And surprisingly, the rebuilt bullpen has been a catalyst during this recent stretch of success.

New York's relievers stepped up again during Friday's 4-1 win over the Washington Nationals, holding the MLB's highest-scoring offense to just two hits over the final 4.2 innings of the game. After starter Robert Stock's day was done in the fifth inning, Nate Lavender, Jonathan Pintaro, Daniel Duarte, and Kodai Senga kept the Nats' off of the scoreboard.

After the win, interim manager Andy Green said Stock had a "really good" bounce-back outing and then highlighted the bullpen's impressive performances, including Lavender for getting two big outs and Pintaro's journey up to this moment. 

"I think excited for all of them," Green said. "What Nate has done in a short time here is enter dicey situation after dicey situation and gotten big outs for us. he comes in, it's harder than it looks, too, because you have an elite base-stealer at second base. He was able to control that and get two quick outs for us. Lot of credit to him. Early on in the big league career he keeps a low-pulse rate and goes out there and does what he does.

"And then Pinto gives us two huge innings. When you think about his journey from indy ball and getting picked up last year. Our scouts doing a nice job finding him, him coming through our development system. And now he's won a baseball game in the big leagues, that's pretty impressive. It's pretty impressive the scouting group that they found the guy in indy ball, we got a couple of them in the bullpen that didn't come the conventional route, but they came because our scouts are grinding. Pinto deserves a lot of credit for what he's done. I think Duarte's just been sensational."

Pintaro, who was pitching in just his ninth career game, earned his first win after throwing two scoreless innings of relief with two strikeouts. The 28-year-old spoke on what the accomplishment felt like and how he and the other relievers are taking advantage of the new opportunities in the bullpen.

"It's amazing. This is everything every baseball player ever dreams of," Pintaro said. "Just being able to go out there and compete and give everything I have for my teammates, it's amazing."

He added: "Pretty much all we want to do is we want to go out there and compete. Just do everything we can to show the world that we deserve this chance and that we have a great opportunity here to compete and help our teammates do everything they can to get the wins."

And it's not just journeyman players like Pintaro who are taking advantage of the new opportunities, as Senga has been solid in a high-leverage role and is 2-for-2 on save opportunities. Green said he won't always pitch in the ninth going forward, but is happy with what he's seen from the former starter.

"He'll continue to get those opportunities," Green said. "I do think there will be times we flip it and pitch him in the eighth inning because he matches up really well at the right point in time. But he's going to continue to get the high-leverage opportunities. Like I just said, he's really controlled his pulse-rate and he's throwing plus-stuff out there."

Senga even told reporters that he's been able to adjust quickly to the new role and feels more prepared taking the mound when he knows the specific situation.

"It's certainly easier to prepare knowing that you're going later in the game, easier to prepare, easier to get ready and warm-up," Senga said via an interpreter. 

He, Pintaro, and the rest of the Mets bullpen will now look to keep it going as they continue their home series against the Nats this weekend and throughout the final stretch of the regular season.

Head coach Aaron Glenn confirmed that it happened in the team's last joint practice with the Bucs earlier this week. 

"Nothing to be alarmed about. It’ll be day-to-day," Glenn said after the Jets' 24-16 loss. "Thursday, I told him he wasn’t going to play… Precautionary."

The Jets are not too concerned about the injury and it was something that would not have kept Smith out if Friday's game was in the regular season.

Fourth-round pick Cade Klubnik started the game with the starters and played a couple of series. He finished 5 of 7 for 56 yards and took a sack.

Bailey Zappe and Brady Cook saw the bulk of the playing time as they fight to be the No. 3 quarterback.

When Smith eventually does take the field for Gang Green, it will be his first start for the team that drafted him since 2016. He spent the 2017 season with the New York Giants, followed by a year with the Los Angeles Chargers, before reviving his career with the Seattle Seahawks. 

Last season, Smith struggled in his lone year with the Las Vegas Raiders, going 2-13 as the starter with 3,025 passing yards, 19 TDs, and 17 INTs. 

The Jets hope there's more left in the tank with the veteran QB, acquiring him from the Raiders in March for a 2026 sixth-round pick prior to the NFL Draft.

Klubnik, who was selected with the No. 110 pick, will now get an extended chance to show his potential and make the Jets seriously consider him for their future. The 22-year-old from Clemson went 26-13 as the starter over three seasons, throwing for 10,132 yards with 73 TDs and just 24 INTs.

The Jets’ initial on-field preparations for the upcoming season were made less challenging than anticipated with the announcement that the Bucs would be resting all of their starters. The Jets also opted to rest quarterback Geno Smith, who has foot soreness but reportedly would have been fine to play if it were a regular season game.

New York’s retooled starting defense had some early success, as they forced a 3-and-out on the opening series, highlighted by a Will McDonald sack. Rookie Cade Klubnik then led the Jets downfield with the starters and Cade York’s short field goal opened the scoring.

After the Bucs were again forced to punt on their second series, it was backups the rest of the way for the Jets too, and they increased the lead to 10-0 on the ensuing possession on Braelon Allen’s 31-yard touchdown run.

Connor Bazelak, the Bucs’ starting quarterback, led Tampa Bay downfield and into the red zone, but rookie cornerback Mory Bamba broke up a third-down pass in the end zone, so the Bucs had to settle for a field goal to make it 10-3. They then tied the score three plays later when rookie Ayden Garnes intercepted Bailey Zappe and returned it for a 47-yard touchdown.

Having been intercepted a second time, Zappe responded by leading the Jets to a go-ahead field goal as time expired just before halftime. York’s 38-yarder gave the Jets a 13-10 lead.

Tampa Bay took its first lead of the night with 5.24 remaining in the third quarter on a 12-yard touchdown run by Josh Williams. However, the Jets – now with Brady Cook at quarterback - cut it to 17-16 on Jason Sanders’ 47-yard field goal with 9:48 remaining.

Bucs rookie Jalon Daniels’ one-yard quarterback sneak provided the final margin, as Cook got the Jets down inside the 30 in the closing moments but then turned the ball over on downs.

Here are the takeaways...

-It may be a little early to predict who is going to win the various position battles on defense, but we got a few early clues with safety Andre Cisco and cornerback Azareye’h Thomas on the field to start the game with the rest of the starters. Interestingly, the Jets came out in a nickel defense with a four-man front and Jarvis Brownlee Jr. in the slot, but they did play some conventional 3-4 base sets on the second drive.

-All eyes were on top draft pick David Bailey, but he only got a few chances to rush the quarterback and while he looked like a handful and was in the backfield a few times and was credited with one tackle, he didn’t make a direct impact. The closest he got was ironically on McDonald’s sack, as he came up the middle on a stunt.

-Klubnik got some valuable reps with the starters due to Smith’s absence and made a confident, if simple, first down throw to Mason Taylor on his first pro snap. However, the next snap was a blown play that lost five yards as Klubnik made an ill-advised pitch to Breece Hall. He settled down with two nice completions to Garrett Wilson, but that drive stalled in the red zone, and he ended up 5-of-7 for 56 yards.

-Two of Zappe’s first three passes were intercepted, but the second of those was wide receiver Arian Smith’s fault as the ball deflected off his hands. After an underwhelming rookie season, Smith may struggle to crack the rotation this year, and if it wasn’t for his special teams contributions, he’d be a strong candidate to be released.

First-round rookie Omar Cooper exclusively worked with the backups, but had a couple of catches, including a 26-yarder from Zappe to get the Jets into scoring range just before halftime.

Game MVP: Jets CB Mory Bamba

The undrafted rookie Bamba was an unlikely candidate to be the most outstanding player on the field in the first half, but he certainly made the most of his opportunities as he broke up four passes before halftime. He ended up with five tackles and also registered pressure on a blitz. After halftime, he added an impressive tackle on special teams, which could be a viable route for him to potentially make the roster.

Highlights

What a catch by Garrett Wilson 😤 pic.twitter.com/TyQ9QQWZqC

— SNY Jets (@snyjets) August 14, 2026

Braelon Allen is GONE! 0️⃣ pic.twitter.com/n8djDoAyeM

— SNY Jets (@snyjets) August 14, 2026

Omar Cooper Jr. with the big gain! pic.twitter.com/M8WjZ5mXK0

— SNY Jets (@snyjets) August 15, 2026

What's next

The Jets continue their preseason slate with a game against the Steelers on Friday, Aug. 21 at 7 p.m.

Up 1-0 in the sixth, the Jays had two runners on and one out. George Springer hit a groundball to Ryan McMahon. McMahon stepped on third for one out, but the throw to Luis Garcia Jr. at first took his glove off as he tried to scoop. Garcia tried to get Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at third base, but he threw it into left field, not noticing that no one was covering. Guerrero and George Lombard Jr. collided at third, as the ball went into the outfield, but Vlad was able to score. Alejandro Kirk followed with an RBI double to give the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead. McMahon and Garcia were given errors on the play.

It was enough for the Blue Jays as the Yankees' offense. New York left four runners on base and went 0-for-3 with RISP.

Here are the takeaways...

-Cole pitched on a tightrope early, as Toronto had runners on second and third with one out in the second inning. Cole struck out Kazuma Okamoto and got Jesus Sanchez to ground out to end the threat. 

After that defensive misplay pushed two runs across, Cole finished the inning, but that two-spot put a damper on the right-hander's night. He allowed two runs on five hits and two walks through his six innings, while striking out five. 

-On the offensive side, the struggles continued. Lombard made a baserunning blunder, straying too far off second on a Trent Grisham single in the third, and the team wasted a leadoff double from Spencer Jones in the fourth. Jones was on third with one out before Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Heliot Ramos flew out to end the inning.

Grisham lined a home run (359 ft, 100.3 mph) over the right field wall for his 16th of the season. The blast put the Yankees up 1-0 in the sixth.

-The Yankees bullpen kept the Blue Jays off the board until the eighth. Bradley Hanner, making his major league debut, struck out the first two batters on the night, but Kirk launched his fifth home run of the season to give Toronto an insurance run.

-Shane Bieber held the Yankees at bay. Aside from allowing the Grisham homer, the former AL Cy Young winner allowed just four hits and one walk across six innings while striking out five.

-The Yankees had just five hits. Grisham had two with Jones, Chisholm and McMahon reaching base via the hit.  

Game MVP: Alejandro Kirk

The Blue Jays backstop drove in two of the team's three runs.

Highlights

Trent Grisham homers to give the Yankees the lead! pic.twitter.com/qjbbZPJdwG

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 15, 2026

What's next

The Yankees and Blue Jays play the second game of their series on Saturday. First pitch is set for 3:07 p.m.

Cam Schlittler (10-6, 2.21 ERA) will take the mound. Toronto has yet to announce a starter.

New York has now won seven of their last 10 games.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Francisco Lindor's season-long defensive issues continued Friday night. The SS misplayed a ball up the middle in the top of the third inning, allowing CJ Abrams to score and give the Nationals an early 1-0 lead. It's Lindor's ninth error of the season in just his 65th game (he had 13 errors in 2025 over 158 games).

-- Although Lindor made up for the mistake later in the bottom of the sixth inning, crushing a breaking ball to left field for a solo home run that tied the game at 1-1. The homer off of LHP Andrew Alvarez was just his fourth from the right side of the plate this year and 12th home run overall.

New York then found a way to take the lead as Bo Bichette reached first on a strikeout-wild pitch, Luis Robert Jr. singled against Jake Bird, and Carson Benge drove in the run to go up 2-1.

