Father’s Day Baseball, A’s Bullpen Pain & Schwarber’s Nuke Weekend | BD Baseball June 22, 2026

Happy Monday, Daylight Burners. I spent Father’s Day doing exactly what I wanted to do: watching baseball and yelling at my kids, and the baseball gods gave us a stupid amount of chaos to talk about. I kick things off with my A’s splitting a four-gamer with the Angels in West Sac – Friday night was pure insanity. The A’s go up early, the Angels rip off 11 straight, Oakland claws back with bombs from Jacob Wilson and Max Muncy, Jonah Heim ties it with a pinch‑hit two‑run shot down to the last strike, and Big Amish walks it off with a bases‑loaded walk after wearing the golden sombrero all night. Then reality hits: a hangover shutout on Saturday and the bullpen coughing it up Sunday with a late Guzmán three‑run shot and yet another Zach Neto dagger to drop the finale 9–7. From there I roll through the Rockies stealing a legit series from the Pirates – including outdueling Paul Skenes 2–1 at Coors, with Tomoyuki Sugano and Jaden Hill slamming the door and Kyle Freeland hitting 1,000 career strikeouts. I give Freeland a big hat tip as a Denver kid who came all the way up through the Rockies system. We talk about the Tigers absolutely needing a weekend like this and getting it: they sweep the White Sox in Detroit behind Tarik Skubal’s second start back from elbow surgery, back‑to‑back “ding dongs” from Dylan Dingler (17th and 18th of the year), and Matt Vierling walking it off in extras. I’ve been hyping Kaider Montero for a while and he shoves seven innings in that series. Around the league I hit all the big series: Cubs hang 16 on the Blue Jays with Carson Kelly’s grand slam and Ben Brown shoving, then Toronto claws back the next day. Reds roll into the Bronx and actually take a series off the Yankees behind Cam Schlittler’s 13‑K gem and Chase Burns’ eighth straight win, only giving up a solo shot to Ben Rice (his 22nd of the year). Rays edge the Nationals, Marlins quietly sweep the Giants in Miami, and the Brewers avoid a sweep in Atlanta with a William Contreras four‑hit day and Robert Gasser’s first win since May 2024. Rangers take a wild set from the Padres, with Wyatt Langford hitting a moonshot into the third deck and Nathan Eovaldi grinding out a win. Astros beat back Cleveland behind Yordan Alvarez’s 25th homer, and I’m cashing in on him on my Spinball lineup. Royals and Cardinals trade blows on I‑70 with JJ Wetherholt going deep twice in a 12–10 St. Louis win. Twins absolutely bury the Diamondbacks 16–8 with a 10‑run fifth, 20 hits, then come back Sunday to take the series behind Josh Bell’s pinch‑hit RBI and a late rally. Red Sox roll into Seattle, win the series, and force the Mariners to lean on a big Logan Gilbert outing to avoid the sweep. Orioles stroll into Dodger Stadium, beat Yamamoto behind seven scoreless from Trevor Rogers, then beat the brakes off L.A. 12–1 on Father’s Day with bombs from Taylor Ward, Colton Cowser, Pete Alonso and Blaze Alexander. Phillies absolutely destroy the Mets: Kyle Schwarber hits three homers on Saturday, adds another on Sunday, and Bryce Harper hits for the first cycle of his career while Christopher Sánchez and Zack Wheeler shove. I close it out with a lap around the standings: Yankees still leading the AL East but wobbling, Cleveland back on top of the Central, Mariners barely clinging to a game‑and‑a‑half lead over my A’s in a West where everybody’s around .500, Braves still on top of the NL East but feeling the Phillies breathing down their necks, Brewers holding serve in the Central, and the Dodgers doing Dodgers things despite dropping a series to Baltimore. Then I look ahead to tonight’s slate: Garrett Cole vs Framber Valdez, Hunter Brown vs Dylan Cease, a Japanese‑on‑Japanese matchup with Shota Imanaga vs Kodai Senga, a big Brewers–Reds set in Cincy, Dodgers at Twins in what might be an “over” special, Guardians–White Sox for the AL Central lead, and more. A’s are off today before heading into San Francisco for a huge three‑game set with Aaron Civale vs Robbie Ray in Game 1, and I lay out why Oakland needs at least two wins there before they see the Angels again. Hope all you dads had a good Father’s Day. I know I did. Don’t let your butt crack show, and move your ass – we’re Burnin’ Daylight. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices