MLB Player News

The Red Sox optioned Barraclough to Triple-A Worcester on Sunday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

With the return of Garrett Whitlock (elbow) from the injured list, Barraclough will head back to Triple-A in order to clear a space in Boston's bullpen. The 33-year-old righty surrendered one run in 3.1 innings across two games in his brief MLB stint and could return to Boston later this season if the team is ever in need of a fresh bullpen arm.

Armstrong did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing two hits and one walk over two scoreless innings against Cleveland. He struck out three.

Armstrong managed to keep the Guardians at bay for the first two innings, though he threw 28 pitches in the second frame. He was then relieved by Erasmo Ramirez after recording three strikeouts for the second straight outing. Armstrong has allowed just two runs since June 27, posting a 24:4 K:BB over that stretch (spanning 20.1 innings). He's also allowed just one home run all season.

Foley gave up one hit over 1.2 scoreless innings of relief Saturday to record his fifth save of the season in a 6-2 win over the Red Sox.

Beau Brieske started the eighth inning protecting a five-run lead, but after a Justin Turner homer and two singles, Foley was brought in to shut down the rally with the tying run on deck. The right-hander's power sinker proved to be too much for Boston's hitters, producing four groundball outs -- including a game-ending double play -- plus an infield pop-up. Alex Lange has walked nine batters in his last three appearances and appears to be in danger of losing his grip on Detroit's closer role, and while Foley is in the mix to replace him, manager A.J. Hinch might be leaning toward a committee approach instead. Since Lange's last save July 23, four different Tigers relievers -- Brieske with two, and Foley, Tyler Holton and Jose Cisnero with one each -- have collected a save.

Bautista (7-2) allowed a hit and struck out four over two scoreless innings to earn the extra-inning win Saturday over the Mariners.

Offense was at a premium Saturday, but Bautista made sure the Mariners saw none of it. He kept the game scoreless in the ninth inning and then protected a 1-0 lead in the 10th to pick up the win. Bautista allowed five runs over 1.2 innings across his previous two appearances, both against Houston, but prior to that shaky stretch, he'd posted a 17-inning scoreless streak. Even with the recent struggles, he has a 1.60 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 108:24 K:BB and 31 saves in 37 chances through 56.1 innings this season as one of the best relievers in baseball.

Howard left his outing for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre with a team trainer Saturday and was placed on the seven-day injured list with an undisclosed issue,Conor Foley of The Scranton Times-Tribune reports.

The nature and severity of Howard's injury are not clear. The 27-year-old righty likely wasn't going to play a major role for the Yankees down the stretch even if healthy, as he was acquired for cash at the deadline and owns a career 7.20 ERA in 115 major-league innings.

Heasley was optioned to Triple-A Omaha on Saturday.

Heasley had been in the majors since early July. In his first seven appearances of his latest big-league stint, he allowed just one earned run in seven innings, but he's given up nine earned runs (including five homers) in 5.1 innings across his last four outings. He'll sort things out in the minors, with Max Castillo taking his place in the bullpen.

Castillo was recalled from Triple-A Omaha on Saturday.

Castillo has thrown 17 innings as a long reliever for the Royals this season, holding his own with a 4.24 ERA despite a low 13.7 percent strikeout rate. He's likely limited to a low-leverage role unless he can start to miss more bats. Jonathan Heasley was optioned in a corresponding move.

Mushinski was recalled by the Astros on Saturday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

This will be Mushinski's fourth separate stint in the big-league bullpen this season. The 27-year-old lefty owns a 2.79 ERA and 11:3 K:BB in 9.2 innings at the highest level. Phil Maton (elbow) landed on the injured list in a corresponding move.

Maton (elbow) was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Maton was struck on the right elbow by a comebacker during his outing against the Angels on Friday. He's avoided anything worse than a bruise but will nonetheless require at least 15 days to heal. Parker Mushinski was called up to take his place on the roster.

Then cleared waivers Saturday and was outrighted to Triple-A Tacoma.

Then lost his spot on the Mariners' 40-man roster after struggling to a 4.91 ERA and 10.4 percent strikeout rate in 11 innings of relief. He owns a 12.71 ERA with more walks than strikeouts at the Triple-A level this season, so it's no surprise that he went unclaimed on waivers.