-- Robert Stock took the mound for the first time since his rough start against the Pirates (eight earned runs in 3.0 IP) and put together a solid outing. He allowed one unearned run on three hits with five strikeouts and three walks over 4.1 IP and a career-high 84 pitches.

The 36-year-old started strong, leaving two Nationals stranded in the first inning and tossing a quick 1-2-3 second inning. Washington got to him in the third, scoring an unearned run on Lindor's error, but he powered through to leave two runners stranded. Stock bounced back for a four-batter fourth inning and came back out for the fifth, but was pulled after a walk and hit-by-pitch. 

-- LHP Nate Lavender cleaned up in the fifth, recording two flyouts on three pitches to keep it a 1-0 game. Jonathan Pintaro pitched a scoreless sixth inning thanks to a 4-6-3 double play with two Nats on base, and kept it going with a 1-2-3 seventh inning.

-- Jared Young gave the Mets an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh, blasting a hanging curveball 408 feet to right field to make it 3-1. The inning stayed alive after two walks and Bichette took advantage, tacking on another with an RBI single to push the lead to 4-1.

-- Pitching with a three-run lead, RHP Daniel Duarte breezed by the Nats in the eighth with a scoreless frame. Kodai Senga ran into some trouble in the ninth, allowing a single and hitting a batter, but was able to record his second career save by striking out Abimelec Ortiz on a ghost fork.

Highlights

A two-strikeout inning for Robert Stock 🙌 pic.twitter.com/aLAZNTY0AB

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 14, 2026

Robert Stock makes the play to third for the out pic.twitter.com/F4gvr9mFCR

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 14, 2026

Francisco Lindor with a swing and a drive! pic.twitter.com/5HV4cO1ZEh

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 15, 2026

Carson Benge gives the Mets the lead! pic.twitter.com/R1WwkfFKaE

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 15, 2026

Carson Benge makes the sliding catch 🔥 pic.twitter.com/U8Hk3cgc1H

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 15, 2026

Jared Young crushes a home run! pic.twitter.com/YaB4S02jbj

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 15, 2026

Bo Bichette drives in another run! pic.twitter.com/tvc20dRW6g

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 15, 2026

What's next

The Mets and Nationals continue their series on Saturday at 4:10 p.m. on SNY.

LHP Sean Manaea (4-5, 4.13 ERA) takes the mound, while the Nats have yet to announce a starting pitcher.

With New York's playoff chances dwindling after being sellers at the trade deadline, it would be understandable if Soto was shut down for the rest of the year as he recovers, but the Mets' lone All-Star this season vows to be back with this team.

“We are playing really good baseball right now,” Soto told MLB.com ahead of Friday's series opener with the Nationals. “Why not try to rejoin this team? It would be really fun. It would be great for me and the team. [I want to] finish the season strong and keep the momentum for next year, too.”

Entering play Friday, the Mets are 5-3 since the Aug. 3 trade deadline and are getting major contributions from the young kids and some recent call-ups. 

But New York could use an infusion of Soto. Before this latest injury, Soto was having a Soto-like season. However, being available has been a challenge for Soto. The slugger has missed 38 games entering Friday between his first stint on the IL with a right calf strain and this current injury to his left leg. 

Soto called his 2026 injuries "tough" and hopes to learn from this experience and stay healthy for his team moving forward.

“It’s tough for me to lose so many games. I’ve never been on this side of it,” Soto said. “I think it’s good for me -- for my career -- because it will teach me a lot of things. I have to adjust in my training [and] conditioning to keep moving forward in a positive way. I have to learn about my body a little bit more, learning how it works and go from there.”

In 84 games this season, Soto has slashed .283/.408/.539 with 21 home runs and 52 RBI en route to another All-Star Game selection. 

And while the Mets have yet to give a timeline for Soto's return, the outfielder was doing pregame workouts at Citi Field, in good spirits.

Juan Soto does some work pregame and runs at Citi Field pic.twitter.com/UFxUYw1D0z

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 14, 2026

Bellinger getting closer to a rehab start

Cody Bellinger has been on the IL since late July with a hamstring strain, but it seems the All-Star outfielder could be nearing a start in the minors.

Boone said that if all goes well with Bellinger as he continues his baseball activity, he could go on a rehab assignment sometime next week. Bellinger was doing some outfield work, namely catching flyballs in left field, hours before first pitch on Friday.

He was diagnosed with a Grade 2 hamstring strain, so the initial timeline had Bellinger down for 4-6 weeks. If Bellinger gets into a rehab game next week, he would be in line with that assessment and could be activated before the end of the month. Boone did project that Bellinger would be back before Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge, so his recovery is one to look out for as the Yankees hope to get back the outfielder's production.

Bellinger was slashing .259/.350/.420 with an OPS of .770 to go along with his 11 home runs and 53 RBI across 102 games this season.

Rodon's next step undecided

Carlos Rodon made his second rehab start on Thursday, and it was successful.

The southpaw struck out seven batters across 4.1 scoreless innings with Double-A Somerset. Boone said Rodon looked good in his rehab, but was not ready to declare what Rodon's next step will be.

Rodon could make another rehab start or could be activated next week to get him stretched out in the majors. If the latter is the direction the Yankees go, Boone has already said Rodon could be part of a piggyback situation. Rodon's schedule coincides with Will Warren, so those two could be the pitchers in that situation if it comes to that.

Chivilli lands on the IL

Angel Chivilli, the right-hander who was pitching well out of the Yankees bullpen recently before being optioned, was placed on the IL by Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday. 

Boone confirmed the designation and said that Chivilli is suffering from "some posterior elbow stuff going on" and that a doctor will check out the pitcher soon. 

In 15 appearances with the big league club, Chivilli pitched to a 3.78 ERA. He had not allowed an earned run the entire month of July (12.2 IP), but was tagged for six runs against the Cardinals back on Aug. 3. 

Chivilli was optioned after the game due to the 24-year-old tossing 37 pitches in that outing. 

The Yankees did sign a reliever to a minor league contract on Friday, penning Justin Topa and assigning him to Triple-A.

Topa, 35, made 23 appearances for the Twins this season and pitched to an 8.05 ERA and a 2.00 WHIP.

Vientos has been building his way back up at the team facility in Port St. Lucie. 

Back in the Big Apple, though, interim manager Andy Green said the team is encouraged by Vientos' progress. 

“He looks really good,” he said. “He’s hitting, he’s progressing -- it’s good to see him bouncing around, taking groundballs and hitting, so he’s moving right along.”

Despite the positive progression, the Mets still don’t have a timeline for a return to game action. 

Vientos, of course, has been sidelined since fracturing his right hand on a Michael Wacha hit-by-pitch during a game in the beginning of July. 

The slugger had been in the midst of another disappointing season at the time. 

His struggles on both sides of the ball mainly relegated him to the short-side of a platoon with Jared Young at first base in the weeks leading up to the injury. 

Vientos was hitting .211 with just 20 XBH’s and a .644 OPS across 73 games.

Young, meanwhile, has taken hold of the bulk of the playing time against both righties and lefties in his absence so it'll be interesting to see exactly how Vientos will be used upon his return.

The Mets later confirmed Huskey passed away from a blood clot in his lung.

Huskey first landed in the Big Apple as a seventh-round pick in the 1989 MLB Draft. 

After spending five seasons grinding his way through the minor leagues, the righty-hitting slugger was called up to make his big-league debut during the 1993 season. 

Huskey went on to spend parts of five seasons with the Mets, racking up 55 HRs and 214 RBI. 

Steve Phillips traded him to the Mariners following the 1998 campaign, but he appeared in just 74 games with them before being flipped again, this time to Boston. 

Huskey split his final big-league season between the Twins and Rockies. 

He finished his time in the majors as a career .267 hitter with 98 doubles, 86 HR, 336 RBI, and a .760 OPS.

Huskey is also the penultimate Met to wear the No. 42, as he was wearing it when MLB announced it was retired league-wide in honor of Jackie Robinson in 1997. 

The Mets are "scouting and considering" Sato, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. 

It hasn't yet been confirmed that the star third baseman will be posted by the Hanshin Tigers this offseason, but Jorge Castillo of ESPN reported in May that teams are "preparing" for Sato to be available.

Sato, 27, hit .278/.345/.579 with 40 home runs, 34 doubles, and 102 RBI in 139 games in 2025 for Hanshin.

He's taken it up a notch this season, slashing .318/.404/.622 with 27 homers and 28 doubles in 103 games, though he has struck out 116 times.

Sato would very likely have to slide over to first base in a world where he lands in Queens and Bo Bichette doesn't opt out of his contract.

New York's current in-house options at first base for next season include Jared Young and Jorge Polanco. But Polanco has been abysmal at the plate this season, with his Achilles issue limiting him to DH duties since he returned from the IL.

Regarding Bichette, he has opt-outs after this season and the 2027 season. However, it's difficult to envision him exercising it this offseason, with him set to get an AAV of $42 million in both 2027 and 2028.

Bichette has been a lot better since his tough start, hitting .307/.349/.458 (.807 OPS) with seven homers and 11 doubles in 232 plate appearances dating back to June 11. But his OPS for the year is still just .690.

As far as Sato, Heyman notes that the Yankees, Dodgers, and Phillies are also "linked" to him.

Sato continued his huge season on Thursday night, when he crushed a 480-foot homer.

Teruaki Sato destroys a 480 ft MOONSHOT 🚀

111.9 mph off the bat for his 24th bomb 💣 pic.twitter.com/2L2hDxEI3k

— Yakyu Cosmopolitan (@yakyucosmo) August 11, 2026

Euphoria is at an all-time high, the expectations are less burdened but still there, and the excitement is at a peak after a wild offseason of rival teams chasing New York’s preeminence. 

We’re still two months away from tip-off, but the hype kicked off with the season’s schedule release on Thursday. 

Let’s dive into all 82 games to take an early glimpse at what the Knicks should expect in defense of their throne this year.

Key Dates

Sept. 29: NBA Training Camps open

Oct. 20: Start of NBA regular season

Dec. 4-5: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Knockout Rounds | Quarterfinals

Dec. 8 and/or Dec. 9: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Knockout Rounds | Semifinals

Dec. 11: Emirates NBA Cup 2026 | Championship | Hinkle Fieldhouse, Indianapolis

Feb. 11: NBA Trade Deadline

Feb. 19-21: NBA All-Star 2027 | Phoenix

Feb. 19-24: NBA All-Star break

Top Matchups

Oct. 20 vs Phi.

Opening night has never been more special, as the Knicks receive their 2026 championship rings, before suiting up to play the rebuilt 76ers. This is not the team they eliminated from two of the last three postseasons, after acquiring Jaylen Brown via trade and LeBron James in free agency. 

NBA Cup Games

Oct. 30 @ Philadelphia 76ers

Nov. 13 @ Indiana Pacers

Tyrese Haliburton returns from his Achilles tear as the Knicks test themselves against the one teams they failed to overcome in their hunt for a chip. 

Nov. 2 vs Brooklyn Nets

Julius Randle dons a Nets jersey at MSG for the first time, returning to the city that made him a perennial All-Star.

Nov. 25 vs Cleveland Cavaliers

New York has had Cleveland’s number, but the Cavs won’t go quietly after an embarrassing Conference Finals sweep. 

Nov. 27 vs Miami Heat

Giannis Antetokounmpo pays a visit to Madison Square Garden for the first time in his new Heat uniform, as the Knicks face a potential new contender in the East. 

