The Opener: Cowser, Cubs, Devers

It’s the first day of September, which means rosters expand by two spots. The Padres are calling up top catching prospect Ethan Salas for one of those openings. More notable prospect additions could be on the way. 1. Cowser saves the day The Rockies thought they had a walk-off win when Jake McCarthy drove an Andrew Kittredge sinker deep to center. Colton Cowser had other ideas. The Orioles center fielder leaped at the wall and brought back what would’ve been a game-winning homer for the final out of the game (video link via MLB on X). “That’s probably the coolest play I’ve ever seen in person,” Kittredge told reporters (h/t Matt Weyrich of the Baltimore Sun). “In that scenario, to win the game like that, I’m speechless. I don’t know what to say. That’s incredible.” The win pushed Baltimore back to .500 for the first time since April. The Orioles sit a half-game behind the Guardians for the final AL Wild Card spot. 2. Cubs launch nine homers With football season right around the corner, the Cubs put up two touchdowns and a field goal on the Brewers last night. Chicago took advantage of favorable weather at Wrigley Field with nine home runs. Alex Bregman led the way with three blasts. It was his second three-homer game of the month. He finished August with a dozen home runs. Surprisingly, MVP candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong wasn’t among the Cubs to go deep. Michael Conforto picked up the slack, taking over for PCA late in the game and delivering a three-run homer off infielder Andrew Vaughn. Chicago extended its league lead in the scoring department to 16 runs over the Nationals. 3. Devers reaches 30 homers Last season, Willy Adames became the first Giant to hit 30 home runs in a season since Barry Bonds in 2004. Now, the team has done it two years in a row. Rafael Devers belted a cutter from Bryce Elder over the right-field wall to notch 30 homers for the fifth time in his career. He’s shaken off a slow start to post a strong campaign in his first full year in San Francisco. Devers has an OPS over .900 since the beginning of July. He’s been 25% better than league average this season. Photo courtesy of Isaiah J. Downing, Imagn Images View Comments (8)