Baylor Professional Athletes

Baylor Alumni MLB Roundup | Aug. 23–29, 2026

It was a banner weekend for Baylor alums across the American League, with Nick Loftin and Max Muncy — two Bears playing for two different teams in two different games — both going deep on Sunday, Aug. 23 in performances that swung outcomes.

Loftin Erupts for Four RBI in Royals Rout

Nick Loftin was the biggest Baylor story of the week by a considerable margin. The Kansas City second baseman put together one of his best offensive performances of the season on Sunday, clubbing a three-run homer and finishing the day with four RBI as the Royals battered the Detroit Tigers, 11-7. John Rave added a two-run shot of his own, but it was Loftin's big swing that set the tone and gave Kansas City the cushion it needed to hold off a scrappy Tigers lineup.

The outburst lifted Loftin's average to .238 on the day, and he carried that momentum into the following week, logging hits in back-to-back games against the Blue Jays on Tuesday and Wednesday. He's a player Royals fans have been waiting to see put it all together at the plate, and the Aug. 23 effort was a compelling preview of what that looks like.

Muncy's Solo Shot Helps A's Edge Houston

Meanwhile, Max Muncy — the Athletics' Max Muncy — added his own punctuation mark to Sunday's slate. His solo home run was part of a 7-6 Oakland win over the Houston Astros, a victory that also featured a three-run blast from Brian Serven. Muncy's blast was his lone hit of the game but it counted when it mattered, contributing to one of the more satisfying wins of the week for an Athletics club that always has something to prove against their division rival.

Muncy continued to see action throughout the week, going 2-for-2 in Saturday's contest against the Orioles. His average sat at .221 as of Aug. 29 — modest, but with pop that makes him a threat in the middle of any lineup.

(A note for the uninitiated: there are indeed two Max Muncys active in MLB right now. The other, also a Baylor product, is on the Dodgers' roster and also saw action throughout the week, drawing walks in multiple games and driving in a run on Sunday against Pittsburgh.)

Bradford Solid in the Rotation

Cody Bradford, Baylor's representative in the Rangers' rotation, delivered a serviceable outing Friday against the Brewers — 5.2 innings, three earned runs — holding his ERA steady at 3.42. It wasn't a dominant start, but it was the kind of workmanlike performance a mid-rotation arm needs to provide down the stretch.

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For a program not typically mentioned in the same breath as college baseball powerhouses, Baylor has quietly built a reliable pipeline into professional baseball. This week was a reminder that when Loftin and Muncy get hot at the same time, Bears fans have reason to keep multiple box scores open on Sunday afternoon.

The Bear Who Owns the Stadium

Max Muncy had himself a week — and then some.

The Baylor product etched his name permanently into Dodgers lore on Friday, August 14, when he launched a home run off Milwaukee Brewers pitching to become the all-time home run leader at Dodger Stadium. The milestone came as a pinch-hit appearance, making it all the more theatrical — Muncy summoned from the bench and delivering history on a single swing. The Dodgers ultimately fell to the Brewers in that game, but the moment belonged to No. 13.

It wasn't a one-night wonder. Muncy had already been carrying the Dodgers offensively for days. On Tuesday, August 11, he delivered a walk-off RBI single in the 10th inning to beat the Kansas City Royals 5-4, capping a night in which he drove in three runs. Blake Snell had struck out 10 across six dominant innings, but it was Muncy's clutch single that sent Dodger Stadium home happy. He followed that up Wednesday with another hit as Los Angeles took the series from Kansas City.

The Dodger Stadium home run record caps a remarkable second act for a player who knows something about reinvention. Muncy was once cast off by the Athletics before latching on with Los Angeles and becoming one of the franchise's most productive sluggers — a story the record makes even sweeter.

The Other Muncy

It's easy to forget there are two Max Muncys in MLB — and the other one had a meaningful week of his own.

The Athletics version of Muncy (no relation) delivered a tiebreaking RBI double in the ninth inning on Sunday, August 9, lifting Oakland past the Boston Red Sox 4-3 for the franchise's first series win since mid-June. After 12 straight series losses, the A's needed a late-game hero, and Muncy provided exactly that.

Loftin Stays Productive in Kansas City

Royals infielder Nick Loftin quietly put together a solid week at the plate. The Baylor product went 2-for-4 with a run scored on Tuesday against the Dodgers, reached base Wednesday, and added another hit Saturday against the Angels. Loftin's average settled around .240–.249 through the stretch — consistent production from a player who's become a reliable piece of Kansas City's lineup.

Bradford Grinds Through Seven

Cody Bradford toed the rubber Wednesday for the Rangers against the Angels, working seven innings and allowing three earned runs while striking out one. His ERA sits at a tidy 2.38 on the season — quietly one of the better numbers in the Baylor alumni stable. The outing wasn't a gem, but going seven innings is a win for any rotation these days.

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It was, by any measure, a Muncy week — the Dodgers version in particular. Becoming Dodger Stadium's all-time home run leader while also delivering a walk-off in the same seven-day stretch is the kind of résumé update that's hard to top. For Bears fans watching from Waco, the name on the leaderboard is a familiar one.

Max Muncy quietly etched his name into Dodger Stadium lore last week, and the moment deserves more than a footnote.

Muncy's home run last Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners was his 130th regular-season blast at Chavez Ravine, tying Eric Karros for the most in the ballpark's history. It's the kind of milestone that speaks to durability and consistency — Karros spent a decade as the face of the Dodgers franchise, and a Baylor Bear from Waco is now standing shoulder-to-shoulder with him in the all-time record books at one of baseball's most iconic venues. Factor in postseason home runs and Muncy already has the record outright, but the regular-season mark is the one that counts in the history books.

The Baylor product didn't stop there. On Wednesday, Aug. 5, Muncy went deep again — this time against the Cubs — driving in three runs and scoring once as the Dodgers topped Chicago. He finished the week hitting .251 with Los Angeles, still a reliable presence in a lineup stacked with All-Stars.

Two Muncys, One Week

It's a quirk of the research that bears acknowledging: there are two Max Muncys in MLB right now, and both are Baylor alumni. The other Muncy — a third baseman with the Oakland Athletics — had a quieter week, going 1-for-1 with a hit on Friday against the Red Sox and finishing the stretch around the .219–.222 range. Two Bears, same name, different coasts.

Bradford Back in the Rotation

Cody Bradford gave Rangers fans a reason to exhale on Wednesday. The Baylor lefty turned in 4.1 innings against the San Francisco Giants, striking out five batters as Texas cruised to a 6-0 shutout. Bradford was a supporting piece in what was a dominant team effort, but the strikeout rate and the zeros on the scoreboard suggest he's pitching with some confidence right now.

Loftin Holds Steady in KC

Royals infielder Nick Loftin had a serviceable week, recording hits in multiple games and drawing walks across the stretch. His average hovered between .245 and .256 through the period — nothing that'll make headlines, but the kind of steady production a contending team needs from a utility piece. On Saturday against the Cubs, Loftin went 1-for-his-outing with a walk in a game Kansas City dropped 6-4.

The Takeaway

The headliner here isn't close. Muncy's tie with Karros is a genuine piece of Dodger Stadium history — the sort of milestone that gets a plaque, a video package, and a standing ovation the next time it's announced at the stadium. For a program like Baylor, which doesn't always flood big-league rosters, having an alumnus hold a record at one of baseball's cathedral ballparks is worth celebrating. The Bears' footprint in MLB may be small, but this week, it was very hard to miss.