MLB Player News

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Pivetta will work as a bulk reliever in Sunday's game against the Yankees behind opening pitcher Josh Winckowski, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Pivetta operated as a traditional starter in both of his last two appearances, but he'll return to a familiar bulk-relief role Sunday while the Red Sox deploy him behind Winckowski, who is unlikely to work more than 1-to-3 innings before being pulled from the contest. The arrangement should improve Pivetta's odds of factoring into any decision, though it may take some strikeout upside off the table while he presumably covers fewer innings than he might as a traditional starter. The Red Sox are expected to get Tanner Houck (face) back from the 15-day injured list either Monday or Tuesday and plan on having him fill a spot in the rotation, so Pivetta could end up sticking in a bullpen role permanently moving forward.

Winckowski will serve as the Red Sox's opening pitcher for Sunday's game against the Yankees, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

After making 14 starts for Boston as a rookie in 2022, Winckowski has worked exclusively as a reliever for the Red Sox thus far in his second season in the majors. Though he'll be serving as a starter for the first time in 45 appearances, Winckowski is unlikely to cover more than 1-to-3 innings before turning the game over to Nick Pivetta, whom manager Alex Cora said will work the bulk of the innings in relief. Winckowski enters Sunday's contest with a 3.20 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 57:18 K:BB in 64.2 innings to go with three wins, two saves and 15 holds.

Foley pitched a scoreless ninth inning with two strikeouts to record the save in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Guardians.

Foley now has seven saves this season, with three of them coming in his last four appearances as he's taken over as Detroit's primary closer, displacing Alex Lange. Foley has a strong 2.63 ERA overall, though his ERA in August sits at 4.32, in part due to allowing three earned runs in an outing Wednesday. As long as the righty displays better command than Lange and avoids blowups, he should stick as the team's top option for saves.

Lopez earned a save over the Rays in the first game of a twin bill Saturday, allowing one hit and striking out two batters over one scoreless inning.

Angels closer Carlos Estevez has struggled of late, though his lack of usage in a save situation in the matinee of the doubleheader was probably due to him throwing 43 pitches over 1.2 frames while taking the loss Friday. Lopez thus assumed closer duties with Los Angeles up a run in the ninth inning, and he worked around a leadoff single to secure the save. It was his second save in nine games since joining the Angels on July 26, and he's given up only two runs while posting a 16:3 K:BB across 9.2 frames during that stretch. There's no indication that Estevez has lost his closing role, but Lopez has pitched well enough since joining the team to take over ninth-inning duties if manager Phil Nevin does eventually decide to go in a different direction.

Silseth allowed five runs on five hits and three walks while striking out four batters over 3.2 innings in a no-decision in the Angels' 7-6 win over the Rays in Game 1 of a doubleheader Saturday.

Though Silseth fell behind by two runs in the first frame, the Angels bounced back to give him a 6-2 lead through three innings. The right-hander couldn't take advantage, however, as he was lifted with two outs in the fourth. Silseth surrendered three runs on four hits and a walk in that frame, with two of the knocks against him leaving the park. The 23-year-old nailed down a spot in the rotation on the strength of a four-start stretch between July 19 and Aug. 13, during which he posted a 1.59 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 31:5 K:BB across 22.2 innings. Saturday's poor outing probably won't lead to him leaving the rotation, though it's worth noting that Griffin Canning -- who has come out of the bullpen in each of his past two appearances after starting in each of his initial 16 contests this season -- took the win Saturday as a result of giving up just one run over 3.1 frames.

Bautista (8-2) struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the extra-inning win over the Athletics on Saturday.

Bautista needed just nine pitches to set the Athletics down in order in the bottom of the ninth inning, and the Orioles' offense exploded for five runs in the top of the 10th. Aside from his five runs allowed against Houston over two appearances earlier this month, Bautista has been virtually untouchable for much of the last two months. He's 32-for-38 in save chances with a 1.54 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 109:26 K:BB through 58.1 innings overall. Given that this was his first outing since Monday, Bautista should be available if another save chance arises Sunday.

Herget was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake following Saturday's doubleheader with Tampa Bay.

Herget will return to Salt Lake after getting called to serve as the team's 27th man Saturday. The right-hander appeared in Game 2 of the doubleheader, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk while striking out two batters over one inning in the team's 18-4 loss.

Maton (elbow) threw off a mound Saturday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Maton has been out for a week after taking a comebacker off his right elbow. He avoided structural damage and is already ramping up again, however, so he doesn't appear to be set for a long absence. He's eligible to return Aug. 27.

Herget joined the Angels' bullpen as the 27th man for Saturday's doubleheader against the Rays.

Herget has thrown 16 major-league innings this season, struggling to a 5.06 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. That's a far cry from his performance last season, when he cruised to a 2.48 ERA and 0.91 WHIP while earning nine saves.

Criswell was called up to serve as the 27th man for Saturday's doubleheader against the Angels.

Criswell has bounced between a long-relief role in the majors and a rotation spot with Triple-A Durham throughout the year. None of his eight MLB appearances have been starts, but he's averaged 3.5 innings per appearance. His 4.82 ERA and 1.46 WHIP mean he's unlikely to move into a higher-leverage role any time soon.