We are down to the final week before the trade deadline.  Who’s gonna go?  Who’s gonna stay?  We’ve already had quite a few interesting moves, but I’m still looking forward to that big headline deal.  Will the Red Sox stand firm?  Will the Dodgers pick up another arm or two?  What about teams like the Astros or Twins who are in it for the first time in a long time?  Let’s see some excitement around here!

Astros 13, Phillies 4 – Scouts: A two hour rain delay gave the ‘stros plenty of time to spend in the batting cages and come out hot, and boy did they.  Houston is now 36-12 on the road.

Royals 5, Tigers 3 – Scouts: Salvy Perez and Mike Moustakas went back-to-back-jack in the 12th.

Marlins 4, Rangers 0 – Prof:  OH NOOOOOO The Big Buckin’ Chicken is hurt! This is not a drill, you guys! Justin Bour has a strained oblique muscle and I has a sad. Mr. Iron Giant himself had two home runs, and Marcell the Damned hit a deep double to bring Christian Yelich home as well.

Braves 2, Diamondbacks 10 – Scouts: Zack Grenkie earned his salary last night, pitching 8 innings, and limiting the Barves to just two runs over 5 hits.  R.A. Dickey however, couldn’t make it out of the 4th giving up 4 runs on 5 hits.

Reds 2, Indians 6 – Prof:  The Magical Land of Cleve defeated in-state artificial rival Cincinnati and now have a winning record at Progressive Field. Josh Tomlin coughed up two homers, one of them to my small son Scooter Gennett, but Cleveland still had a swell showing from their pitching staff.

Red Sox 0, Mariners 4 – Scouts: James Paxton who they call “Big Maple” for reasons I just don’t want to know was lights out last night, shutting out the Sox over 7 dominating innings.  Paxton racked up 10 strikeouts while giving up just 4 hits.

Twins 4, Dodgers 10 – Scouts: LA danced with the girl that brung them, riding a three-run Cody Bellinger homer in the 8th to victory in what is sure to continue to be an excellent series.

White Sox 3, Cubs 1 – Prof:  Crosstown squads met at The Friendly Confines, where the junior league defeated the reigning World Champions. Kyle Hendricks had his first start since early June, and garnered a no decision.

Athletics 2, Blue Jays 4 – Prof:  A much needed win for Toronto. While the Blue Jays aren’t going to sniff a playoff berth in any way, they needed to find a way to defeat their skid. Russell Martin hit a home run in the win.

Mets 5, Padres 3 – Scouts: Jacob deGrom is getting into a groove thang, racking up 8 K’s over 8 innings.

Pirates 10, Giants 3 – Scouts: The suddenly hot as lava Pirates got ahead early, picking up 6 in the first two frames, and never looking back.  Matt Cain has now dropped to 3-9 with a 5.45 ERA.

Orioles 5, Rays 0 – Prof:  Baltimore has caught lightning in a bottle, winning six out of their last eight. The Sea Creatures, on the other hand, are at a season low. This is their fifth straight loss. Kevin Gausman pitched six innings, which is what the Orioles need out of him. Hot bats included Adam Jones, Manny Machado, and Jonathan Schoop.

Rockies 2, Cardinals 8 – Prof:  This was all Redbirds. Fun fact – all the scores came in twos. St. Louis had three home runs from three different players.