Cup of Coffee: August 27, 2026

Good morning! And welcome to Free Thursday!

There were six shutouts yesterday. Good effort everyone. Take today off.

And That Happened

Here are the scores. Here are the highlights:

Rays 3, Tigers 0: Either Freddy Peralta finally figured out how to pitch in 2026 or the Tigers have officially given up. Peralta tossed six shutout innings, allowing just two hits without walking anyone and two Rays relievers finished off the final three innings without allowing a base runner. Can't even blame getaway day on this anemic Tigers performance as they were at home here, they're off tomorrow, and they're at home this weekend. Maybe they just wanted to get back to their houses quickly so they could book their vacation flights for the evening of September 27.

Diamondbacks 2, Cubs 0: Also a two-hit shutout, with Eduardo Rodríguez going seven and striking out nine. At least the Cubs drew a few walks in this one. Jordan Lawler homered for Arizona. The other run came on a Ryan Waldschmidt sac fly. Chicago should've had one run, as Rodríguez appeared to balk while Pete Crow-Armstrong was on third base in the sixth inning but the umps just plain missed it and later admitted that they did. Cubs have lost five of their last seven.

Phillies 6, Mariners 0: Philly's batters did their damage early, with Bryce Harper hitting a two-run homer in the first and Kyle Schwarber hitting a three-run jack in the second. That was more than enough for Jesús Luzardo, who did Eduardo Rodríguez one better by allowing just one hit in seven innings while striking out nine. Phillies avoid a sweep.

Padres 3, Pirates 0: Five Pads pitchers combined on a five-hitter here, with Randy Vásquez handling the first five frames. Jackson Merrill doubled, tripled, and drove in a run. Luis Rengifo singled Merrill in. Jake Cronenworth hit an RBI double. San Diego avoids the sweep.

Reds 10, Giants 9: It's been an absolutely terrible season in San Francisco, but this game has to be down among the lowest of the lows. The Giants had a six-run lead entering the ninth inning but coughed up seven, with Eugenio Suarez's grand slam leading the charge. Hector Rodríguez also homered while José Trevino hit a sac fly and Tyler Stephenson singled in a run. Per the AP the six-run lead was the largest the Giants haver ever blown in the ninth inning going back to at least 1901. The loss also prevented them from sweeping Cincinnati, keeping them as the only team that has not swept a three-game series this year.

Guardians 4, Angels 3: The Angels ninth inning lead was much smaller – they were only up 3-2 – but they blew it too when Steven Kwan doubled in the tying run and Travis Bazzana hit a go-ahead and, eventually, game-winning sac fly. It was Bazzana's second sac fly of the game, in fact. Cleveland sweeps the series and extend their winning streak to seven games.

Marlins 4, Red Sox 0: Another shutout. This one was a five-hitter, with Ryan Gusto handling five and two-thirds and three relievers finishing it up. Otto López had two hits, and scored twice, with both his runs coming on errors as opposed to hits. Once when he stole second and Connor Wong threw the ball away, once when Nick Sogard booted one.

Blue Jays 3, Royals 0: Shutout number six on the day came via a Blue Jays bullpen game in which seven pitchers combined to give up six hits and strike out nine. None of them went more than two and two-thirds. Nathan Lukes' three-run homer in the fourth was the game's only scoring.

Rockies 13, Nationals 1: Rockies hitters smacked four homers. Connor Norby's was a grand slam. He also singled to give him five RBI and he scored three times. Troy Johnston's, Cole Carrigg's and Hunter Goodman's dingers were all two-run jobs. In addition to the major shellacking the Rockies take two of three.

Brewers 8, Mets 1: This one started frighteningly for Milwaukee as starter Dutin May took a 106-mph line drive off the back of his shoulder on the first pitch he threw in the game. He ended up having to leave and go get X-rays. Thankfully he seems to have escaped with just a bruise. And thankfully the Brewers' pressed-into-service bullpen did a fine job, with Robert Gasser going five and a third while allowing just a run and two more relievers finished with three and a third shutout frames. Brice Turang hit a three-run homer and four RBI singles provided the rest of the scoring.

Yankees 9, Astros 3: Ben Rice homered and Luis García Jr. and Cody Bellinger eached drove in two. Rice and García each scored thrice. Elmer Rodrígez allowed three over six and three relievers blanked Houston the rest of the way.

