scores on Bill Mueller’s single, keeps Boston alive into extra innings. David Ortiz will then power the Red Sox to a 6-4 win in the 12th with a two-run homer—and from there, Boston will win the next three games to become the first (and still only) team to win a seven-game series after losing the first three games.
You Say It’s Your Birthday
Happy birthday to:
Atlanta infielder Ha-Seong Kim (30), 2023 Gold Glove recipient
Toronto outfielder Myles Straw (31), light hitter with superlative glove
Carlos Gonzalez (40), Venezuelan-born outfielder of 234 home runs; three-time All-Star; recipient of three Gold Gloves; top NL hitter of 2010
John Rocker (51), in-your-face closer who became MLB pariah for occasional insensitive rants
Born on this date:
Jim Gilliam (1928), All-Star Negro Leaguer who provided supporting spark for Dodgers of the 1950s; 1953 NL Rookie of the Year, 2,021 career hits
Johnny Klippstein (1927), starter-turned-reliever with 711 appearances and 101 wins
Mike Sandlock (1915), five-year catcher/infielder; TGG interview subject
Red Rolfe (1908), Yankees sparkplug of 10 seasons; four-time All-Star, seven-time accumulator of 100+ runs
Paul Derringer (1906), 15-year pitcher of 223-212 record; six-time All-Star; won 20+ games four times
Buck Ewing (1859), 19th-Century Hall of Famer who played every position, primarily as catcher; career .303 batting average
Shameless Link of the Day
Eighty years ago this month, the Curse of the Billy Goat was said to be born as the Cubs denied a restaurant owner’s billy goat into Wrigley Field—and extended their World Series winless streak for over another seven decades. This is just part of what happened in 1945.
Book Review: “Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame: A Collection of Biographical Essays”
Edited by Louis H. Schiff and Robert M. Jarvis
One of the things I’ve always loved about baseball literature is its expansive and diverse nature of subjects. For every book that focuses on, say, the storied but familiar history of the New York Yankees, there’s another that digs deeper into the weeds and nudges you with a subject that leaves you thinking, “Huh—I didn’t know that.”
Such a book is Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame: A Collection of Biographical Essays. Published by MacFarland Books—the North Carolina-based baseball book factory—this collection of articles overseen by retired judge Louis Schiff and law professor Robert Jarvis is a meticulously researched book that focuses on a fascinating collection of 11 people who played, managed or ran the game of baseball and, at some point in their lives, took up law. Fun fact, as revealed in this book: Eight managers in the history of major league baseball acquired law degrees—and six of them are in the Hall of Fame. All six are profiled in this book.
What makes Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame such an intriguing read is how these 11 people used their law experience to great benefit during their time in baseball. Branch Rickey, almost overqualified for a life in law school, used his lawyerly instincts to trailblaze his way through baseball history, perfecting the art of the farm system, overhauling failing franchises and, of course, shattering baseball’s race barrier by bringing Jackie Robinson to the Brooklyn Dodgers. Larry MacPhail, less the law prodigy than Rickey, nevertheless leveraged what he learned into a far more successful calling as a businessman known for turning companies (and major league teams) around. Walter O’Malley fused his knowledge of the law with his father’s past as a corrupt New York City politician to become the man that tactfully stole the Dodgers from Brooklyn. And Tony La Russa, failed major league ballplayer, eagerly pursued a law degree to empower his stature as a rising manager—first in the minors, then at the major league level where he collected more wins than anyone not named Connie Mack.
Some of those featured in the book are not surprising for their inclusion, like O’Malley or Kenesaw Mountain Landis, Federal judge turned baseball’s first commissioner. One unexpected subject is Hughie Jennings, who from past reading always struck me as the whoop-it-up baseball character who would have least thought of a career in law. Less ironic but still surprising is Miller Huggins, manager of the Yankees during the 1920s who, as a child, was encouraged by his working-class father-in-law to get a law degree because of his penchant for arguing—and was fortunate enough to be taught by, among others, future President William Howard Taft. There’s also Jim O’Rourke, the man who struck the first-ever hit in National League history whose lofty use of “five-syllable words”—which would have made even George Will blush—gained him the nickname “Orator,” lending himself all too naturally to a post-baseball career in law.
The 10 writers who contribute to Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame are not lightweights; they’re highly experienced lawyers, professors and judges who know their craft—and they know their baseball, too. This double-barreled knowledge results in a smooth, self-assured narrative, not delving too deep into law linguistics that might wear down the many laymen among us (to which I count myself as one). And while most of the authors play it buttoned up and refrain from overt opinion, Elizabeth Marquez’s write-up on Bowie Kuhn stands out for her critical views of the former commissioner, writing that he “often…turned out to be on the wrong side of history” with his rulings and opinions.
Some readers adverse to long books may feel compelled to back away from the 253 pages offered in Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame, but nearly half of the content consists of footnotes and addenda, greatly shortening the core writing while being made available as an option for further digestion of the facts. The book can be useful for reference, or simply enjoyed as 11 well-written bios on some of baseball’s most influential men, and how their appetite for the law helped mold their place in the game.
Attorneys in the Baseball Hall of Fame can be purchased from MacFarland Books, Amazon, and other online book sellers.
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