Dec. 25 vs San Antonio Spurs

A Christmas Day NBA Finals rematch, what more could fans ask for? Victor Wembanyama and co. will be out to prove they’ve ascended beyond last June’s performance. 

Feb. 13 vs Golden State Warriors

We don’t have many more chances to watch Stephen Curry play at Madison Square Garden, so fans of the quixotic shooter will have this date circled on their calendars.

Easiest stretches

New York doesn’t boast any especially easy stretches playing in a packed division and conference with their longest home stand coming in at five games. They do open the season with seven of their first 11 games at home, though, with two against Chicago, plus Brooklyn and Milwaukee on the docket letting them start the year with a little victory lap.

From Jan. 11 through the end of the month, the Knicks play nine of 11 games at home with only one back-to-back -- this stretch includes a number of visiting West teams, but few pushovers. 

Late March provides them another reprieve, with five of six games at home and the one road game just a stone’s throw away in Washington D.C. They play the Wizards twice plus the Pelicans and Kings in this stretch, giving them a potential nice boost to playoff seeding down the stretch.

Toughest stretches

New York was given a brutal holiday schedule, kicking off in December with two road games before pivoting into the NBA Cup tournament action. From there, they play five more road games before finally returning home in time for games every other day through the end of the month, including their Christmas matinee.

And it doesn’t stop there, as the Knicks go back on the road on Dec. 30 to launch a six-game West Coast trip with a though back-to-back. In all, they play 13 of 16 games away from home for a month and a week, not including Cup games.

This part of the schedule will definitely test this team, which had a similar stretch last year in which they won the NBA Cup and went on a killer winning streak, before completely flaming out for the next 11 games. 

With all of the trophies they were able to secure last season, perhaps they will be able to find a way to carry through this intense stretch with less of a boom-and-bust approach.

Here are five things to watch during the preseason...

A different approach on defense

With Aaron Glenn now calling the plays, the Jets will apparently be putting more of an emphasis on size during early downs, with the defense geared toward ensuring they stop the run and get off the field on third down.

The unofficial depth chart that was released earlier this week hinted at this, with three interior linemen listed in the starting lineup, as the Jets are expected to operate more often out of odd-man fronts in early-down situations.

Glenn has promised that the defense would be multiple this year, and gameplans are always vanilla in the preseason. However, it will be interesting to see which formations and personnel packages New York uses in this first game.

Can David Bailey make an early impact?

The number two overall pick, Bailey hasn't disappointed in training camp, and Bucs tackle Luke Goedeke had his hands full with him during joint practices early this week. Can he start living up to the hype immediately?

Bailey might not get many chances to make an impact on Friday night, but he'll be pinning his ears back and getting after the quarterback, so the Bucs may struggle to keep him quiet. If he stands out, it will be a good sign that he's on the road to developing into the kind of impact player the Jets were hoping for.

An early glimpse of Geno Smith and the weapons at his disposal

Smith will suit up and play for the Jets for the first time in almost a decade, and while he'll probably only be in the game for a few series, it wouldn't be surprising to see him take a few shots down the field.

For Jets fans, while first-round tight end Kenyon Sadiq remains out, it will be their first chance to get a look at the other first-round pass catcher, Omar Cooper Jr.

Smith will also be eager to establish in-game chemistry with Garrett Wilson, Adonai Mitchell, Mason Taylor, and Isaiah Williams, all of whom have been performing well in camp.

Handling of injury issues

Every team's main concern during the preseason is to avoid injuries, and the Jets will no doubt take a cautious approach toward playing time and workloads over the next few weeks.

There are already a few players out and we can learn plenty from how the team handles these absences. In particular, T'Vondre Sweat and Joseph Ossai are out, so New York will have to decide how this affects the rotation on the interior and at the edge positions.

Who is the kicker?

There are plenty of position battles to watch, especially in the defensive secondary, where multiple roles are up for grabs. However, one of the most interesting unanswered questions is who the kicker will be.

Neither Cade York nor Jason Sanders seems to have separated themselves yet in camp, so any preseason success or failure could make all the difference.

Of course, we can never be certain that the Jets will get into scoring range often enough to guarantee each of them plenty of work, so it will also be interesting to see who the first man up is.

AL East battle

Toronto has had a tough season. After being so close to capturing a World Series title a year ago, the Blue Jays find themselves entering this series below .500 (59-64) and on the outside looking in on the postseason.

However, Toronto has played much better of late. They are 6-4 in their last 10 and just took three of four from Boston. This stretch has allowed Toronto to climb within 2.0 games of the third and final Wild Card spot. 

Can the Yankees put Toronto's playoff hopes on ice, or will they give them life like they did the Red Sox? 

The Yanks need these games just as much as Toronto. Although they are firmly in the first Wild Card spot, they can't allow the Red Sox to get close -- they enter Friday three games up on Boston -- and are 6.5 games behind Tampa for the AL East crown. 

Cy Young battle

The top two AL pitchers vying for the Cy Young are Cam Schlittler and Dylan Cease. 

Schlittler was the favorite for much of this season, but Cease has come on of late, pitching deep into games and piling up the strikeouts. Both will have their next starts in this series. And while they are currently not scheduled to pitch against each other, they will look to boost their Cy Young credentials this weekend.

Schlittler struck out 11 and allowed one run across seven innings in his last start against the Braves, while Cease struck out seven and allowed three runs in five innings against the Red Sox. 

There's also the All-Star starter "controversy" when Blue Jays manager John Schneider -- managing the AL side -- was going to peg Cease to start the game over Schlittler, but the Yankees ace took himself out of the running once he got wind of it. This could be a chance for Schlittler to show the Jays skipper what he can do.

Spencer Jones' continued development

While George Lombard Jr. is getting the headlines for what he's done in his short stint with the club, Jones is quietly becoming a productive player.

Yankees skipper Aaron Boone has slotted Jones into the three-hole the last few games and it's paid off, with Jones coming through with runners on base in the first two games of the Mariners series.

And while he went hitless in the series finale on Thursday, Jones is looking more and more comfortable as he stacks starts. Can he continue to put up quality ABs and play good outfield defense in Toronto?

Can the Yankees offense wake up?

Yankees pitching has done its part, but the offense continues to be inconsistent.

There was some life from the lineup against Seattle, with New York scoring 10 runs in the middle game of the series, but the Yanks were shut out in the finale on Thursday. 

Which version of the Yankees will show up this weekend? 

Deadline bats not doing their part

Luis Garcia Jr. and Heliot Ramos were brought over to infuse some life into the lineup. And while they've been solid, they need to do more. Garcia, especially. 

After having the best OPS in the NL when he was with the Nationals, it has not been the same since he donned the pinstripes. He's slashing .258/.303/.452 with an OPS of .755, one home run, three doubles and two RBI in eight games with the Yankees. Decent, but New York needs more power from the left-hander.

Ramos is simply lost. He's slashing .080/.233/.160 with an OPS of .393 in eight games with the Yanks, and was benched in the series finale against the Mariners. 

Can they turn it around?

Predictions

Who will the MVP of the series be?

Ben Rice

It's hard to pick any player right now, but Rice needs to shoulder the offensive load until reinforcements arrive.

Which Yankees pitcher will have the best start?

Cam Schlittler

Schlittler has his best starts when he's motivated to prove people wrong. He'll do that against Schneider and the Jays.

Which Blue Jays player will be a thorn in the Yankees' side?

Ernie Clement

The infielder always gives the Yankees fits. He has 33 hits with two homers and 17 RBI in 35 games against the Yankees in his career.

After entering the fourth quarter up by 26 points, the Sparks used a 21-0 run to get back into the game. But Ionescu's shooting and timely buckets from her teammates helped the Liberty pick up their fifth win in six games. 

Here are the takeaways...

-The Liberty started 1-for-6 from the field in this one, but quickly overcame it, taking a 21-16 lead after the first quarter thanks to six Sparks turnovers and 18 points in the paint.

Breanna Stewart had a personal 6-0 run early on to pace the Liberty.

Jonquel Jones had a near double-double in the first frame, posting six points and eight boards (four offensive).

-The Liberty reserves started the second quarter and looked sluggish, but quickly got out to a double-digit lead thanks to the fastbreak and Sparks turnovers. They were also monsters on the boards, outrebounding LA 29-16 at the half.

They outscored the Sparks, 32-12 in the paint after two quarters.

By the half, Jones already had her double-double (10 points, 12 rebounds), while Stewart had nine points, four assists and two steals. Rebecca Allen (eight points), Ionescu (four points, three assists) and Pauline Astier (seven points, four assists, two steals) rounded out the Liberty scoring from the starting five.

-The Liberty built a 19-point lead early in the third, but the Sparks were more physical and took more risks as they tried to cut into New York's lead. However, that also backfired as they continued to turn the ball over and foul, leading to free throws for the Liberty. That Liberty lead would grow to 26 and outscore the Sparks 18-9 in the quarter to go into the final frame up 67-41.

-The fourth quarter was chaotic. The Sparks started chucking and making their threes to cut the Liberty lead to 19 points. There was a sequence where Cameron Brink and Rae Burrell butted heads, leading to the Liberty having a two-person advantage, but could not capitalize. The Sparks, with both Brink and Burrell still reeling from their collision, hit a three to force a Liberty timeout. 

That hot three-point shooting continued as LA went on a 21-0 run in just four minutes. Ionescu forced her way to the rim to end the Sparks' run. But it was the Burrell show. The forward hit a three to cut the Liberty lead to just four with four minutes to go. Ionescu would put the team on her back, making clutch buckets and finding her teammates. 

Up just one point, Ionescu sunk three of four free throws to ice the win.

-Burrell scored 20 points in the fourth to help lead the Sparks' charge and finished with 28 points, three rebounds and three assists. Dearica Hamby had 16 points and four rebounds while Nneka Ogwumike was the only other Sparks player in double figures, posting 10 points and 11 rebounds. 

-Ionescu led the Liberty with 20 points while Allen (13), Stewart (11) and Jones (11) and Marine Johannes (10) off the bench were the other Liberty players in double digits. 

Game MVP: Sabrina Ionescu

A few minutes into the third quarter, Ionescu appeared to turn her ankle and went into the locker room. She would return a few minutes later and impact the game with her shot-making and assists and her 12 points in the fourth were the difference.

At Triple-A, Nick Morabito started the game at the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp off with a bang, slamming a 408-foot home run to left. The Mets' 15th-ranked prospect in Joe DeMayo's latest rankings got a 2-0 slider over the plate and the knees and teed off with a 109 mph exit velocity for his 12th-round tripper of the campaign and second in the last three games. 

The center fielder finished the day 1-for-2 with two RBI and a sacrifice bunt at the plate.

Jonathan Santucci was on the mound for Syracuse for his third start at Triple-A, and the left-hander had a short night, failing to get out of the first inning. However, he got no help from his defense in getting him into trouble.

On the first batter, second baseman Christopher Morel cut off a slow bouncer that likely would've been a routine 6-3. After a walk put two aboard, a grounder to first bounced over the glove of Ryan Clifford for a run-scoring error to cover the corners with nobody out. 

After an eight-pitch walk, Santucci got a strikeout on a slider before walking in a run as his command continued to fail him. He did rebound to get a strikeout on three pitches, but with his pitch count at 36 in the inning, he was pulled.

