We have a few team debuts on the mound for the Friday slate. Kevin Gausman will take the ball for the Cubs, Robbie Ray is starting for the Padres, and Tyler Mahle will make his first appearance with the Braves.

1. Red Sox secure wild extra-inning win

Boston’s victory over the White Sox was one of the craziest games of the regular season. The 13-inning affair saw the Red Sox erase five different deficits and finally walk things off on a Caleb Durbin RBI single. Boston scored in all five frames from the 9th inning on, which had never been done before (h/t OptaSTATS on X). “That’s kind of who we are right now and it’s been showing lately,” Durbin told reporters (h/t Christopher Smith of MassLive.com). “So we’re just gonna fight till the end. And I mean, that’s why we’re here.” The Red Sox have won eight in a row. The sweep over Chicago is their sixth time this season sweeping a first-place team, which is a record (h/t Sarah Langs and Elias Sports).

2. Cubs walk off Blue Jays

The other Chicago team also played extra innings on Thursday, with a better outcome. Toronto righty Dylan Cease completely silenced the Cubs for seven innings. They were down to their final strike against All-Star closer Louis Varland, but Alex Bregman launched a game-tying home run to force extra innings. Chicago left the winning run at third base with one out in the 10th inning. The club seemed to have fumbled another chance in the 11th inning, when Carson Kelly was thrown out at home on a Pete Crow-Armstrong single. PCA then took matters into his own hands, stealing third base and scoring on a throwing error. The Cubs have won four straight and 13 of 20 in the second half.

3. Krukow announces retirement

Longtime Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow announced on Thursday that 2026 would be his final season. He’s been in the booth for San Francisco since 1990. Krukow and partner Duane Kuiper have formed one of the league’s top broadcast duos. The pair were on the call for the Giants’ three World Series titles in 2010, 2012, and 2014. “With his beloved and inseparable partner Duane Kuiper, he has taught generations of fans about baseball, brought us inside it from the perspective of a Major League pitcher and called every game with incredible insight, unmistakable humor and genuine heart,” team president Larry Baer said in a statement. Before his broadcasting days, Krukow pitched for three teams over a 14-year playing career. The righty was an All-Star in 1986 with the Giants.

Photo courtesy of David Butler II, Imagn Images