Obviously, the story of the week.

Tarik Skubal. Damn.

The Tigers ace is out 8–12 weeks following elbow surgery.

Just months away from free agency and a generational payday.

And now?

Nobody really knows.

Maybe it was a “simple procedure.”

We’ll see.

Detroit’s answer in the meantime?

Framber Valdez.

Yikes.

You can see why the free-agent market wasn’t exactly racing to sign him in the offseason.

In 2025, Valdez intentionally crossed up his catcher and drilled him after getting angry.

This week?

He gave up back-to-back home runs…

then drilled the next hitter.

Five-game suspension.

When things start unraveling for Framber, they unravel fast.

While we’re at it…

What’s going on with Dalton Rushing?

The Dodgers backup catcher is building a reputation — and not a great one.

Between the dumb comments and profanity-laced jabs at opposing teams, he’s irritating plenty of people…

including his own manager.

Dude.

You’re a backup catcher.

Grab Will Smith’s coffee and relax.

And finally…

We love first pitches.

The bigger the celebrity, the bigger the moment.

NFL quarterback Malik Willis took his shot this week.

Oh boy.

Let’s just say the catcher earned hazard pay.

Malik…

stick to football.

Watch video

Every time the Los Angeles Dodgers see the Houston Astros, the calendar flips back to 2017.

Not officially.

But emotionally?

Always.

For many Dodgers fans, that World Series never really ended.

This week, the two teams met again — another regular-season series on paper.

Another reminder of the scandal that still hangs over the rivalry.

Trash cans.
Sign stealing.
A championship that still doesn’t fully sit right in Los Angeles.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was asked this week whether enough time had passed.

Roberts said the organization has moved forward.

He also said that frustration helped fuel the Dodgers, who’ve gone on to win three championships since 2017.

Still, for some players from that 2017 team, the feeling never completely disappears.

Opportunities in this game don’t always come back around.

Careers peak.
Windows close.

Some players eventually got their ring.

Others never did.

That’s the part that still lingers.

Commissioner Rob Manfred chose not to strip the Astros of the title.

No asterisk.
No vacancy.

Just history… as written.

And now one of the central players tied to the scandal, Carlos Beltrán, is headed to Cooperstown.

Does that make any sense?

Now.

Every time Dodgers-Astros comes around, baseball gets reminded:

Some scores never settle.

They just age.

Who knew Ronald could sing!

This week in Charlotte…

There he was.
Full uniform.
Bright red wig.
Absolutely bringing it.

No joke.

Ronald McDonald sang the National Anthem at a Charlotte Knights minor league game.

And he crushed it.

Ronald stepped to the mic and delivered.

Turns out he can do more than sling burgers.

Would love to say “that was f***ing awesome”…

But this is a family newsletter.

Well done, Ronald.

Like the slogan says…

“I’m lovin’ it.”

Watch the video.

Baseball players will try anything to break a slump.

New batting gloves.
New walk-up song.
Chicken parm at 3:17 pm because they got two hits after eating it once in 2024.

This week?

Pokémon cards.

Angels’ Zach Neto arrived at the ballpark trapped in an 0-for-23 slump.

Confidence gone.
Timing gone.
Probably seeing beach balls and missing all of them.

Then his phone buzzed.

Mike Trout had a fresh box of Pokémon cards waiting.

That’s right.

The future Hall of Famer and the struggling shortstop spent the afternoon ripping packs like two middle-school kids hiding in the back of math class.

Then it happened.

Neto discovered a rare Charizard card.

A big pull in the Pokémon world.

Trout looked at him and declared the baseball gods had spoken:

“This box has home runs in it.”

A few hours later?

Trout homered.
Neto homered.

Of course they did.

Teams now spend millions on analytics.
Motion-capture labs.
VR batting simulators.

But what if the secret to success…

is sitting inside a pack of Pokémon cards?

So kids—

if you’re struggling at the plate…

skip the batting cage.

Go rip open a pack of Pokémon cards.

Wow, try explaining this one to the manager.

“Hey skip… I tore my meniscus.”

Running wind sprints? Nope.

Covering first base? Nah.

Cubs pitcher Matthew Boyd injured his knee… playing with his kids at home.

Pitchers survive 102 mph come-backers, Tommy John surgery, and the torque of throwing a baseball for 15 years…only to get taken down by Dad Time in the living room.

Manager Craig Counsell called it “unexplainable.”

Every parent over 35 immediately understood.

One second you’re pretending to be a dinosaur on the carpet. Next second your knee sounds like someone stepping on a bag of tortilla chips.

Baseball injuries remain completely undefeated when it comes to absurdity.

Guys have landed on the IL for:

Sneezing.
Video games.
Carrying luggage.
Punching walls.
Falling asleep awkwardly.

Now add “playing with your kids” to the list.

And the timing is brutal for the Cubs. Boyd was finally starting to find a rhythm again.

Chicago’s rotation already looks like it’s being held together with duct tape and crossed fingers.

Now this. Turns out the most dangerous thing for a major league pitcher… might just be the living room floor.

This is how it happens.

Anthony Volpe was supposed to walk right back into his shortstop job after offseason shoulder surgery.

That was the plan.

Until José Caballero changed the plan.

Hitting.
Fielding.
Creating problems on the bases.

And the New York Yankees kept winning.

They didn’t just survive without Volpe—

they thrived.

So the decision was made.

Volpe was headed to Triple-A.

Because baseball rarely changes what’s working.

That’s the brutal part of this game.

You don’t always lose your job.

Sometimes somebody else just takes it.

It’s happened before in Yankees history.

Remember Wally Pipp?

He took a day off.

Lou Gehrig took over.

The rest is history.

Timing decides more careers than talent.

And right now—

it’s not Volpe’s time.

Think you’re a baseball fan?

Meet Mike Casiano.

He just attended his 10,000th professional baseball game.

Ten thousand.

And yeah—

he’s got the scorecards to prove it.

Just a 73-year-old Mets fan sitting in the upper deck keeping score.

For the Mets?

A glutton for punishment, no doubt.

Casiano began this journey in 1963 with his father at Yankee Stadium.

Over 6 decades, baseball became his life.

Night games.
Doubleheaders.

At one point, he was sleeping on folding chairs before overnight shifts at the post office—

just to make it to the first pitch.

And think about this for a second.

10,000 games over 60 years works out to roughly 167 games a year.

That’s basically attending a professional baseball game every 2–3 days…

for six straight decades.

More than 30,000 hours spent watching baseball.

More than 1,250 full days sitting in ballparks.

Longer than most marriages.

Most people can’t commit to a gym membership for six weeks.

Mike Casiano committed to baseball for sixty years.

Some people built retirement accounts.
Mike Casiano built scorecards.

Mike Casiano chased baseball.

And honestly?

There’s something refreshing about that.

Maybe that’s the real magic of baseball.

Not the billionaires.
Not the launch angles.
Not the algorithms.

Just the people who keep showing up.

Game after game.
Year after year.

Because somewhere along the way—

the ballpark stopped being a destination.

It became home.

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