His final line: two runs (one earned) on one hit, three walks, and two strikeouts with just 19 strikes. When he was in the zone, he was rather good with five whiffs on 12 swings (42 percent), but it has been a rough start for DeMayo's No. 2-ranked prospect as he's issued 12 walks in his first 10 innings with Syracuse since his call-up in late July.

At the plate, Clifford, the Mets' No. 14 prospect, went 0-for-2 at the plate.

The game between Syracuse and Jacksonville was suspended in the fifth inning and will be resumed on Friday. 

Well hello to you too! Nick Morabito opens the game with a lead off homer! 💣 pic.twitter.com/wv93XwS8LO

— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) August 13, 2026

Double-A Binghamton was getting the treat of spending an August week in Maine, and the Portland Sea Dogs gifted them with six errors in the Rumble Ponies' 6-2 win. But it was a bit of a tough night for most of the Mets' top prospects.

The lone bright spot was No. 8 prospect Jacob Reimer, who smacked a three-run homer in the seventh as he was 2-for-4. Reimer got a 1-0 breaking pitch that hung in the middle of the zone and cranked it high over the mock Green Monster in left for his seventh homer of the year.

Top prospect Jefferson Rojas, who was 4-for-8 with two doubles and a homer and six RBI the first two games of the series, went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and a run scored (got aboard on a catcher's interference).

Mitch Voit, the 5th-ranked prospect who went 2-for-5 with a double and a walk on Wednesday and entered the game 24-for-45 (.533) in his first 12 games at Double-A, went hitless in five times up with three strikeouts.

Chris Suero has gotten off to a slow start average-wise in August, entering the game 6-for-34 (.177), but had two homers, two doubles and six RBI for a .721 OPS. The No. 23 prospect had an uneven game, going 0-for-2 with two walks and a strikeout.

Billy Amick had a rare rough night, going 0-for-4 wth three strikeouts. The 27th-ranked prospect entered Thursday's game just scorching hot: 11-for-32 (.344) with six home runs and 17 RBI in his first nine games with Binghamton.

Pitching for Double-A Somerset, the Yankees southpaw tossed 4.1 shutout innings and allowed two hits and one walk while striking out seven batters. 

After a delayed start due to inclement weather, Rodon took the mound and allowed a bloop single to lead off the game. Rodon bounced back, getting a fly out and an inning-ending double play to end the first frame.

Rodon then came out in the second, striking out two in a 1-2-3 inning. After Somerset put up a four-spot in the bottom half of the second, Rodon worked around a leadoff single by striking out the next three batters to keep New Hampshire off the board. Rodon struck out two more batters in the fourth before issuing his first walk to lead off the fifth inning. After picking up an out, Rodon was pulled in the middle of an at-bat after 58 pitches (41 strikes). 

Tyler Boudreau came in to finish up the at-bat Rodon left for and got the third out without allowing Rodon's runner to score, putting an end to the veteran's night.

In his last rehab start, Rodon struck out four batters while allowing three runs on three hits and two walks across 2.2 innings. Thursday's start was a stark improvement as Rodon continues to build up his pitch count.

Earlier this week, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said this could be Rodon's final rehab start before rejoining the team. If Rodon feels good after Thursday's start, he can be activated next week, even with the limited pitch count. Boone actually stated that Rodon could continue to build up his count while pitching in a piggyback situation. 

That could be a temporary solution for the upcoming rotation crunch that will befall the Yankees. When Rodon is ready to start games, New York will have to decide which of Will Warren or Ryan Weathers will be added to the bullpen.

The Red Sox entered the series at Fenway Park as a team continually adrift, two months removed from firing their manager and sitting 14 games below .500. 

Over the next 49 days, it has been a tale of two cities: Boston swept the four games and has gone 33-10 (.767 winning percentage), snapping a five-game skid with a win Thursday. New York would lose 11 of the next 13 games and is 20-22 (.476) and is just 3.0 games ahead of the old rivals in the AL East.

"We're just grinding through it right now,” manager Aaron Boone said after a 1-0 loss to the Mariners to cap a 5-4 home stand against St. Louis, Atlanta, and Seattle.

Since the All-Star break, the Yanks have gone 14-11, and the constants have been too many close games (11 one-run contests) and a lack of offense (they’ve failed to score more than three runs 17 times).

“We’re playing a lot of good teams on the schedule the last month or so,” Boone added. “We’re playing these types of games every day. Close ballgames, even last night when we break out and pull away, it’s still a tie game in the seventh. 

“The good thing is we're very used to playing in these situations. Hopefully that's a good thing for us. But we've got to continue to move the needle offensively."

The biggest reason for the recent tumult has been that the bats have gone ice cold and stayed cold. Over their last 25 games, the Yankees have posted a .641 OPS (third-lowest in baseball during that span) while striking out 242 times (fifth-most) and posting a .207 batting average (worst). Boston, meanwhile, has a .739 OPS (top in MLB) and .266 team average (fifth best) during that span.

Aaron Judge's absence, as well as Cody Bellinger's and, to a lesser extent, Giancarlo Stanton's, hasn't helped. Nor have the season-long woes for Jazz Chisholm Jr. or the recent skid from Ben Rice: .172/.274/.323 slash line for a .597 OPS with 34 strikeouts in his last 93 at-bats. And the deadline additions have been mixed: Luis Garcia Jr. has four extra-base hits in eight games with a .755 OPS, but Heliot Ramos has just two hits in 25 at-bats (.080). Of course, George Lombard Jr.'s debut has been a bright spot with two home runs in his first eight games.

Now would also be a good time to mention the team at the top of the division, the Tampa Bay Rays, who are idle on Thursday and hold a 6.5-game lead over the Yanks thanks to going 18-8 since the break, are riding a nine-game winning streak, and are about to host the scuffling Baltimore Orioles for a four-game set.

“It's been playoffs every day it feels like, these games,” Boone said of the intensity of the season with still 41 games to play. “I got people on the street saying, ‘Hey, it'll turn around.’ And I'm like, 'We're doing alright.’”

Boone said he’s seen them “doing a lot of really good things,” and is seeing “little crumbs” of the offense getting jump-started while the pitching stays consistently good. However, the skipper isn’t letting his surging rivals move his focus from the short term.  

“Honestly, I really haven’t even looked ahead like that… Now it’s just kinda on to Toronto,” he said, referencing the upcoming weekend series with the Blue Jays. “Not getting ahead of myself with like ‘Oh, let's go win 10 in a row or eight…’ No, you gotta go play well, and hopefully that stuff takes care of itself. And we put ourselves in a good position.

“On to the road.”

Not only was it their last practice before their first preseason game on Saturday -- the team will have walkthroughs Friday -- but Malik Nabers participated in team drills for the first time since the talented wideout tore his ACL a year ago. 

While Nabers was donned in full red regalia, similar to what quarterbacks wear to avoid physical contact, the receiver ran his routes and took some passes. 

"It's great to have him back out there," Jaxson Dart said of Nabers. "I've said this before, he has a certain presence about him anytime he touches the field and I think the big thing today was also you just saw how excited he was himself to be out there. And we're in like an ACT-style format of a practice, but he's running all the way down, scoring. Yeah, just can't wait for it to be full go when the time comes."

The Giants didn't go full-speed with Nabers, understandably, as the former first-round pick continues his road to recovery after missing most of last season. As head coach John Harbaugh put it, it was a "no-physicality practice," and it was more about timing than anything else. 

"I feel like the players were excited when we talked about it in meetings this morning. They were excited," Harbaugh said of Nabers' joining drills. "They were giving him a hard time at practice. But everybody was happy that he was out there. Because it's a big step. It's a big step to get into team drills. So, for him to do that was – yeah, it was a milestone, I would say, for our team."

Nabers came down with 109 receptions for 1,204 yards and seven touchdowns in his rookie campaign. In his sophomore season, Nabers caught 18 passes for 271 yards and two touchdowns in four games before he was injured.

Dart, who made his first NFL start in Week 4 against the Chargers -- the same game Nabers suffered his knee injury -- is ready to get back to throwing to him and knows exactly how Nabers can change the Giants offense for the better.

"He can change the game at any point and at any time," Dart said of Nabers' ability. "The ball is in his hands and there's a chance that it could go for six. And I think that that's just the type of player that he is. That's the skill sets that he has. So, when you have that on offense, it's game-changing. And so, whenever his time is right to be back out there with us, I can't wait for it, certainly. And I know that he's just going to make our team that much better."

Naber couldn't avoid all physical contact on Thursday as he bloodied wide receivers coach Chad Hall's lip with his helmet on a release. But otherwise, it was a good practice for Nabers in terms of his recovery. Despite having a second knee surgery in the offseason, he continues to get closer and closer to being at full speed and ready for the season opener on Sept. 13.

More of Malik Nabers at Giants practice today pic.twitter.com/EbafvMG6eT

— SNY Giants (@SNYGiants) August 13, 2026

After going hitless in four at-bats with three strikeouts in Thursday's 1-0 loss to the Seattle Mariners, Chisholm's slash line dipped to .216/.296/.391 on the year for a .687 OPS, down .126 points from his mark a season ago. And that gut feeling has become a season-long stomachache as things have been particularly bad of late: He has just five hits in his last 36 at-bats (.139) over his last 11 games with 16 strikeouts.

Asked after Thursday's loss why he thought it has been a struggle for Chisholm offensively, manager Aaron Boone said, “Don’t know.”

After a long pause of nearly 10 seconds, the skipper attempted to give a better answer for the second baseman’s struggles: “Missing his pitch a fair amount. Some of the balls that he’s hit well have kinda been that one-hopper to second base when maybe he gets a good pitch to drive and do something with. That’s the subtlety of this game and baseball. You gotta make hay when you get your pitches.”

Entering Thursday's game, Chisholm has seen his xwOBA dip from .346 to .289 (13th percentile), expected slugging drop from .481 to .364 (23rd percentile), and his barrel percentage go from 15 percent (91st percentile) to nine percent (56th percentile).

“Because I feel like overall, he’s making fairly good swing decisions,” Boone continued. “He’s not chasing; there’s patience in there. But probably whether it’s just missing, maybe a foul off, maybe swinging through more pitches than he’s used to. Again, just hasn’t gone on that hot streak really at any point.”

To that end, Chisholm's chase rate has ticked up a hair, but not changed relative to his position in the league, and his whiff rate has actually gone down, but that is of no comfort in the midst of a slump.

“Missing fastballs down the middle. Missing sliders down the middle. I can’t tell you why,” Chisholm said after the game, via The New York Post. “Or else I would be hitting.”  

Boone also pointed to the slow start Chisholm went through – 22-for-109 (.202) with 35 strikeouts and a .611 OPS in his first 30 games – but mentioned he has had some clutch moments during the year.

“He’s had some big hits for us but hasn’t gone on that long stretch where he’s really capable of impacting the game in a big way,” the manager said.

In spring training, Chisholm publicly stated some very lofty expectations for himself: 50 home runs and 50 steals. Through 112 games, he has 17 home runs and 31 stolen bases on 38 attempts.

Is it a matter of failing to meet that high bar that has weighed on him?

“Well, I don’t know, he expects to be great, but that’s part of this game,” Boone said. “You gotta handle that. And, look, different guys say different things publicly. [But] they’re just that. It’s a grind of a season for everyone involved, and you gotta be able to handle all the things, and he is.

“But he certainly hasn’t found that stretch of play that he’s done with us the last couple years that he’s accustomed to and that he expects.”