Atlanta 6, Dodgers 5: This one went back-and-forth, with L.A. tying it up with two runs in the seventh but Atlanta mounted a two-out rally in the bottom of the ninth. First Lane Thomas doubled and after an intentional walk to Austin Riley, Ha-Seong Kim hit a pinch-hit walkoff single. Atlanta goes for the sweep tonight. No matter what happens in that game, however, the Dodgers have now officially lost their season series against both Atlanta and the Brewers, which means L.A. will lose any tiebreakers with them should that become necessary for home field in the playoffs.

White Sox 10, Rangers 4: Chicago somehow survived starter Sean Burke walking eight batters in just thee innings of work. A lotta offense helps that cause, and here Brenton Doyle delivered a three-run homer and an RBI single while Tristan Peters went 3-for-4 and homered in a fifth straight game. With the loss the Rangers fail to make up ground on Houston, and thus remain a half-game behind the AL West-leading Astros. Chicago maintains a two and a half game lead over the surging Guardians.

Orioles 8, Cardinals 7: Baltimore had a seven-run lead in the second inning thanks in part to a three-run homer from Leody Taveras and a two-run shot by Pete Alonso, but they squandered that lead by the fifth. Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who went 4-for-5, put the Orioles back ahead in the ninth with one of his two doubles on the night.

Athletics 7, Twins 4: Lawrence Butler homered, Tommy White had three hits, and Alika Williams tripled, doubled and drove in two as the Athletics win for the fourth time in their last five. Williams got a big assist in that effort from God Almighty, who cursed Byron Buxton with a fragile body, keeping him from playing in this game. In his place was Luke Keaschall, who was unable to make a running grab on the triple that Buxton likely would've come up with. He also badly misplayed the double. J.T. Ginn gave up homers to Brooks Lee, Trevor Larnach and Kaelen Culpepper but still went six and picked up the win.

The Daily Briefing

Really, Mark Walter is not selling the Dodgers. He promises.

In the past few weeks Dodgers owner Mark Walter has abruptly sold the Los Angeles Lakers and was reported to be seeking to (a) divest himself of his shares in Chelsea F.C.; and (b) otherwise restructure his business empire in response to a federal fraud investigation. Amidst speculation that he might sell his baseball team as well, he sent team president Stan Kasten out to make it clear to everyone that the Dodgers are not for sale.

And now, just to be sure that we all know that the Dodgers are not for sale, Walter has caused TWG Global, the holding company which owns the Dodgers, to say it once again. And to add that, actually, there has been no fraud committed. The TWG statement:

“Over the past several weeks, multipronged attacks against TWG have been advanced by unnamed sources with self-serving interests that have been reported in the media. It is important to set the record straight. TWG stands firmly behind the integrity of its business and remains focused on continuing to deliver value to its stakeholders. Despite what has been reported, there has been no fraud . . . Affiliated transactions are common across the insurance industry and suggestions that TWG is “looting” insurers is defamatory and false . . . TWG is not looking to sell its sports assets at “fire sale” prices to raise capital for its insurance operations.

I did not bold those last bits. Those are bold headings were already contained in the original press release. So you know they're serious.

In my mind all of this falls somewhere between "The lady doth protest too much, methinks" and " . . . has people asking a lot of questions already answered by my shirt." Or maybe that's the same sentiment, I don't know. But maybe Walter can have several more people say that, because repeating it over and over totally makes us speculate about it less.

In sorta related news, Joey and Jesse Buss, late of the Los Angeles Lakers ownership group, announced yesterday that they are joining the new San Diego Padres ownership group. I realize that does not match up 1-to-1 with the Dodgers whole situation, but I'm sure that people who are super invested in the Padres-Dodgers rivalry can make some sort of hay out of that if they wanted to.

Cuppagentsia Update

Cup of Coffee subscriber Claudia Wolff has published a research article about Jackie Robinson, which examines how Robinson navigated fame, integration, and racial politics as, "A Black man in a white world," as Robinson himself once put it.

It's some heady, academic stuff, which nonetheless touches on cultural issues and the cultural milieu of New York City and America in the late 1940s that all of us can understand. It also touches on the manner in which Major League Baseball, in Wolff's words, "isn’t really celebrating Jackie Robinson," each April 15 when it holds Jackie Robinson Day. "Baseball is celebrating itself. It is celebrating the decisions made in 1947, which, at long last, integrated baseball."

You can read the essay here. Great work, Claudia!

My favorite PR flack is back

Remember a week or two ago when I had that interaction with that P.R. dude named Josh Barton who was shilling for an online sportsbook taking action on the Little League World Series? The interaction in which I told the guy he was gross, he replied back that, hey, if ESPN and everyone was gonna exploit little kids how can he and the casino be considered bad actors for exploiting them too? After which I told him off and assumed I'd never hear from him again?

