MLB Player News

Lopez was designated for assignment Saturday, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.

The Orioles claimed Lopez off waivers from the Marlins on Sept. 2. During his month with Baltimore, he had a 5.25 ERA with a 1.25 WHIP in 12.0 innings. In a corresponding move, Bruce Zimmermann was recalled.

Zimmermann was recalled from Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.

Zimmermann's last appearance in the majors was back on July 4. Since being optioned, the pitcher has a 4.75 ERA across 53.0 innings in Triple-A. In a corresponding move, Jorge Lopez was designated for assignment.

Vest will serve as the Tigers' opening pitcher Saturday against the Guardians, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

The Tigers are treating their penultimate game of the regular season as a bullpen day, with Vest unlikely to work more than an inning or two before giving way to a slew of relievers. Vest will be serving as an opener for the fourth time this season.

Hill was called up by Detroit on Saturday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Hill will give the Tigers an extra arm in the bullpen after the unit was tasked with tossing 6.2 frames Friday. Joey Wentz, the ineffective starter in Friday's contest, was optioned in a corresponding move.

Criswell was recalled from Triple-A Durham on Saturday.

Criswell is back in the majors for the first time since Aug. 19, when he tossed two innings out of the bullpen while serving as the Rays' 27th man for a doubleheader with the Angels. The right-hander's final appearance in the minors came Tuesday, when he struck out two over two scoreless innings. He could be deployed as a bulk reliever in Saturday's game in Toronto behind Shawn Armstrong, who is set to open the game but is unlikely to cover more than 1-to-3 innings.

Cruz is slated to open Saturday's game against the Yankees.

He'll be operating as an opener for the second weekend in a row, after he had previously worked an inning in last Sunday's contest versus the Astros before giving way to bulk reliever Alec Marsh. The Royals haven't formally named a bulk reliever for Saturday's contest, but Marsh is available on five days' rest and should end up covering most of the innings out of the bullpen once Cruz exits the contest.

Armstrong will serve as the Rays' opening pitcher for Saturday's game against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Saturday would have been Zack Littell's turn in the rotation, but he ended up covering 1.1 innings in relief in Friday's 11-4 loss. The Rays also deployed another starting pitcher in Taj Bradley for one inning in relief Friday, likely in a deliberate attempt by manager Kevin Cash to keep all of his rotation options available for a possible wild-card round matchup with this same Blue Jays squad. As a result, the Rays look poised to lean on a melange of relievers to cover the final two games of the regular season, with Armstrong leading off Saturday's contest. Armstrong hasn't covered more than three innings in any of his appearances in the majors or minors this season, so he's unlikely to work deep into Saturday's game to qualify for a win.

Pivetta (10-9) earned the win Friday, allowing two hits and one walk over seven scoreless innings against the Orioles. He struck out 10.

Pivetta ended his season on a high note, notching his fourth double-digit strikeout performance of the year. The 30-year-old righty was fantastic throughout September with a 2.43 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 43:5 K:BB in 33.1 innings. Pivetta ends the year with career lows in ERA (4.04) and WHIP (1.12) with 183:50 K:BB over 142.2 innings.

Clase picked up the save Friday against the Tigers. He allowed one run on one hit over one inning without walking or striking out a batter.

Clase yielded a 391-foot solo homer to Spencer Torkelson to lead off the ninth inning before promptly retiring the next three Detroit batters. Although he has secured a career-high 44 saves, the Cleveland closer has struggled a bit this year, posting a career-worst 3.14 ERA and 8.0 K/9 (compared to a career 1.47 ERA and 9.3 K/9 prior to the season). Clase been especially shaky in September with a 4.63 ERA and 5.4 K/9 over 11.2 innings.

Pressly allowed an unearned run on one hit and struck out one over one inning to earn the save in Friday's 2-1 win over the Diamondbacks.

Pressly danced with danger after Alek Thomas reached on an error and Gabriel Moreno sent him home with an RBI double. Pressly was still able to get the job done, earning his first save since Sept. 9. The closer is up to 31 saves in 37 chances this season while logging a 3.58 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 74:16 K:BB through 65.1 innings overall.