With 41 games left in the regular season and the postseason looming, a few clutch hits could be enough to wash out the bad taste of a grinding season.

“Forty-one good games can turn a season around. And that’s what I’m planning on doing,” Chisholm said. "I feel like mentally, I’m not defeated. So if I was mentally defeated, I think it would have been a different story in my eyes, but I’m not. I feel like I’m still as good as I am.”

Here are the key takeaways...

--Max Fried, who has been terrific since coming off of the IL, pitched 5.0 innings of one-run ball, but he didn't have his sharpest stuff. He only allowed five hits, one of which was a Weston Wilson solo home run in the top of the second inning, and struck out four while walking two. But he threw 88 pitches (55 of which were strikes), and he seemed to have a lot of trouble locating his breaking ball. 

--After breaking out for 10 runs on Wednesday night, the Yankees bats couldn't do much of anything against Mariners starter Logan Gilbert. The righty went 6.0 scoreless innings, allowing just four hits while striking out seven and walking only one. 

-- The Yankees caught a big break in the bottom of the seventh. With two outs, Jose Caballero was dead to rights trying to steal second base, but Colt Emerson dropped the ball on the tag. The inning stayed alive, but Amed Rosario was called out on strikes with runners on the corners to end the threat.

--The Yankees didn't have a ton of chances to score, but Trent Grisham didn't help matters in the bottom of the third, when what should have been a double was erased because Grisham popped up on the slide and was tagged out. The Yankees should have had runners on second and third with one out, but instead it was the second out of the inning, and the third out came quickly after.

The Yanks struck out 10 times and went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position. 

-- The Yankees' bullpen did a good job of keeping the Mariners at bay following Fried's outing. Ryan Yarbrough, Yerry De los Santos, and Fernando Cruz combined for 4.0 scoreless innings.

Game MVP

Gilbert, who put a zero on the board through 6.0 innings.

Highlights

Jazz and Lombard turn a double play after Naylor singled to leadoff the inning pic.twitter.com/mOx2hn0l9Y

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) August 13, 2026

Next Up

The Yankees head to Toronto for a weekend series against the Blue Jays, starting on Friday night at 7:15 p.m.

Gerrit Cole will face Shane Bieber.

Brooklyn, coming off a rough 20-62 season, has just two games on national television for the season: a visit to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Nov. 23, in Julius Randle's first game after arriving in an offseason trade, and when they host the Chicago Bulls on Jan. 20. The Nets will also play 16 back-to-back games.

The Nets will lock horns with their defending champions from across the river four times, playing the first two games at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 2 and Dec. 27. They will host the Knicks on Feb. 1 and April 2. 

In the NBA Cup, New York will face Detroit (Oct. 30) and Orlando (Nov. 20) at home and travel to Milwaukee (Nov. 25) and Toronto (Nov. 27) in group play. The knockout round games will be on Dec. 4, 5, 8, 9, and the title game on 11, if they advance that far.

LeBron James and the new-look 76ers will visit Brooklyn for the first time on Nov. 16 and Feb. 25. The Nets will travel to face the Sixers on Jan. 14 and Feb. 8. 

The Nets will have a tough stretch toward the end of the season when they play just twice at home during an 11-game stretch, which includes five straight on the road from Feb. 27 through March 7 against the Bulls, the Nuggets, the Suns, the Clippers, and the Lakers.

They will have a stretch of seven of eight games at home, including six straight games at Barclays Center starting in mid-December. 

Here's the rest of Brooklyn's 2026-27 schedule:

Nets’ 2026-2027 regular-season schedule: pic.twitter.com/c29Tfs5iBA

— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) August 13, 2026

The NBA released the schedule for the 2026-27 regular season Thursday, as the Knicks, after ending a 53-year title drought, look to be greedy and become the league's first back-to-back champions in seven years.

The season, of course, will open with LeBron James and the new-look 76ers on Oct. 20 at 7 p.m., right after the Knicks raise their championship banner to the rafters at Madison Square Garden. That will be the first of the Knicks' 34 nationally televised games during the regular season.

Mike Brown's team will also play back-to-back games on 12 occasions.

Some other notable matchups include a visit to the Boston Celtics and old friend Mitchell Robinson for the second game of the season on Oct. 23 at 7 p.m. New York will go back to Boston on Jan. 13 before hosting the Celtics on March 14 and April 4.

The Knicks will face off against Cade Cunningham and the Detroit Pistons in the season's fourth game of the season at MSG on Oct. 27. New York then travels to Detroit on Feb. 3 and Feb. 17 before hosting the Pistons in the season's penultimate game on April 9.

The Knicks, who also took home the NBA Cup, will open group play in that competition against Philadelphia on Oct. 30. As they look for back-to-back titles in that, they have an uphill climb in a group with the Sixers, Pacers (Nov. 13), Cavaliers (Nov. 25), and Heat (Nov. 27). The NBA Cup Knockout Rounds will begin on Dec. 4 and 5 with the semifinals on Dec. 8 and 9, before the cup is decided on Dec. 11.

Once again, New York will face Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Christmas Day at MSG for a 12 p.m. tip-off in an NBA Finals rematch. The Knicks will visit the Spurs on March 7, in the middle of a four-game road trip that will see them play in Dallas on March 4, and at the Clippers on March 10 and the Lakers on March 11. 

In other Western Conference matchups, the Knicks will be at Minnesota on Nov. 19 and host them on Jan. 18. 

Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets visit MSG on Jan. 11 after hosting the Knicks on Jan. 2.

Here's the rest of New York's 2026-27 schedule:

Knicks’ 2026-27 regular season schedule: pic.twitter.com/nfxwb0rvDy

— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) August 13, 2026

That call was from the Pirates informing him that he had been traded to the Mets in the deal that sent Luke Weaver to Pittsburgh. 

"I kind of blacked out," Stafura told SNY in an interview that will air in full on the next episode of The Mets Pod. "Wow, I’m really going to the Mets, this is crazy."

This led to a wild travel day for Stafura. He finished the remaining four hours on the bus with his now former teammates, then immediately hopped into an Uber for an hour and a half to ride Hartfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta. He had a three hour wait until a flight back to Greensboro, packed his things and then made the drive to Wilmington, Del. to meet up with his new team, the Brooklyn Cyclones.

The hectic day was all worth it, as Stafura now gets to suit up for the organization that he and his entire family are all diehard fans of. Born in Westchester County, Stafura’s earliest memory of going to Citi Field was at 5-or 6-years-old, with he and his family going to multiple Mets games per year. 

As excited as Stafura was to learn he was traded to the Mets, his older brother Steven was perhaps even more excited. 

"He was stressing for days," Stafura said. "He had a feeling something was going to go down. He was on Twitter just checking everything. He wasn’t even getting work done." Steven works with their father and younger brother. "When I called him, he was just pumped."

The Mets were excited to land Stafura, who came in as the No. 3 ranked prospect in the Mets system in my post-deadline rankings. From a tools standpoint, Stafura has the loudest tools of anyone in the Mets system. He is a plus athlete with top-end speed that rivals the speed of A.J. Ewing, which was on display when he beat out a routine groundball to shortstop last week. 

Stafura and Ewing not only share speed on the diamond, but they also share a relationship off the diamond that dates to high school and the travel ball circuit. 

"We played each other a bunch in high school, so we knew each other," Stafura said. "Once we got to pro ball, it was a close world. It felt like we played each other every week, so we’d always grab breakfast together and hang out, just going through this grind together." 

Along with the speed, I couldn’t find a scout who had any doubt Stafura could stick at shortstop -- most thought he is plus at the position. He has some experience at second base and his athleticism would theoretically play in center field as well. Stafura is a true up-the-middle athlete.

On the offensive side, Stafura has made some swing changes this year that has led to an uptick in bat speed and power with the exit velocity numbers to line up with above average, bordering on plus raw power. The 21-year-old has 20 home runs in 66 games on the season as of this writing.

He also cited a mentality shift that comes with maturing as a ballplayer, and that mindset is simple: He’s the best.

"It’s truly believing that I am the best player on the field, and I am way better than that pitcher every moment and every pitch," Stafura said, "It’s the approach of locking in your mind, because everyone’s got skill and talent. The one thing that separates a lot of people is the mental side."

Stafura, like every baseball player, is obviously not without flaws. He brings an aggressive approach to everything he does in the game, and that has led to a higher strikeout rate than you’d like to see. He has a 29 percent strikeout rate, and at times does chase breaking stuff away in the name of trying to do damage.

In talking to evaluators, it would probably be a detriment to attempt to drastically change Stafura's approach. The aggressive and high energy playing style is what makes him tick. However, if the strikeout rate can be reined into the 25 percent or better range, that could optimize his profile.

That profile looks the part of a future top 100 prospect. Any time there is a prospect who can combine plus speed and defense with above average, bordering on plus power at a premium position like shortstop -- even with the swing-and-miss questions -- that is an exciting prospect with big potential.

From a 5- or 6-year-old Mets fan to a high school kid sliding into the Mets' DMs on Instagram to try to throw out the first pitch, Stafura embraces the pressure that comes with being a Mets fan in the Mets' system.

If there’s one quote from the Stafura interview on The Mets Pod, which I implore you to check out when it drops, that summarizes the player that the Mets acquired, it's this one:

"I got the energy and I’m ready to eat."

While Semien was acquired in part because it allowed New York to shed the final two years of Nimmo's contract, Polanco was signed to be part of the answer when it came to how the Mets would fill Alonso's role -- even if it always felt more likely that he would be a DH instead of a first baseman. 

Instead of Semien and Polanco fitting in seamlessly as part of president of baseball operations David Stearns offseason of change, things went haywire for both of them.

In the case of Semien, he played through a hip injury earlier this season that impacted his defense and might at least partially explain why he struggled so badly at the plate. Since returning from the IL and shaking off some rust, Semien has been smooth at second base and better offensively, posting a .756 OPS with five homers in 21 games since July 21. 

And with Semien having two years left on his contract and owed $46 million, it's difficult to envision a scenario where he isn't in the Mets' plans in some fashion at the start of the 2027 season.

The same can't be said for Polanco.

From Opening Day on March 26 through April 14, Polanco hit .179/.246/.286 (.532 OPS) with just one home run and three doubles in 61 plate appearances over 14 games.

Polanco was then placed on the IL due to a right wrist contusion, though his main injury was Achilles bursitis. The Achilles issue resulted in a slow recovery, and led to his rehab assignment being shut down at one point as it became somewhat of a matter of pain tolerance. 

As Polanco was working his way through the Achilles issue, and shortly after he received a PRP injection, he said he wanted to get to a point where he had "more good days than the days I don't feel so good." That was in the middle of May, and Polanco didn't return to big league action until July 7.

That day, Polanco talked about how he was feeling.

"I was getting more consistent days feeling good," he said. "I think that's what I needed."

But Polanco added that he was expecting to have to manage the Achilles issue for the rest of the season, noting that he wasn't sure if he would require surgery after the season.

Since being activated from the IL, Polanco -- who has been limited to DH duties only -- has been close to a non-factor offensively.

In 73 plate appearances over 20 games, he is slashing .103/.153/.176 with one home run and two doubles. He has struck out 22 times, walked only four times, and has often looked non-competitive at the plate.

On Aug. 5, Polanco had a nice day at the plate, smacking a homer and double. But even including that game, he has 3 hits in his last 43 at-bats over the last 13 games.

