The Buzz — Tuesday, October 6

Jackson Chourio

The take Chourio walk-off single off Miller gives Brewers 2-0 lead

Chourio lined a 101.3 mph fastball from Mason Miller at 109.5 mph back up the middle, past a diving Jake Cronenworth into center field, and the 22-year-old became the third Brewer with a postseason game-ending hit. He joins Mike Moustakas in 2018 and Nyjer Morgan in 2011 — two names that carry their own October weight in Milwaukee. That is the moment. The meaning is the company he keeps: 15 career postseason RBIs, second in franchise history, on a team that now holds a 2-0 series lead.

Milwaukee did not have to out-slug San Diego so much as out-wait Miller, and the kid who was supposed to be a piece of the future keeps arriving ahead of schedule.

Jackson Chourio cards on eBay →(paid link)

Yoshinobu Yamamoto

The take Yamamoto starts Dodgers NLDS Game 3 vs Braves

The series is tied 1-1, and Yamamoto takes the ball with a 2.53 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, and 182 strikeouts across 185 innings this season — and a 2025 World Series MVP that says the stage does not bother him. He held the Braves to one run over 6 1/3 innings at Truist Park in August and lost 1-0. The Dodgers are handing the series to the guy who already proved he can win it.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto cards on eBay →(paid link)

Mason Miller

The take Blown six-out save, high velo, pitch-tip talk after NLDS loss

Mason Miller threw 40 pitches on Sunday — the most he has thrown as a Padre — and the last one left his hand at 101.3 mph. The velocity never left. The command did, and that is the whole story.

He walked Yelich, Frelick, and Sánchez in the ninth inning, and each free pass moved the Brewers closer to the run that ended it. Miller said it plainly: 'a base hit with nobody on doesn't win them the game. A base hit after you walk the bases loaded does.' He was not beaten by power. He was beaten by the three hitters he never had to face.

The pitch-tipping speculation sprouted online because people need a reason when a closer with a 1.67 ERA and 38 saves blows a six-out save, but Miller dismissed it, manager Craig Stammen dismissed it, and the only Chourio pitch Miller thought might have been affected was a take, not the 109.5 mph single that ended it. Stammen said the team monitors tells daily, and what he actually flagged was Miller's command wavering in multi-inning outings. The fix is one inning, not two — and the Padres may have learned that one game too late.

Mason Miller cards on eBay →(paid link)

Ben Rice

The take Rice's two HRs in error-filled Yankees ALDS loss

Ben Rice hit two solo home runs in yesterday's 5-2 loss to the Rays, and that accounted for every run the Yankees scored. He is the first player in franchise history with two multi-homer games in a single postseason, and the first player in postseason history to do it in his team's first four games.

The rest of the Yankees committed four errors — three in the first inning — and the defense handed the Rays extra baserunners that no amount of solo home runs can offset. One player hitting his way into the record books cannot carry a team that gives away outs. Rice is doing his part. The team around him is playing its way out of October.

Ben Rice cards on eBay →(paid link)

Chris Sale

The take Sale vs Yamamoto ace duel in tied NLDS Game 3

The Braves held Sale back from Game 2 to get him extra rest, and the calculation is that full-strength Chris Sale is worth the risk of a bullpen game in between. He posted a 2.16 ERA with 200 strikeouts in 162 1/3 innings this year, and the last time he saw the Dodgers he threw a five-hit shutout with 11 strikeouts — outdueling Yamamoto 1-0 at Truist Park in August. Atlanta is betting that the same arm shows up Tuesday.

Chris Sale cards on eBay →(paid link)