Mazel tov

• OF Ryan Braun, who last played in 2020 and spent his entire career in Milwaukee, eliminated all doubt his future on September 14 when he announced his retirement from baseball. “While it’s impossible to summarize my emotions, what I feel most is one, simple thing – gratitude,” he wrote on Twitter. Braun was named N.L. Rookie of the Year in 2007, N.L. MVP in 2011, and was named an All-Star six times. He is the all-time Jewish home run leader with 352 round-trippers and ranks second to the immortal Hank Greenberg with 1,154 RBIs.

Stats to share

• We know that P Max Fried (Braves) is the best-hitting pitcher in baseball. At .326, he is one of only two MLB pitchers hitting above .200, with the second best coming in at .245. We know he is an outstanding fielder, too, having earned a Gold Glove in 2020. But those who watch Fried regularly know he also is a danger on the basepaths. On August 14, for example, Fried sprinted from first base to home plate at a rate of 29.3 feet per second. According to Statcast, elite speed in the Majors is 30 feet per second. “That’s telling you how athletic he is,” teammate Ozzie Albies said after the game. 

Weekly overview

• Jewish batters hit a combined .290 (27-for-93) last week, with 2 HRs, 7 doubles, 16 RBIs, 3 walks, 25 strikeouts, and a .337 OBP (on-base percentage).
• Jewish pitchers went 2-0 with a 4.29 ERA last week, yielding 20 hits and 6 walks over 17 combined innings while striking out 20.

At the plate

• SS Alex Bregman (Astros) hit .429 (9-for-21) last week, with 2 HRs, 2 doubles, 9 RBIs, and a 1.268 OPS (on-base plus slugging). Bregman’s home runs came in consecutive games, including a game-tying “Breggy Bomb” on September 7 and a pinch-hit shot on September 8.
• P Max Fried (Braves) hit .500 (2-for-4) with a 1.000 OPS, raising his batting average to .326. Fried also picked-off a runner on September 7, his 6th pick-off of the season.
• 1B Rowdy Tellez (Brewers) hit .357 (5-for-14) with 3 doubles, an RBI, and a .929 OPS. Tellez injured his patella while rounding third base on September 11 after doubling minutes before.
• C Garrett Stubbs (Astros) hit .333 (2-for-6) with an RBI double off the left-field wall and a .833 OPS.
• LF Joc Pederson (Braves) hit .235 (4-for-17) with one RBI and a .471 OPS. One of his hits was clutch: a walk-off single against the Nationals on September 9.
• CF Kevin Pillar (Mets) hit .190 (4-for-21) with a double, 3 RBIs, 4 hit-by-pitches, and a .571 OPS. Three of the hit-by-pitches occurred on three consecutive days.
• C Ryan Lavarnway (Indians) hit .111 (1-for-9) with a .222 OPS. His 6th-inning single on September 12 broke up a no-hitter by Eric Lauer (Brewers).
• P Scott Effross (Cubs) hit a sacrifice fly on September 11, his first and only plate appearance so far as a Major Leaguer.

On the mound

• Richard Bleier (Marlins) went 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA over 2 games last week, striking out 2 over 1.1 perfect innings. Bleier retired the 4 batters he faced on a total of 16 pitches.
• Scott Effross (Cubs) went 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA over 2 appearances, yielding 3 hits, zero walks, and one hit batter over 3.2 combined innings while striking out 4.
• Max Fried (Braves) went 0-0 with a 3.00 ERA over 2 starts. In 12 combined innings, the southpaw yielded 10 hits and 5 walks while striking out 12 and holding opposing batters to a .222 batting average. Fried’s 4 walks on September 7 tied a season high.
• Dean Kremer (Orioles), in his first MLB appearance since June 24, yielded 4 earned runs in a September 11 start, giving up 7 hits and a walk over 4 innings while striking out 2.

Players to watch

• P Jared Shuster (Braves/Double-A/Mississippi Braves), a 1st-round 2021 draft pick who already has reached Double-A, gave up just one earned run in a 6.2-inning start on September 8, yielding 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 5. “I feel like I have a really high ceiling and I’m going to work hard to reach that ceiling,” Shuster told MLB.com in a recent scouting report.
• P Daniel Federman (Baltimore/Low-A/Delmarva Shorebirds), an undrafted free agent signed by the Orioles in June, tossed 3 scoreless innings across 2 games, yielding one hit and zero walks while striking out 4.
• P Jake Miednik (Cleveland/Double-A/Akron RubberDucks) threw 3 scoreless innings across 2 games, yielding a hit and a walk while striking out 4.
• P Ryan Sherriff (Rays/Triple-A/Durham Bulls) earned a win September 8 after tossing 2 perfect innings and striking out one batter. Sheriff’s performance lowered his ERA at Durham this season to 1.59 and raised his record to 5-3 with 5 holds and a save.
• P Zack Weiss (Mariners/Triple A/Tacoma Rainiers) threw 3.1 scoreless innings over 2 games, yielding 2 hits and zero walks while striking out 3.
• SS Zack Gelof (Athletics/Low-A/Stockton Ports), a 2021 draftee, hit .348 (7-for-22) with 2 HRs, one double, 4 RBIs, 3 walks, and his 11th stolen base of the season.
• C CJ Stubbs (Astros/High-A/Asheville Tourists) hit .318 (6-for-22) with a HR, double, and 8 RBIs.

Transactions

• 1B Rowdy Tellez (Brewers) was placed on the injured list on September 12.
• P Dean Kremer (Orioles) was called up on September 11 and sent back down to Triple-A on September 12.

Injured list

• 1B Rowdy Tellez (Brewers), right patella strain, since September 12.
• P Robert Stock (Mets), right hamstring strain, since July 21. Out for the season.

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