A deeper dive into Polanco's numbers doesn't really reveal anything positive to grasp onto, with him near the bottom of the league in xwOBA, xBA, xSLG, average exit velocity, hard hit percentage, and bat speed.

Speaking earlier this month, interim manager Andy Green weighed in on Polanco's struggles.

"It’s fair to assume with as much time as he missed that he’s still working back for timing, and at the same getting to a pace where he feels comfortable and confident hitting," Green said.

The issue for the Mets when it comes to Polanco is twofold.

If Polanco is performing this way due in large part to the lingering Achilles issue, it stands to reason that it would make sense to shut him down soon if things (both health-wise and performance-wise) don't improve. At that point, it would hard to be confident in his health for next season.

If Polanco is struggling this badly mainly due to something else, that's a whole other story entirely.

Either way, barring a turnaround from Polanco over the last six weeks of the season, it would be foolish for the Mets to head into the offseason expecting him to be a regular contributor for them in 2027.

Foolish is the word Stearns used last offseason when asked about Kodai Senga, with him responding that it would be "foolish" for New York to rely on him to make 30 starts.

Stearns was right when making that assessment, since Senga has made just eight starts in 2026, and dealt with ineffectiveness and injury before eventually finding himself in a late-inning bullpen role where the early returns have been promising.

When it comes to Polanco, he'll be entering the final season of his two-year contract in 2027, when he'll earn $23 million and count for $20 million toward the luxury tax payroll.

Also complicating things is that DH and first base might be the only areas where the Mets have the maneuverability to improve the offense this offseason.

As was the case with Senga, there is no reason for the Mets to make an immediate decision on Polanco's future. But they cannot let his potential presence hamstring them. Viewing Polanco as a potential backup/fill-in next season would be one thing, but counting on him to be a more regular contributor would be another.

Beyond that, despite the money owed, Polanco having just one year left on his deal should make it relatively easy to cut ties with him at some point next season if things are still going sideways.

But that long-ago Saturday has become a key date for one of the most significant players in Yankee history. Against that unusual pinstriped backdrop, in a lost year, Aaron Judge made his MLB debut, something that probably should be celebrated as a Bronx holiday now.

Back then, though, most of the excitement that day figured to come from the 20th reunion of the 1996 World Series champion Yanks, a beloved club that triggered a dynasty and infused an entire generation of fans with pride. 

Judge, as he has so many times since then, provided some excitement, too – when he and then-fellow prospect Tyler Austin hit back-to-back home runs in the second inning, it was the first time in MLB history that two players on the same team hit a home run in their first big league at-bat in the same game.

Looking back on it now, "the lightning hit," is how Paul O’Neill, the former Yankee who is now an analyst for the YES Network, described everything that was swirling around the Yankees that day. 

Suzyn Waldman, the longtime Yankee radio analyst, was captivated by the confluence of the 1996 Yankees, champions all, being present for Judge’s debut. 

"You can change everything around the Yankees and do it a different way, and all this stuff," she said. "You can't change the Yankees and what that means. And those kinds of things happen all the time."

Still, no one could possibly know that Judge would bloom into an all-time great, a Yankee Captain whose career is now pointed toward Cooperstown. He is the linchpin of the Yankee franchise, something that is obvious when you judge this year’s team – the Yanks have struggled to score runs since Judge went on the Injured List at the end of May. 

Heck, the last time he had an extended injury, in 2023, it wrecked their season and they missed the playoffs for the first time since the year he arrived.

"You knew he had unbelievable power," said O’Neill, who worked the booth the day Austin and Judge went back-to-back. "And you knew he could play the field, even with his size. But you never know in a debut that he’s going to become someone who can put up the kind of numbers he has, MVPs and things like that. 

"But he has continued to get better and it’s one of those great stories – how a superstar became a superstar."

"When he first came up, don’t you remember everybody saying he’s going to strike out too much?" added Waldman. "Well, he learned how to not strike out too much. Nothing’s ever too much for him. He was always prepared. If something wasn’t right, he’d fix it."

In the second inning of an 8-4 victory over the Rays that day, Judge gave everyone a glimpse of what he could do. First, though, Austin homered, a shot down the right field line off Tampa Bay’s Matt Andriese, who gave up Judge’s homer, too. 

Judge followed by smashing a prodigious, 446-foot blast that smacked off the glass batter’s eye beyond the center field wall. He was only the third player, at the time, to hit a ball to that point, joining Seattle’s Russell Branyan and Houston’s Carlos Correa. 

In that inning, Joe Torre, who had managed the ‘96 Yankees, was in the broadcast booth, visiting with Michael Kay and O’Neill and talking about his team. After Judge’s ball soared so far, Kay asked, "Can you believe it?"

Torre replied: "That’s pretty impressive." 

"Days like that make announcing easy," O’Neill recalled. "You know, the pictures are telling the whole story."

Yankees executives were hyped, too. All the way out in San Diego, as he stood near the third base line at the Area Code Games scouting amateurs for, as he put it, "the next Aaron Judge," Damon Oppenheimer’s phone buzzed and buzzed.

"Tyler hit the home run and my texts were blowing up," said Oppenheimer, the Yankees’ vice president and director of amateur scouting. "Then Judge right after him. It was like, 'This is so awesome.'

"We had other scouts there, too. It became like a celebration, everyone was so fired up. It was both our own people, our own scouting department, scouts from other teams. I had family members who had heard me talking about Aaron, friends, neighbors, competitors. It was a special moment.

"Aaron, he’s given me a lot to celebrate. I tell him that all the time. I’m ultra thankful for Aaron Judge."

Judge homered the next day, too, and while he only batted .179 with 42 strikeouts in 84 at-bats after being called up, things quickly improved. In 2017, he slugged 52 home runs, won the AL Rookie of the Year award, and probably should’ve been the AL MVP, too. 

The Yankees, after losing their way in ‘16 and trading away Carlos Beltrán, Andrew Miller, and Aroldis Chapman at the deadline, quickly got right behind Judge and other youngsters dubbed the "Baby Bombers." After finishing fourth in 2016 at 84-78, they went all the way to the ALCS in 2017 and started a streak in which they reached the playoffs eight times in nine seasons. It’ll be nine times in 10 years this season. 

To make it more than just another playoff appearance, Judge will have to be an October factor. He was last year. 

Now, though, it’s a tough time in Yankeeland with him hurt. He means so much to the franchise, especially on the field. 

It all started 10 years ago today, at the big league beginnings of a player who’s now something special. 

"I think that home run woke everybody up to the type of power this guy has," O’Neill said. "But did you know he’d become a future .300 hitter, which he did? You don’t know that. He had such a big strike zone and he was swinging at balls outside early on, which he doesn’t do anymore. 

"He’s just become an unbelievable superstar."

Here are the takeaways...

-Randy Arozarena's bullying of the Yankees continued, smashing a one-out, two-run shot to give the Mariners an early 2-0 lead in the first off of Will Warren. It's Arozarena's second straight game with a home run and the 19th career long ball against the Yankees. Two batters later, Julio Rodriguez went to the second deck in right field.

Warren would give up his third homer of the game in the third inning, when Dominic Canzone launched a changeup into the second deck of right field. 

The right-hander settled in, pitching into the fifth inning but walked Arozarena on the 12th pitch of the at-bat before Aaron Boone pulled his starter. Fernando Cruz came on and allowed a two-out RBI single to Josh Naylor, putting an end to Warren's line.

Warren allowed five runs on six hits and four walks while striking out three batters. 

Cruz pitched into trouble, giving way to Tim Hill, who picked up a massive inning-ending double play to keep the Mariners to five runs. After that, the Yankees bullpen locked down the Mariners.

Paul Blackburn allowed a walk in 1.2 innings pitched and Brent Headrick struck out the side in the eighth, his 52nd consecutive scoreless inning. 

-The Yankees would get on the board in the second thanks to a two-out infield single by Jazz Chisholm Jr., and Ryan McMahon driving him in with a double, but the Yankees third baseman was thrown out trying to advance to third on the relay throw. 

Spencer Jones would bring the score within one in the third with a two-out, two-run double, narrowly missing a three-run homer the opposite way. With two outs in the fifth, Grisham hit a solo shot, and after a Ben Rice double, Jones came through with a double of his own -- narrowly missing a home run to center field -- to tie the game at 5-5. 

In the seventh, the Yankees took their first lead of the game. George Lombard Jr. hit a one-out single, then Grisham drove the rookie home with a double. Rice followed up with a single to drive in the second run of the inning. Chisholm worked a bases-loaded walk to plate another.

Grisham smashed his second homer of the game in the eighth, a two-run blast to put the Yankees up 10-5.

-Lombard Jr. went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. He also committed his first big-league error when he ranged to his right and fumbled the ball on the transfer. 

Jones went 2-for-4 with three RBI.

Game MVP: Trent Grisham

Grisham's two home runs and four RBI were the difference in this one.

Highlights

Ryan McMahon gets the Yankees on the board pic.twitter.com/0mqdEWQf3o

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 12, 2026

Spencer Jones goes the other way off the wall to drive in a pair with a double! pic.twitter.com/aczJqVTLlK

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

Trent Grisham cuts it to 5-4! pic.twitter.com/mQeQAjhzOs

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

Spencer Jones drives in his third run of the night and we’re tied at 5-5! pic.twitter.com/zZv0QuL02p

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

Trent Grisham gives the Yankees the lead with an RBI double! pic.twitter.com/HFt82Kr48Z

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

Ben Rice makes it 7-5! pic.twitter.com/6hjdqSKG4x

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

Two home runs tonight for Trent Grisham! pic.twitter.com/D7177fZfvb

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

What's next

The Yankees and Mariners wrap up their series on Thursday afternoon. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m.

Max Fried takes the mound (4-3, 2.88 ERA) against Logan Gilbert (8-7, 3.42 ERA).

Zac Thornton got dinged for three runs in six frames, but once again showed some really solid pitching and the ability to wriggle out of jams as he delivered another efficient outing over six innings in his eighth big-league start, but didn't get support behind him. 

New York (53-69) put two aboard with nobody down in the ninth after cutting the deficit to three, but couldn't get the ball out of the infield, finished 0-for-3 with RISP and left five on base on the night. Atlanta improved to 73-48 on the season for a 9.5-game lead at the top of the NL East.

Here are the takeaways...

- Thornton was on his way to an efficient, scoreless two innings, but left a fastball up in the zone to Lane Thomas to hammer into the left-field stands (412 feet, 105.7 mph off the bat) with two down in the second. Thornton got into a spot of bother in the third with a leadoff walk and a smacked single up the middle that put runners on the corners when Ronald Acuńa Jr. deeked Luis Robert Jr. and stole 90 feet. But the lefty traded a second run for a 6-3 double-play and avoided a big inning. That started a run of five straight retired with a strikeout. 

That streak ended to start the fifth when Austin Riley ripped a first-pitch heater up and over the plate for a double to left. After Sean Murphy singled, the Braves had runners at the corners, but Thornton tiptoed around the danger. First, he got some help from Acuńa, who, while delivering an RBI single, got caught in no man’s land and was out 7-6-4, before a broken-bat ground-out against a drawn-in infield and a strikeout kept the damage to just one run.

Thornton, the master of efficiency, grabbed his first 1-2-3 frame in the sixth, his final inning of the night, to close his book after allowing three runs on seven hits and a walk with two strikeouts on 80 pitches (47 strikes).

