MLB News Outside The Confines: Wanna have a catch?

Good morning.

• The Phillies beat the Twins 7-1 as MLB returned to Dyersville, Iowa at the new Field of Dreams stadium.
• Paul Casella and Matthew Leach have the best moments from the Field of Dreams Game.
• Here’s Kevin Costner’s video introduction to the game.

• Kristie Ackert explains how the movie site got a permanent stadium.
• Ackert also has the winners and losers from the Field of Dreams Game.
• Scott Dochterman writes that the Field of Dreams game was a magical mixture of the past and present. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• The Phillie Phanatic had a great time at the game.

• Alden Gonzalez reports that Shohei Ohtani would be unlikely to terminate his contract if owner Mark Walter sold the team. Walter is in a little trouble with the IRS and announced a sale of the Lakers earlier this week.
• Three Tigers pitchers combined to shut out the Guardians without recording a strikeout. It was the first no-strikeout shutout in MLB since 2014.
• Ben Clemens looks at what the Tigers would be like now if they hadn’t traded Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize at the Deadline.
• AJ Cassavell looks at how the Padres got back into the playoff hunt.
• Dayn Perry also looks at how the Padres turned their season around.
• Josh Jacobs has three keys for the Cardinals if they want to make the postseason.
• Tyler Kepner talks with Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who blames himself for the Mariners struggles this season. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Ken Rosenthal offers three ideas to fix the Athletics. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Jake Mintz asks what’s wrong with Pirates ace Paul Skenes? And how they might fix him, of course.
• Brittany Ghiroli talks with Giants team president Buster Posey and how his legacy and adoration by Giants fans is on the line as the team keeps losing. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Dan Szymborski looks at which contenders are best built for the playoffs.
• Michael Baumann argues that the Brewers can’t count on Christian Yelich to carry their offense anymore.
• ESPN dot com ranks the top 50 players in the game right now.
• Dayn Perry ranks the top rookies of 2026.
• Last night, Max Muncy set the new record for most career home runs at Dodger Stadium with 131.
• The Royals signed former All-Star Tony Gonsolin to a major-league deal.
• Reds pitcher Hunter Greene underwent Tommy John surgery and will likely be out until 2028.
• Dayn Perry presents a plan to bring parity to MLB without a salary cap and a lockout.
• Bradford Doolittle goes over what was lost during the 1994 strike and what we might lose this year with a prolonged work stoppage.
• Manny Randhawa presents the top ten pitching motions of all-time.
• And finally, Randhawa asks Hall of Famers, is it “play catch” or “have a catch”?