The MLB stretch run will be fun

Okay, I get it, folks: It's late July, and you're a big football fan. You are counting the days until the beginning of the NCAA football season and the NFL season, too. If you're reading this from our home city of Nashville, you may be more interested in the latest developments from the open practice of the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium and "Back Together Weekend" - pitched cleverly by the NFL when  no games are being played.

If you're reading this from another city, you may be more interested in the football team from your area - college, pro, etc. 

Great. But, before your mind scoots ahead to football, let's consider baseball: Major League Baseball, in specific. Did you watch the All-Star Game from Truist Park in Atlanta on July 15? If you missed it, you missed a great game. Both American and National All-Stars went full-tilt in a game that means what it meant in decades long gone by - a high-profile exhibition game that merely meant the pride of both respective leagues. From what I saw here in 2025, this day in time matches what occurred in the years gone by.

Both teams obviously wanted to win the game (televised on FOX). Great moments from stars of the past like Hank Aaron and Joe Torre were brought out at the respective appropriate times. The tribute to Aaron brought back the feel of Atlanta - Fulton County Stadium from 1974. It rocked. AL manager Aaron Boone of the Yankees allowed one of his most successful predecessors, Joe Torre (who, in years gone by, both played for and managed my St. Louis Cardinals), to coordinate a pitching change.

Speaking of pitching changes, both Boone and Dave Roberts of the Dodgers made changes when they were needed. Roberts' NL Stars scooted out to a 6-0 lead, only to see the AL Stars cut it to an even 6-6 at the end of nine innings.

A Home Run Derby style "swing off" resulted in a 7-6 National League victory as the Eastern Time Zone clock in Atlanta scooted toward midnight (and as many fans on a weeknight, understandably, had departed). Kyle Schwarber, outfielder for the Philadelphia Phillies, swung it off for the NL Stars - putting three pitches over the wall at Truist Park (the first of which hit the yellow line on the wall and bounced back onto the field - obviously counted as a home run) and putting the NL in a rare win situation for this era. 

The All-Star Game will be in Schwarber's Citizens Bank Park in 2026 (presuming Schwarber is still with the Phillies at this time next year).

For the "second half" of the season (which is really about 1/3 of the season yet to come), here is my call: The Chicago Cubs might just be close to another world title (they won it all in 2016 and advanced to the National League Championship Series in 2017). Other candidates include the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees, Detroit Tigers, Houston Astros, New York Mets, and Philadelphia Phillies.

For teams that I am personally interested in, the Cincinnati Reds are currently one game outside of the NL wild card standings. The St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves are looking toward 2026. The Reds haven't been in a division series since 2012, when they lost to the San Francisco Giants, three games to two. The Reds lost wild card games/series in 2013 and 2020. The Reds also lost a division series to the Philadelphia Phillies 3-0 in 2010.

The Reds swept the Oakland A's in the 1990 World Series but then, five years later, were swept by the Atlanta Braves in the National League Championship Series.

Let's see if the 2025 Reds can make a run. In the meantime, don't let the summer heat melt away your desire for baseball.

James A. Rose - Publisher