Entering the game, batters out of the eighth and ninth spots in the lineup were hitting .385 against Thornton. The Braves duo of Riley and Murphy went 3-for-4 against the lefty. (For the game, batters in the bottom third of the order went 6-for-11 with three solo HRs and two strikeouts.)

- Tyler Mahle allowed a hit to start the game, but retired the next 11 straight batters with three strikeouts. The right-hander, who Atlanta acquired at the trade deadline, extended his scoreless streak to start his time with his new club to 11 innings before being dinged for a run. He had a good splitter working to play off his fastball, with the first one netting four strikeouts and the other three, and allowing just one run over six innings of work.

- Luis Torrens put the Mets on the board by cranking his fifth home run of the season with an opposite-field blast on the first pitch of the sixth inning off Mahle. He finished the night  1-for-3 with a strikeout looking.

- Robert, hitless in his first two times up, made up for his fielding miscue, rocketing a solo homer to left with one down in the seventh to cut the deficit to one off lefty reliever Dylan Dodd. The 399-foot drive was tattooed at 107.2 mph for a no-doubter, his sixth of the campaign. He finished 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout looking.

- Bo Bichette hit two balls hard (95.6 and 95.4 mph), but both for lineouts, and was 0-for-3 before smashing a 405-foot solo homer over the wall in right-center to lead off the ninth against Braves closer Raisel Iglesias. The homer was his 12th of the year.

- Carson Benge smashed a single (105.4 mph) past the first baseman for a two-out single in the fourth and clobbered a double into the right-center gap (105.1 mph) in the ninth to finish 2-for-4. 

- Dedniel Núñez got the seventh inning, and in four pitches the Braves had their three-run lead back after the Mets cut it to 3-2, as pinch-hitter Mike Yastrzemski clobbered a center-cut fastball for a solo homer to right (102 mph) and Riley annihilated a hanging slider (438 feet, 108.5 mph) to left.  After Acuńa doubled off the wall in right, Núñez's night was over as lefty Jefry Yan entered. A bloop single to left made it a three-run inning before Yan got the next two, including a strikeout swinging.

Jack Weisenburger allowed a two-out double, but added a strikeout in a scoreless eighth inning in his second big league outing.

- A.J. Ewing plopped a base hit into center on the ninth pitch of the at-bat to lead off the game, but he finished 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout swinging.

- Jared Young smacked a ball to right to start the fifth that Acuńa knocked down but kept it close to him and gunned down Young trying for two. It took a perfect throw to get him, and that is exactly what happened. Young went 1-for-4, bouncing into a fielder's choice with two men on and nobody out in the ninth.

- Francisco Alvarez struck out looking on a 3-2 pitch that just caught the corner to end the second, went down swinging at a heater at the letters in the fifth, and went down swinging on a pitch below the zone to end the seventh. He finished 0-for-4, popping out in foul ground to first with runners on corners in the ninth.

- Francisco Lindor was hitless in four trips to the plate with a strikeout swinging.

- Brett Baty struck out on a half swing to start third and struck out swinging to end the fifth.

- Marcus Semien flied out to left batting for Baty to start the eighth and bounced out to third to end the game and strand a pair.

- Home plate umpire Andy Fletcher entered the game with 54 overturns on 74 challenges, for a 72.9 percent overturn rate, the highest in baseball. He built on that lead early by going 0-for-4 on challenges through four innings. He would have been wrong again if Robert had tapped his head on a strikeout looking to end the fourth on a ball well off the outside corner. Fletcher finished the game with six calls overturned out of nine total challenges.

Highlights

Luis Torrens gets the Mets on the board with a homer the other way! pic.twitter.com/BZftgDVKm7

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 13, 2026

Luis Robert Jr. drives one deep to left to cut it to 3-2! pic.twitter.com/VKJrsbTISQ

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 13, 2026

Jefry Yan strikes out Matt Olson pic.twitter.com/mFENRksNyX

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 13, 2026

Bo Bichette with the Mets' third solo homer of the night pic.twitter.com/fBptRy6JA1

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 13, 2026

What's next

The Mets have Thursday off before opening up a weekend series at Citi Field with the Washington Nationals. 

Robert Stock gets the ball for Friday's 7:10 p.m. first pitch, with Sean Manaea and Christian Scott set to follow him on Saturday and Sunday. The Nats have not yet made their pitching plans public.

Arnold, 23, is a former first-round pick by the Detroit Lions who played in 24 games (22 starts) over two seasons with the Lions before getting released in late-June shortly after getting arrested on eight felony charges, including kidnapping and armed robbery, stemming from an incident in Tampa, Fla. in February.

"Because we want to be aggressive in every way, whatever we can do, find out everything that we can about any situation, player that can help us be better. I would say that’s it," Harbaugh said. "The margins are tight in the National Football League. You come up with a big play, you can find a play on the internet that somebody puts out there that one of your opponents is running in practice, you look for those too. So, we’re looking for players who can help us all the time, and he’s a player who can help us. 

"Now I know your follow-up question is going to be his circumstances, and that’s something that also the organization has studied very deeply. I’ve got an overview of it. I know the organization has looked at it in depth. If there is a decision to be made on any player and you don’t want to go there with a player, then this organization won’t go there.

"It’s more than just what you read in the papers, though. I mean you’ve got to find out exactly where everything stands and I do know that our people do a great job with that."

Harbaugh was also asked about letting the legal process play out, as well as the chance that Arnold could end up on an exempt list and not be able to play even if he does sign with a team.

"Well, the legal process could take years, and then his career his gone. So I think you just have to decide where does the legal process stand," Harbaugh said. "What are we really talking about here? What does it look like? And you have to make a judgement along those lines."

"There’s risk-reward," he added. "There’s things to be gained and things to be lost, and you just have to balance it out and try to make a decision that’s twofold. One aspect is what’s best for your football team, and the other aspect is what’s best for your organization and your people and doing the right thing."

Despite his history, Arnold has received interest from a few other teams and has already visited with the Houston Texans, Seattle Seahawks and New Orleans Saints.

On the field, the Alabama product has one career interception to go along with one fumble recovery, 18 passes defended and 91 combined tackles. 

Arnold played in just eight games (seven starts) last year after missing the end of the season with a torn shoulder that required surgery which is now fully healed. During his rookie campaign, Arnold started in 15 out of 16 games played and finished 15th in Defensive Rookie of the Year voting.

Currently free on a $1 million bond, the 23-year-old is permitted to travel for work and has completely denied the allegations.

Meanwhile, the Giants' depth at the cornerback position entering this season is thin with Paulson Adebo and Greg Newsome II the current starters with Colton Hood and Deonte Banks serving as the backups.

The talent discrepancy can be so jarring at times that it resembles a varsity-JV scrimmage. 

That was not the case these two days with Tampa Bay. 

The Buccaneers are a better team than the Jets. They still won both days, but the Jets competed. They had their moments. Their defense frustrated Baker Mayfield at times. Their offense made plays against Todd Bowles’ defense.

Again: The Bucs still won both days, but it wasn’t a bludgeoning. The Jets will take that considering where they are in their rebuild. 

Here are a few thoughts from the 48 hours. 

Oh no, Geno 

This wasn’t a great couple of practices for Geno Smith. He was 10-of-16 with a touchdown and two interceptions on Tuesday. He was 10-of-17 with a touchdown on Wednesday. The first score was a brilliant play by Garrett Wilson, who caught a deflected pass at the line, juked four Bucs defenders, and fought his way in. The second was a slant to Mason Taylor from five yards out. Both came in red zone work. 

The aggressiveness touted with Smith in the first couple weeks of camp disappeared against the Bucs. The vast majority of his throws came within five or six yards of the line. That might have had to do with Bowles’ scheme, but you hoped for some more chance plays with the Jets emphasizing explosives (last in the NFL a season ago in pass plays of 20-plus yards). 

The interceptions for Smith were both poor throws. One was telegraphed to Josiah Trotter. The other went right to Damarion Williams. Wilson fell on the route, but Williams was in position whether he was standing or not. 

Smith started practice Wednesday much better – granted, just one pass traveled beyond eight yards. He went into the full-team, move-the-ball period 8-of-10 with a touchdown. Then, when asked to drive the field, he failed. The situation: 32 seconds, end of the first half, first-and-10 at the Jets’ 32. 

The drive: Incomplete, incomplete, first down (Taylor), sack (Rueben Bain), first down (Jeremy Ruckert), incomplete, incomplete, false start, incomplete. 

The Cade Klubnik show 

It’s been an up-and-down summer for the Jets rookie quarterback. That continued in these joints. He did have the highlight of Wednesday when he uncorked a perfectly-throw, 50-ish yard touchdown to Arian Smith. He dropped it right in his hands. Then he came back with a bad interception – rookie roller coaster. 

It is … questionable that Klubnik seems to be the Jets' set backup behind Smith. The Jets did pursue Carson Wentz, and at one point that seemed a certainty. Well, until a phone call from Minnesota convinced the veteran to return. 

Klubnik will play a ton in this preseason opener against the Bucs. Maybe he can convert a few non-believers with a Carson Beck-like performance. 

He is very good

The David Bailey hype is at an all-time high. A source of mine is on the Buccaneers staff. He was over on the field watching the Tampa offense against the Jets defense. After practice, I asked him for his takeaway/opinion. His response? "31 is going to be a problem." 

It’s one thing to see a player tormenting his own team. You can wonder if he’s actually that good, or if the lineman he’s going against struggling. It’s hard to deflect dominance when it comes against teammates and then the opposition. Tampa’s Luke Goedeke had no answer for Bailey either of the practices – not in 1-on-1s or team drills. 

The rookie got in for (by my count) three sacks of Mayfield in two practices. He tormented Goedeke in 1-on-1s. This doesn’t include pressures where he presence just impacted plays. This isn’t hyperbole: He might have been the best player on the field Tuesday and Wednesday.

The one concern with Bailey isn’t a Bailey concern. It’s that the Jets don’t really have anything opposite him. Will McDonald, who had 10.5 sacks two years ago, has been very quiet. You could chalk that up to Armand Membou before. Him doing nothing against Tampa, either, is alarming. 

It still seems like McDonald has just one move, and if it doesn’t work, his rush is over. That spin is a thing of beauty. There’s just no counter.  

Year 2 jump

The Kenyon Sadiq draft pick dampened some of the hype on Mason Taylor’s sophomore season. He’s had a nice summer, and was very good against the Bucs. Taylor has an uncanny ability to find the soft spot in zones and, when things break down, Smith seems to look for him often.

Hidden gem

Another defensive lineman who keeps making plays is Darrell Jackson Jr., New York’s fourth-rounder out of Florida State. That is a big dude (6-foot-5, 315 pounds), but moves incredibly well. It’s kind of surprising the Jets got him when they did.

He does things you can’t coach: Big, long, strong and powerful, one GM told me. He had some nice success against the Bucs, especially in 1-on-1s. He’s a player worth monitoring moving forward.

The receiver battle

Wilson is so good – that aforementioned touchdown on Tuesday was a thing of beauty. AD Mitchell had a nice two days, too. The media watch practice from a taller vantage point behind the end zone, but even from there, he was clearly open off a couple really impressive routes early. Smith just missed him.

The most impressive receiver, though, continues to be Isaiah Williams. He’s catching everything thrown his way and it’s gotten to the point, Glenn said, that the staff has to get him on the field. This, though, means Omar Cooper comes off it.

