Week of September 14, 2026 – September 20, 2026
Dodgers and Padres go 6-1 as Guardians take the Central
The Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres each went 6-1 to keep the NL West race tilted their way, while the Cleveland Guardians seized first in the AL Central with a 5-1 week and a five-game winning streak.
The Week at a Glance
- Los Angeles Dodgers outscored foes 39-16 in a 6-1 week; San Diego Padres piled up 51 runs in their own 6-1 stretch.
- Tampa Bay Rays, Cleveland Guardians, and Milwaukee Brewers each went 5-1; Athletics went 0-6.
- Eight series sweeps landed, including Pirates over Royals, Braves over Astros, Dodgers over Giants, and Rays and Guardians each over Athletics.
- Rafael Flores Jr. hit .529 with a 1.600 OPS for Pittsburgh; Kyle Tucker reached at a .577 clip with 3 homers for Los Angeles.
- Hunter Brown struck out 20 in 10.0 innings for Houston; Dean Kremer allowed 1 earned run over 11.2 with a 0.60 WHIP for Minnesota.
Player of the Week
Rafael Flores Jr. of the Pittsburgh Pirates put up a .529 average over five games, going 9-for-17 with 2 home runs, 3 walks, and a 1.600 OPS. The catcher’s 1.000 slugging percentage topped the weekly leaderboard while Pittsburgh went 4-2 and swept Kansas City. For fantasy lineups that still need catching, that slash line was the week’s clearest upgrade.
Pitcher of the Week
Hunter Brown of the Houston Astros worked 10.0 innings across two starts, striking out 20 with 5 hits and 1 earned run for a 0.90 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. He picked up 1 win even as Houston went 2-4 and was swept by Atlanta. Twenty punchouts in a short week is the kind of ratio that still moves the needle in September.
Game of the Week
LAD 4, CIN 0 (Tuesday)
Yoshinobu Yamamoto held the Cincinnati Reds to 1 hit over 7.0 scoreless innings with 7 strikeouts and 2 walks in a 4-0 Los Angeles Dodgers win. The outing anchored a 6-1 Dodgers week that also included a three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants. Brayan Bello’s 8.0-inning, 11-strikeout gem in a 1-2 loss at Tampa Bay was the other clear pitching highlight.
Standings Pulse
- Cleveland Guardians moved into first in the AL Central at 81-75 after a 5-1 week and W5 streak, leaving Chicago White Sox one game back at 80-76.
- Texas Rangers took the AL West lead at 78-78 with a 4-2 week; Houston Astros fell to 1 back after going 2-4 and dropping three straight.
- Tampa Bay Rays stayed atop the AL East at 95-60 (5-1); New York Yankees remain six back after a 3-3 week.
- Los Angeles Dodgers (96-60) and San Diego Padres (87-69) both went 6-1 in the NL West; Milwaukee Brewers (98-58) and Atlanta Braves (92-64) held their Central and East leads.
- Pittsburgh Pirates stretched a W4 to 79-77 after sweeping Kansas City; Athletics’ 0-6 week left them 17 back in the AL West.
Moves & Call-ups
- Los Angeles Dodgers placed RHP Edgardo Henriquez on the 15-day injured list with lower back discomfort and activated LHP Kris Bubic from the 60-day injured list.
- Philadelphia Phillies placed LHP Jesús Luzardo on the 15-day injured list retroactive to September 12 with left shoulder inflammation.
- Baltimore Orioles placed 2B Jackson Holliday on the 10-day injured list retroactive to September 15 with left wrist inflammation.
- Tampa Bay Rays placed RHP Tyler Wells on the 15-day injured list with right forearm tightness and activated RF Jake Fraley from the 60-day injured list.
- Miami Marlins placed RHP Pete Fairbanks on the 15-day injured list with right median nerve irritation.
- Atlanta Braves placed RHP Reynaldo López on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation.
- New York Yankees activated RHP Clarke Schmidt from the 60-day injured list and designated 3B Oswaldo Cabrera for assignment.
- Arizona Diamondbacks activated RHP Ryne Nelson from the 60-day injured list; Chicago White Sox activated RHP Drew Thorpe from the 60-day injured list.
— September box scores do the sorting; the standings just catch up.