Well, it seems I'm still on his mailing list. And it seems that he's still trying to bargain for his soul in the most pathetic ways possible, because check out this email I, and I assume tons of other media people, got from him yesterday morning:

Gambling on Little League games has become quite the controversy during the past week. Some say there is no place for people profiting off of 12-year-olds, while others argue that Little League, ESPN and supporting sponsors are doing just that.

 BetOnlineSports & Casino, the brand that sets the annual Little League World Series odds, is offering a truce. The sportsbook says it will pull all betting lines in 2027, but only if Little League International agrees to one condition: Pay the participants. 

"We understand why some people are uncomfortable with betting on kids, but if the discomfort is really about profiting off 12-year-olds, that conversation shouldn't start and end with us," BetOnline Brand Manager Dave Mason said. "Little League, ESPN and the tournament's sponsors are cashing in every August...the difference is nobody's asked them to share that revenue. So, here's our offer: commit to paying the players and families, who comprise the core of this incredible tournament, and we'll commit to taking Little League off our board in 2027." 

While BetOnline didn't outline a specific payment structure, they said ideas like family travel stipends, college savings accounts and NIL compensation should all be considered. 

The ball is in Little League's court, but for now, there will be betting.

Immediately after that came the latest Little League World Series betting lines.

I couldn't help but respond to him again:

You do realize it's possible to do the right thing without first making others do the right thing, yes? This should've been handled by your mother when you were a child and she asked you if everyone else jumped off a bridge would you do so too. Please take me off your fucking mailing list. You're fucking human slime. Regards, Craig Calcaterra 

He immediately responded:

Apparently, your mother didn't teach you how to speak professionally and without profanity. Hope you didn't kiss her with that vulgar mouth. You have been gleefully removed from all media distribution lists. Good luck and good riddance, Josh

So at least I'm off his mailing list.

The worst all-star game is ending

The NFL Pro Bowl has always been the worst of the major sports league all-star games. And now even the NFL is acknowledging it, announcing that the game will no longer be played. They will continue to name 88 "Pro Bowlers" as an honor, but no actual game will happen.

Honestly, the same could happen to all of the all-star games and I wouldn't really care. Baseball included.

They're barely games anymore. Every strategy and a great number of the skills we expect to see on display in the sports we love are basically dispensed with in these exhibitions and no one is trying that hard. Beyond all of that, the entire point of the exercise from the games' inception – making it possible for people to see all of a sports' stars – is completely moot in the age of on-demand viewing, league packages, and the like. All of us can see every single player in almost every game they play if we want to.

A smart call by the NFL, frankly. One that I wouldn't mind being a trendsetter.

Other Stuff

Watch them try to whitewash Dolly Parton's legacy

Saw this from CNN yesterday:

At a time when no American celebrity seems immune from the country’s many divisions, Dolly Parton was a crossover icon who stayed neutral in the culture wars while still speaking her mind.

"Dolly Parton remained neutral in the culture wars" is the most hilariously wrong framing of a person's stances since people tried to cast Muhammed Ali as "above politics" or as a "unifying figure" or whatever when he died ten years ago. For the media, the need to defang celebrities who stood for something and cast them as neutral actors in the world after they die is oh so common but oh so weird. It's downright pathological, really.

As for Parton: sure, if by "remained neutral in the culture wars" CNN means "Dolly Parton did not engage in frontline partisan politics and did not opportunistically seize upon cultural controversies as a means of advancing her personal brand like so many commentators and influencers do" yes, she "stayed neutral." But to say such a thing ignores the fact that Parton routinely, and quite publicly, stood up for people in the crosshairs of the culture warriors for most of her life.

Parton stood up for gay people and trans people. She stood up for the poor and the marginalized. She helped fund and publicize an important COVID vaccine. She was a strong advocate, both in word and deed for women's rights. Indeed, it'd be harder to imagine a public figure who more thoroughly embodied the feminist ideal than Dolly Parton.

When living, breathing people support such things they are never described as "neutral." Indeed, most of the time they are cast as "radical" by many of the same folks who, starting on Tuesday afternoon, began heaping praise on Parton. And they are attacked, just as Parton's child reading initiatives have been attacked and slashed by Republicans in recent years. But when such a person dies the press and the people who stood in opposition to their example rush to cast them as "above politics" as a means of recasting and coopting their example and their legacy. You can set your goddamn watch to it.

Our discourse about politics has always been narrow and reductive, and it's usually limited to whether someone did in fact engage in partisan politics, campaigned for people or issues, or showed up on the dumb cable TV shout-fests. Obviously Parton did none of those things. But she lived a life of principle and virtue and supported people and ideas in humane, substantive ways that did actual good and set an admirable example. If you want to call that "neutral," go ahead, but it reflects pretty poorly on a person to do so and shows that they fundamentally misunderstand people like Dolly Parton.