One of the Jets’ three first-round picks, Cooper has had a quiet summer. He’s flashed at times, but there isn’t much consistency to his game. That continued against Tampa Bay. It might be worth tempering some expectations on him to start the season.

Just give him the job already

Dane Belton is the Jets’ second-best safety. It’s time to just hand him the starting job opposite Minkah Fitzpatrick. The Andre Cisco experiment is frustrating to watch. Belton has no problem lowering his shoulder to play the run. He’s a great communicator. The ball seems to find him in the air. Cisco is a player quarterbacks find and target, which Mayfield certainly did.

Shortly before that, owner Steve Cohen had discussed the perceived Lindor-Soto feud that existed in 2025, saying that it was "last year's story" and that he didn't see either player "going anywhere."

But soon after the Mets made their deadline strategy known, David Stearns danced around a question about Lindor's future.

"I'm not going to rule out or in any specific player on anything," Stearns said on July 24. "I don't think that's wise for me to do. What I will say is, we've got a group of young players and we've got some potential Hall-of-Famers, future Hall-of-Famers, that we view as our core. We expect them to be our core."

With the deadline in the rearview and Lindor still a Met, the shortstop discussed his future on Tuesday.

"The plan is to be here for my contract," Lindor told Mike Puma of The New York Post. "When I signed up here, it was to be in the good times and bad times and to win."

Lindor, 32, is in the fifth year of a 10-year, $341 million extension he signed before the 2021 season. And as someone who has 10-and-5 rights, he has the power to refuse any potential trade. 

While speaking with The Post, Lindor also weighed in on his faith in Stearns and the overall direction of the franchise.

"We have the right guys," he said. "Stearns is the right guy. That is No. 1. We have one of the best owners in sports history, because [Cohen] is going to go always with the energy that needs to be put into the team. When you are in a big market there is not such a thing as rebuilding. There is a little bit of transition, that is it. You can’t afford to rebuild in big markets, so I think we are working toward the right place. We have not taken a step backwards."

As he talked about the Mets' future, Lindor name-dropped some of the prospects who were acquired at the deadline -- including infielder Jefferson Rojas, who was acquired from the Cubs in the deal that sent Clay Holmes and Tyrone Taylor to Chicago, and should make his debut at some point during the 2027 season.

Throughout the season, Stearns has been clear that the Mets intend to retool ahead of next season with an eye on an immediate return to contention.

That will almost certainly be easier to accomplish if Lindor remains in the fold.

Lindor missed about two months earlier this season due to a serious calf injury, but has been terrific since returning from the IL on June 24.

In 174 plate appearances over 40 games since being activated, Lindor is hitting .253/.339/.487 (.826 OPS) with nine homers, five doubles, two triples, 22 runs scored, and 25 RBI.

Mets Notes

• Carson Benge is hitting .309/.371/.461 (.831 OPS) in 197 plate appearances dating back to June 18
• Francisco Lindor has an .806 OPS with nine homers in 178 plate appearances since returning from the IL on June 24
• Francisco Alvarez is slashing .252/.366/.488 (.853 OPS) with eight homers in 145 plate appearances since June 23
• Bo Bichette is hitting .307/.349/.458 (.807 OPS) with seven homers and 11 doubles in 232 plate appearances dating back to June 11

Today's Lineups

Mets Notes

• Carson Benge is hitting .305/.368/.454 (.822 OPS) in 193 plate appearances dating back to June 18
• Francisco Lindor has an .826 OPS with nine homers in 174 plate appearances since returning from the IL on June 24
• Francisco Alvarez is slashing .261/.376/.504 (.880 OPS) with eight homers in 141 plate appearances since June 23
• Bo Bichette is hitting .308/.351/.447 (.798 OPS) with six homers and 11 doubles in 228 plate appearances dating back to June 11
• Zac Thornton fired 5.0 shutout innings against the Pirates in his last outing, allowing four hits while walking two and striking out three

Today's Lineups

The bats pushed across 10 runs, the most they've scored in almost a month, and they used that to grab a victory after being down three runs early in their 10-5 win over the Mariners.

And while Trent Grisham's two home runs may steal headlines, rookie Spencer Jones put his stamp on this game in a big way. The outfielder drove in three runs on two hits (both doubles), but it was his first double in the third inning that shifted the momentum.

With the Yankees down 4-1, Jones came up against Bryce Miller with two outs and two runners on. Miller struck out Jones in his first at-bat, but the left-handed slugger battled, working a full count before driving a 97 mph fastball down in the zone off the left field wall to drive in two. While it didn't tie or give the Yankees the lead, manager Aaron Boone pointed out the hit as a turning point in the game.

"Miller beat him up with the fastball up with the punch in the first, but the more he saw in the second at-bat, laid off some tough ones," Boone said after the win. "Found his timing with the fastball….really big at-bat to get us back in the game and the guys took it from there."

Spencer Jones goes the other way off the wall to drive in a pair with a double! pic.twitter.com/aczJqVTLlK

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 13, 2026

"Feeling more comfortable, feeling better," Jones said of how he feels at the plate. "Better queues, kind of working through some stuff. And starting to do what I do."

Jones explained that those "queues" are what his body is doing at the plate: the stance, the swings and how his body feels. Since those have clicked, he's remembering how to move his body and his swing to mirror when he's seen success in his career.

And it has paid off.

While his overall numbers don't jump off the page -- a lot of that has to do with his first cup of coffee with the big league club in June -- with more starts and at-bats, Jones is becoming more comfortable facing major league pitching.

"Having professional at-bats every day," Boone said of what's different with Jones. "He understands some of his strengths and weaknesses. He’s done a good job of having a plan up there, and knowing what the pitcher’s strengths and weaknesses are. And he’s shown some adaptability at this level, which has been good."

The Yankees are trying to win without some of their top bats in Cody Bellinger, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge. Jones has stepped in and delivered production in their stead, especially in the clutch.

After his two doubles, Jones is hitting .282/.391/.590 (.981 OPS) in 46 plate appearances with men on base this season, via Katie Sharp.

He's also recorded 10 RBI over his last 13 games.

"I learned when I was young, when there’s runners on base, there’s really no pressure on you, the pressure is on the pitcher on the mound," Jones said of his ability to hit with RISP. "That’s how I always framed it. Guys are going to try and get you out; they’ll put stuff over the plate. And as long as you do your job and don’t go chasing, you’ll get a pitch to hit."

This stretch is the longest runway Jones has had in the majors. The injuries to Judge and Bellinger have facilitated more playing time for Jones, but earlier in the season, the young slugger didn't have that luxury, and he struggled and was eventually demoted.

So, what did the 25-year-old work on when he was back in Triple-A? Turns out, he needed to get back to being more relaxed.

"I need to slow things down. You try so hard to do a lot of things," Jones said. "For me, I’m a chill bird. I just need to relax and allow myself to do what I do and not force things. Settle into that mentality, not trying too hard, allowing things to happen has been the big difference." 

Unfortunately for the right-hander, that one hit, a home run by Ozzie Albies, was enough to beat him and the Mets who were shut out against Martin Perez and the Braves bullpen in a 4-0 loss.

Any other day, especially lately as New York’s offense has been red-hot, McLean’s outing would’ve been more than enough to earn him a win. Still, he and interim manager Andy Green were pleased with how he threw the ball.

“He was great,” Green said. “I thought he bounced back early from being behind consistently and he managed to get out of those in the first couple of innings, avoided hits early because of that. 

“Pitched behind more than he’d like to or we’d like him to, [but he] really found his groove there for a while. Just great six innings of work. One pitch that I’m sure he wants back.”

That one pitch to Albies, a fastball up, came on a 0-2 count and while the result is frustrating, particularly in that exact spot, McLean tipped his cap to the infielder who has tortured the Mets for a while.

“It was fairly executed,” the rookie said about the pitch. “I mean I wasn’t trying to really punch him by any means for a strikeout there, but I would’ve liked it slightly more elevated but he made a good swing on a pitch that was pretty close to the outside corner so tip my cap.”

While that was McLean’s only blemish of the night in what has been a sensational rookie campaign, the right-hander is still looking to improve.

In fact, when asked to take stock of the body of work during his first full year as a starting pitcher in the majors after he made his MLB debut on Aug. 16, 2025, McLean was more interested in looking towards the future instead of reliving the past.

“There’s still a lot of work to do I think,” he said. “Still a lot of games left, too, in this season and I wouldn’t say that the body of work is finished. I can learn every time I go out there and each lineup is completely different, too. 

“So I think it poses a good challenge every time I go out there, how to navigate lineups multiple times through the order and I guess the goal is to keep learning from that.”

However, for those wondering, McLean is 13-9 with a 3.07 ERA (1.11 WHIP) through his first 32 career starts. For comparison’s sake, Dwight Gooden had a 2.60 ERA in 31 starts during his rookie season in 1984.

Of course, McLean began his career last season when he burst onto the scene with a 2.06 ERA in eight starts in the middle of a playoff race. So, with more experience and time in the majors this year has he begun to settle into a rhythm?

“It’s always a work in progress I think,” McLean said. “I’m constantly tweaking it to figure out what works for me. And sometimes it’s different, you can’t be super self-conscious about it if you don’t get everything in and just trusting that it’s gonna be there every five days.”

Here are the takeaways...

-Weathers was dealing again. The southpaw mowed down the Mariners lineup, allowing just one hit and two walks in the first five innings, even retiring 10 straight batters at one point. 

The game changed in the sixth when Randy Arozarena took Weathers deep with a one-out short-porch homer. It's Arozarena's 18th career home run against the Yankees.

Weathers went 5.2 innings (106 pitches/62 strikes), allowing the one run on two hits and three walks while striking out four. 

-Bryan Woo came into Tuesday's game with a 4.31 ERA (a 6.27 ERA on the road), and those numbers improved because of the Yankees' lifeless offense. 

To the Yankees' credit, they were on Woo's pitches early, narrowly missing home runs on a number of at-bats, but the right-hander threw five scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out five. 

-The Yankees' best chance came in the seventh. A leadoff double from Luis Garcia Jr. and a single from Jazz Chisholm Jr. put runners on the corners with no outs. George Lombard Jr. struck out and Chisholm stole second. Spencer Jones walked in front of Ryan McMahon and the Yankees third baseman hit an opposite-field single to drive in two. Austin Wells dropped a single in to load the bases for Trent Grisham. The veteran outfielder did his best McMahon impression, going opposite field to drive in two more.

-After Weathers, the Yankees bullpen kept the Mariners bats down. The combination of Tim Hill, Brent Headrick and David Bednar pitched 3.1 scoreless innings. Here's how it broke down:

• Hill: 1.1 IP
• Headrick: 1.0 IP, 2 K
• Bednar: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 K

-Lombard went 1-for-4 and continued to show his major league-level defense. 

Game MVP: Ryan McMahon

McMahon's two-run single gave the Yankees the lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Highlights

George Lombard Jr. with the barehand! pic.twitter.com/gxgFmsM48H

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 11, 2026

BIG MAC.

Ryan McMahon gives the Yankees the lead! pic.twitter.com/4bJK82tLxc

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 12, 2026

Trent Grisham brings home two more! pic.twitter.com/0wXb61cAcX

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 12, 2026

What's next

The Yankees and Mariners continue their three-game set Wednesday night. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.

Will Warren (8-6, 4.18 ERA) takes the mound against Bryce Miller (4-6, 3.08 ERA).