
Stats of the week: Judge, Elly, Soto make HR history
Here’s our weekly look at 10 mind-blowing notes from the last week in baseball (Sept. 22-28).
All rise: Aaron Judge had his second three-homer game of the season on Friday, becoming the first player in Yankees history with two such performances in a season. Judge can max out at 107...

A look at how MLB's most unconventional 30-HR hitter does it
When you think of how the premier home run hitters excel, you're likely to think of sluggers who are capable of producing elite exit velocities and long-distance bombs.
Look no further than the top of the leaderboard of the 25 players who've hit 30-plus home runs this season. Matt Olson,...
Isaac Paredes

The striking stat fueling Acuña's historic campaign
If there’s a word you associate with Ronald Acuña Jr., it might be “loud,” in all the best ways. His home runs are loud. His rocket throws from right field are loud. All the stolen bases, especially in big spots, are loud; the bat flips and celebrations are all loud,...
Ronald Acuna Jr.

Every team's hardest-hit home run
Baseball has always been a simple game. You throw the ball hard. You hit the ball hard. And sometimes, the ball is hit with such force that you can’t help but ask yourself, “Just how hard was that thing hit?!”
Thanks to Statcast, we now know the exit velocity of...

The Phils' secret playoff weapon is here ... and his stuff is scary
The Phillies' secret weapon for the postseason isn't exactly a secret anymore -- his MLB debut was too electric.
Orion Kerkering, the team's No. 7 prospect, took the mound for the first time on Sunday and immediately showed the playoff-caliber stuff the Phillies were hoping for when they called him...
Orion Kerkering

Here are the 10 most bonkers stats of 2023
If runs, wins and losses were all we tracked, if the only numbers associated with baseball were the numbers of balls, strikes, outs and innings and the only “stats” we absorbed were winning percentages in the standings, it would still be a beautiful sport.
But Major League Baseball is best...

Who are MLB’s best shortstops in 2023?
The All-MLB Team, created in 2019, has provided the answers to an oft-asked question following every season: Who were the best players at each position this year?
The All-MLB Team is split into a First and Second Team, with each team featuring one selection at catcher, first base, second base,...
Corey Seager
Gunnar Henderson
Bobby Witt Jr.
Francisco Lindor
Bo Bichette
Dansby Swanson
J.P. Crawford
Xander Bogaerts
Trea Turner

Kershaw still trying to learn new tricks on the mound
It's Clayton Kershaw's new version of an old trick.
In his 15th season, the Dodgers' longtime ace is throwing a split-change, replacing the traditional changeup that he could never quite get to work over the years.
Kershaw's new pitch type is a changeup thrown with a splitter grip: The index...
Clayton Kershaw

The pitching staff no one should want to face in the playoffs
The Braves and Dodgers are the NLCS favorites, having already locked up their respective divisions. The Phillies are poised to return to the playoffs after making the World Series a year ago. And the rest of the NL Wild Card race is, well, wild, with five teams (six, if you...

How the Rays' bullpen went from worst to one of the best ever
As the Rays were getting off to a blisteringly hot start – 13-0 at first, and then 23-6 through April and 40-18 through May – something odd was happening, a concerning undercurrent that was easily obscured by the team’s otherwise sparkling performance. Though it wasn’t allowing many runs, Tampa Bay’s...
Colin Poche
Robert Stephenson
Pete Fairbanks
Jake Diekman
Shawn Armstrong