"Staffer bros?"

Via Gizmodo we learn that Rep. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez from Washington state wants Congress to change its rules so that legislation can contain images, maps, diagrams, blueprints, and things like that rather than just text. She argues that it can only help to be clearer and more expressive in legislation, making it more accessible for more people.

I don't have a problem with that necessarily – clearer is better and a picture is worth a thousand words – but in her letter to Congressional leadership advocating for the change, she takes a weird swipe at people with a basic education in what I assume is a means of creating an enemy so she can better sell her cause:

Ultimately, this is about representation. For too long, our laws have been written for “staffer bros” with bow ties who will issue guidance on how to follow them from cubicles on Pennsylvania Avenue. We should be able to draft legislation that speaks to all Americans, regardless of how they learn or the profession they work in—from visual learners and foremen to lawyers and policy experts.

"Staffer bros?" You mean people who can read basic legal documents and who are pretty essential to any legislative body?

I'm all for doing whatever we can to make the work of government as accessible to the public as possible, and I find Gluesenkamp Perez's efforts in that regard laudable as far as they go. But going after people who are just doing their job – and the very idea of professional competence – in an effort to advance her initiative is exactly that sort of "we must have an enemy to demonize" shit that makes politics so toxic. It's also the exact sort of "if I say something sharp or over the top I'll get more attention" stuff that is tailor-made for consumption by streamers and influencers.

I suppose that's unavoidable these days but I fucking hate it. If you idea is a good one, let it stand on its own.

Tim Curry: 1946-2026

It's been a bad week for 80 year-old cultural icons. One day after we lost Dolly, the great Tim Curry died. Apparently someone with a monkey's paw wished for a cast member of "Home Alone 2" who was born in 1946 to die and the the Old Fakir and Fate Itself decided to do their unexpected thing, the bastards.

Based on my photo and video choice here you know which Tim Curry role imprinted itself upon me most. And yes, Frank-N-Furter in "Rocky Horror" was his signature role. But there was a lot of competition:

• His Wadsworth in "Clue" was a tour-de-force, and it's probably the movie of his I've seen most;
• His Rooster in the movie version of "Annie" was scenery-chewing wonderfulness, and the way in which he takes the locket out of the envelope during "Easy Street" should've gotten the movie an X-rating (he said as a compliment);
• As others have noted, there are two ways for a human actor to nail a role opposite The Muppets. One way, which Michael Caine did in "The Muppet Christmas Carol," is to treat all of the Muppets as human actors and proceed in all seriousness. The other way, which Curry chose to do in "Muppet Treasure Island," was to actual play one's own human role as if they were a Muppet. There's no in between, and Curry chose wisely;
• How someone decided that Curry should play the most straightforward communist functionary in "The Hunt for Red October" – a film with no room for his usual brand of comic relief or inspired mischief – remains a mystery but I'll be damned if he wasn't memorable. I mean, "where did this man learn to cook? AFGHANISTAN? So then we went on to the Bolshoi ballet, to see this new girl Gizelle. Well, you remember how BEAUTIFUL she was! Well, she just married a factory manager and . . . ";
• He was most honored as a stage actor, garnering three Tony Award nominations, including one for "Amadeus," in which he played Mozart opposite Ian McKellen's Salieri in the first American production, "My Favorite Year," and "Spamalot." He was the second actor, after John Hurt, to portray Tristan Tzara in Tom Stoppard 's "Travesties," which happens to be one of my favorite plays of all time.

And of course Curry played all kinds of weirdo characters like Pennywise from the 1990 miniseries version of "It," The Lord of Darkness in "Legend," Gomez Addams in "Addams Family Reunion," Cardinal Richelieu in the 1993 adaptation of "The Three Musketeers" and scads of voice acting roles. The dude always seemed to be having the best time at whatever he was doing, even if the projects in which he was appearing weren't exactly masterpieces. If there's a better way to handle one's acting career than that I'd like to hear it. He was almost always the most fun part of whatever he was in.

Curry suffered a stroke back in 2012 which left him wheelchair bound for the rest of his life. Despite that he kept up a public profile, gave interviews, did readings and things, and last year released a memoir that is currently in my Audible queue and which I may have to move up the list as a result of his passing.

And did you know that he put out three rock albums? Because, yeah, he put out three rock albums. The man contained multitudes. May he rest in peace.

Have a great day everyone.