Welcome to The Pregame Lineup, a weekday newsletter that gets you up to speed on everything you need to know for today’s games, while catching you up on fun and interesting stories you might have missed. Thanks for being here.

The niece of NFL legend Tom Brady making her own waves.

A slugger who hits home runs at rates up there with Barry Bonds and Babe Ruth. 

Maybe the best softball pitcher in the world ... who spends her spare time swimming with sharks.

After a historic first season, the star-powered AUSL Championship -- a best-of-three-game set between the first-place Talons and second-place Bandits -- will take place at Rhoads Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala., this weekend. It should be a classic.

The Talons, who finished at 18-6, had maybe the best pitching during the regular season. Georgina Corrick was named Pitcher of the Year, putting up a 6-0 mark with a league-leading 2.04 ERA. Montana Fouts, a Crimson Tide star, will be returning to her alma mater after compiling a 2.71 ERA during the season. Fireballer Megan Faraimo tallied the second-most strikeouts on the circuit with 38. But the Talons still do have some hitters, including the gene-blessed, .647-hitting Maya Brady.

The Bandits, who finished just three games behind the Talons, had the AUSL’s best offense. The top four AUSL home run leaders are on their team -- Morgan Zerkle (nine), Bubba Nickles-Camarena (seven), Skylar Wallace (six) and Erin Coffel (five). Four of the top five AUSL OPS leaders also come from their roster. Zerkle is hitting a dinger every 10.3 at-bats, while Coffel was just named Hitter of the Year. There is a certified ace on their staff to go up against Corrick, too: Lexi Kilfoyl. The Oklahoma State grad put up the second-best ERA of the year at 2.35 and finished with a 6-1 record.

The two teams played each other eight times during the regular season, and it was an even split at four games apiece. There were some epic last-inning comebacks and thrilling walk-offs. 

I’ll be covering all the action down in Tuscaloosa for MLB.com. If you can’t get a ride there (sorry, I don’t have room for you in my Toyota Corolla and I need any extra space for the 15 jars of Alabama white sauce I’ll be smuggling back to New York), you can still watch all the action. Game 1 is Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN, Game 2 is Sunday at 2 p.m. ET on ESPN and Game 3 (if necessary) will be Monday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2. 

For more info on the Championship Series, check out the full FAQ here.

-- Matt Monagan

Shohei Ohtani has made so much history during his MLB career that it’s incredible to think there could be more on the horizon for the two-way superstar. But has Ohtani ever stopped leaving us awestruck?

The first 50-homer/50-steal season in MLB history? The second player to win an MVP Award in both leagues? Those were just last year. And all he’s done since then is put together another MVP-caliber campaign at the plate while returning to the mound in 2025. He’s even breaking television records -- his first game on the mound for the Dodgers last month was the most-watched game in MLB.TV history.

Now, Ohtani is on the verge of yet another historic feat. On Wednesday, he tied a Dodgers record, becoming the seventh player in franchise history to homer in five consecutive games. As the Dodgers open a weekend series against the Red Sox at Fenway Park tonight (7:10 p.m. ET, MLB.TV), he’ll look to not only set a new franchise mark, but join some exclusive company in baseball history.

Only 34 players have homered in six or more consecutive games, most recently Rafael Devers, for Boston, last May. Only nine have reached at least seven straight, and the MLB record is eight in a row, held by Ken Griffey Jr. (1993), Don Mattingly (1987) and Dale Long (1956).

As for what comes next for Ohtani, only time will tell. But one thing’s for sure: The Sho goes on.

-- Manny Randhawa

The bar was set high from the start for Bryce Harper, who was dubbed by Sports Illustrated as “Baseball’s Chosen One” -- the national pastime’s version of LeBron James -- at age 16 in 2009. That’s what happens when you’re hitting 570-foot (give or take) homers, throwing 96 mph heat and dreaming of being “the greatest baseball player who ever lived.”

Sixteen years later, we can safely confirm the two-time MVP has largely lived up to the hype. We’ve watched Harper evolve from a precocious 19-year-old phenom with the Nationals to a seasoned team leader and fan favorite with the Phillies, consistently stellar and frequently spectacular.

Harper connected on his 350th homer on Wednesday; at 32, he’s the youngest to get there of the eight active players who have reached that milestone. With six years left on his contract with the Phillies after this one, 500 home runs -- kind of a magic number in baseball -- is possible over that span if he averages slightly less than 24 per season, which definitely feels attainable depending on how healthy he stays.

Of course, Harper will tell you himself that his primary goal is to lead the Phillies to the promised land. Bryce will continue that pursuit tonight against Yankees super-slugger Aaron Judge, who reached the 350 Club himself just two weeks before Harper, taking the fewest games in MLB history to get there. You can watch their parallel march toward potential baseball immortality tonight at 7 ET on Apple TV+.

-- Bryan Horowitz

• Blue Jays at Tigers (7:10 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): After dropping nine of their past 10 games, the Tigers are now looking up at the Blue Jays in the race for the top overall seed in the AL. Toronto’s resurgence can be traced to its offense, particularly 3B/OF Addison Barger, who has five homers, 20 RBIs and 11 runs in his past 18 games.

• Mariners at Angels (9:38 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): Seattle made a major upgrade at first base on Thursday night, acquiring Josh Naylor from Arizona for a couple of prospects. Naylor is expected to join the team in time for its series against Mike Trout, who is one RBI shy of 1,000 for his career, and the Angels.

• Mets at Giants (10:15 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): The Mets are back atop the NL East after sweeping the Angels, but it’s only a half-game lead. Fellow Dominican superstars Juan Soto, who has six career homers at Oracle Park, and Devers, who is coming off a two-homer game Wednesday, face off in the series opener.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2025 induction ceremony is scheduled for Sunday at 1:30 p.m. ET in Cooperstown, N.Y., televised exclusively on MLB Network, MLB.TV, MLB.com and the MLB App. A quick rundown of the honorees:

Ichiro Suzuki’s numbers are impressive enough. But as Manny Randhawa explored, it’s Ichiro’s status as a pioneer -- he was a childhood hero for Ohtani, among countless others -- that is perhaps his most lasting legacy.

CC Sabathia racked up more than 250 wins and 3,000 strikeouts, and the big left-hander, renowned for his leadership, also had a habit of putting teams on his back.

Billy Wagner authored an improbable journey to the Hall. The Division III product (and natural right-handed thrower) beat the odds to become a dominant lefty closer.

The late Dick Allen was a ferocious hitter (career 156 OPS+) and MVP Award winner. His family always thought of him as a Hall of Famer.

Dave Parker, who passed away on June 28, possessed an all-time great nickname (The Cobra), a cannon arm and a gift for great lines.

Longtime Cleveland broadcaster Tom Hamilton (Ford C. Frick Award) and longtime baseball writer for The Washington Post Thomas Boswell (BBWAA Career Excellence Award) also will be honored as part of Hall of Fame Induction Weekend.

-- Andrew Simon

Can you guess today’s mystery player using clues like age, league, division, position and place of birth? You’ll have nine tries to get it right. Good luck! Play here >>

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