{"id":832099,"date":"2026-08-31T16:54:17","date_gmt":"2026-08-31T16:54:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/832099\/"},"modified":"2026-08-31T16:54:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-31T16:54:17","slug":"hr-hat-trick-%f0%9f%a4%9d-mvp-edge-plus-tarik-skubals-emotional-return","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/832099\/","title":{"rendered":"HR hat trick \ud83e\udd1d MVP edge. Plus: Tarik Skubal\u2019s emotional return"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Windup Newsletter \u26be | This is The Athletic\u2019s MLB<\/a> newsletter. Sign up here<\/a> to receive The Windup directly in your inbox.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re never too old. That\u2019s the lesson to take away from Max Scherzer\u2019s brilliance, Justin Verlander\u2019s bid to return and Sammy Sosa\u2019s ability to live vicariously through Pete Crow-Armstrong. Even Greg Maddux proved he\u2019s still got it \u2026 in a roundabout way.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m Zack Meisel, coming out of the bullpen for Levi Weaver \u2014 welcome to The Windup!<\/p>\n

Big Swings: It\u2019s PCA\u2019s world, we\u2019re just living in it<\/p>\n

Last season, Cal Raleigh went on a tear in September (10 homers, 1.030 OPS) in a bid to chase down the perennial AL MVP, Aaron Judge. Raleigh fell just short in the voting.<\/p>\n

This season, Pete Crow-Armstrong is trying to leave no doubt as he attempts to unseat the perennial MVP, Shohei Ohtani.\u00a0And each PCA exclamation point seems to print in a larger font.<\/p>\n

For his latest act, the Cubs center fielder conducted his pregame routine Saturday\u00a0before an audience of franchise icons<\/a>, in town to celebrate the team\u2019s 150 years as an NL franchise. Sammy Sosa, who, like Crow-Armstrong, once had Chicago glued to his every at-bat, told the 24-year-old PCA that he wanted him to hit three homers. Sosa knows something about that; he had six three-homer games for the Cubs between 1996 and 2002.<\/p>\n

Sure enough,\u00a0Crow-Armstrong went deep three times<\/a>\u00a0in the Cubs\u2019 17-5 shellacking of the Reds. (The Cubs are now 77-60.) He said he felt it in his bones: \u201cI don\u2019t know what (Sosa) passed down to me. Weird sh\u2014 like that happens in this game.\u201d<\/p>\n

Well said. (He\u2019s the 13th player to record a three-homer game this season. Rockies catcher Hunter Goodman is the only one to do it twice. Raleigh, by the way, also accomplished the feat last week.)<\/p>\n

Crow-Armstrong wasn\u2019t done, though. He tacked on two more homers yesterday, one off Cincinnati ace Chase Burns and another off closer Emilio Pag\u00e1n.\u00a0He\u2019s up to 38 homers, second in the majors\u00a0behind Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber, who has 40. He ranks second in the NL with 32 stolen bases. If fWAR is your jam, Crow-Armstrong\u2019s is nearly double the figure of the second-ranked NL position player (Otto Lopez), thanks in part to his elite defense.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s more is PCA\u2019s primary competition for NL MVP.\u00a0That Ohtani guy had a setback\u00a0in his bid to get back on the mound and remind us he contains multitudes. Knee inflammation has kept Ohtani from pitching since July 3. He was scheduled to pitch one inning either yesterday in Detroit or Tuesday in Los Angeles, but\u00a0he didn\u2019t feel right after a Friday bullpen session<\/a>. Now, his pitching plan is unclear.<\/p>\n

And as if it couldn\u2019t get any more agonizing for Dodgers fans, their team\u2019s offense has become,\u00a0as our Katie Woo put it<\/a>, \u201ca snoozefest.\u201d The Dodgers (82-55) mustered three runs in three games before erupting for six yesterday.<\/p>\n

One more thing on the Cubs:\u00a0Greg Maddux, also in attendance for the 150th anniversary festivities, threw out the ceremonial first pitch Saturday. It sailed juuuuuust a bit outside, and the Hall of Famer who wielded unparalleled command during his career\u00a0has his reasons for that<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Middle Relief: A postcard from Levi<\/p>\n

Hey all! Checking in from somewhere in Kansas, en route to Texas from Dyersville, Iowa. I just finished playing four baseball games in two days on the \u201cField of Dreams\u201d movie set (and boy are my arms tired).<\/p>\n

This isn\u2019t the field that the\u00a0Phillies and Twins played on this year<\/a>. You can see that one across the corn beyond left field. This one is the no-dugouts field from the movie. The one Ray Kinsella built so the baseball ghosts could come play ball.<\/p>\n

Which, to me, is a little bit cooler.<\/p>\n

That I was allowed to go at all was a fairly last-minute thing; a buddy from Fort Worth asked if I wanted to fill in for someone who couldn\u2019t make it (thanks again, Zubi!), and I was an immediate yes. I wore the other guy\u2019s jersey (sorry you couldn\u2019t make it, Furutani No. 55) and made a lot of new friends from Fort Worth and elsewhere.<\/p>\n

This was actually my second baseball travel weekend in a row; I was in New England with my usual Dallas crew the previous weekend. That trip featured a little history as well: We played a game at Goodall Park in Sanford, Maine. Built in 1915, the legend is that Babe Ruth\u2019s last game in a Red Sox uniform happened there on a barnstorm.<\/p>\n

Anyway, my heart is full, my body is in shambles, and I\u2019ll be back to full-time Windup duty on Wednesday. Until then, here\u2019s a video I made from the passenger seat on the 13+ hour drive home.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Aces: Legendary Tigers pitchers coming and going<\/p>\n

Tarik Skubal\u00a0is used to wearing a gray jersey and blue cap on the road, just not at Comerica Park. The setting was familiar. The results \u2014 six innings, one run, no walks, seven strikeouts \u2014 were familiar. But it was a bit foreign for Skubal, the Dodgers\u2019 prized trade deadline acquisition, to be\u00a0pitching against the Tigers in his old ballpark<\/a>\u00a0Friday night. Skubal even said, \u201cJust coming here and staying at a hotel is weird.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch called it \u201cweird and unique and different and emotional,\u201d and those four adjectives seem to sum it up well. Skubal said\u00a0he didn\u2019t plan to be emotional<\/a>, but \u201cI\u2019ve come to figure out I don\u2019t really know myself that well.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another longtime Tigers pitcher is hoping to return to Detroit this season.\u00a0His name is\u00a0Justin Verlander<\/a>.\u00a0The 43-year-old announced in July he plans to call it a career at the end of the season. He\u2019s been sidelined since April 4 because of hip and hamstring injuries. He has made only one start, but he recently threw off the mound.<\/p>\n

The calendar is running out of days, of course. Hinch surmised Verlander is \u201cgoing to be able to make at least one appearance\u201d before the end of the regular season.<\/p>\n

And, in keeping with the theme of Cy Young Award-winning pitchers who once donned the Old English D,\u00a0Max Scherzer,\u00a0at 42 years old,\u00a0authored the best start of his Blue Jays tenure<\/a>\u00a0yesterday, with seven innings of one-hit ball against the reeling Mariners. His manager, John Schneider, described it as \u201ckind of like popping in a time machine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Standings Watch: Pennant race check-in<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re looking for drama and intrigue in September, don\u2019t bother with the NL playoff chases. The Padres and Diamondbacks are\u00a0jockeying for the last wild-card spot<\/a>. Maybe the Marlins can catch fire and join the fun.<\/p>\n

The AL, though, is a mess.\u00a0It\u2019s a car crash on the side of the highway, and you can\u2019t help but peek at the wreckage as you cruise past. The Rays (currently the No. 1 seed), Yankees (No. 4) and Red Sox (No. 5) are sitting comfortably in playoff position. The Yankees took three of four from Boston over the weekend to add some breathing room in the battle to determine who hosts their opening-round best-of-three (you know, unless the Rays crash back to Earth).<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, the White Sox (72-64) gained a game on the Guardians in the AL Central over the weekend. Cleveland (69-68) is still clinging to the final wild-card spot, by one game over the Orioles, 1 1\/2 games over the Blue Jays, two games over the Rangers, four games over the Twins and five games over the Mariners. The Astros, at 69-68, have the same record as the Guardians, but it\u2019s good enough to lead the Rangers by two games in the battle for the AL West.<\/p>\n

Got all that? The next four weeks in the AL should be a wild ride.<\/p>\n

Handshakes and High Fives<\/p>\n

It\u2019s go time for postseason contenders. Stephen J. Nesbitt\u00a0and\u00a0Chad Jennings\u00a0break down their schedules over the next two weeks<\/a>, and how they can shape the playoff race.<\/p>\n

The Yankees didn\u2019t address two of their biggest needs at the deadline.\u00a0Does it really matter<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Speaking of \u2026 the Yankees and Red Sox beef. One broadcaster recommended Boston\u00a0take it to a whole new level<\/a>: \u201cWouldn\u2019t you sort of like to see (Jovani) Mor\u00e1n drill (Austin) Wells right here?\u201d<\/p>\n

Chandler Rome has\u00a0a Q&A with Astros owner Jim Crane<\/a>, including why he parted ways with Dana Brown and full-time GM candidates (or lack thereof).<\/p>\n

Eight pitches challenged.\u00a0Eight pitches overturned<\/a>. Yikes.<\/p>\n

Rockies rookie outfielder Cole Carrigg was benched after giving Braves fans the middle finger on Saturday.\u00a0The punishment lasted six innings<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Most-clicked in our last newsletter:\u00a0That time\u00a0Chris Sale was suspended<\/a>\u00a0for cutting up his team\u2019s throwback jerseys. Most clicked by a mile.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udceb Love The Windup? Check out\u00a0The Athletic\u2019s other newsletters<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Windup Newsletter \u26be | This is The Athletic\u2019s MLB newsletter. Sign up here to receive The Windup…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":832100,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[65],"tags":[363,99],"class_list":["post-832099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-mlb","tag-mlb","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832099","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=832099"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/832099\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/832100"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=832099"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=832099"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=832099"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}