MLB Player News

Barnes (shoulder) retired all three batters he faced, including two by strikeout, in the fourth inning for Double-A Portland on Thursday.

Barnes made his seventh rehab outing Thursday and is seemingly close to returning to the majors. The organization has scheduled him to throw back-to-back days so he's expected to appear Friday as well, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. When relievers on rehab pitch back-to-back days, that's typically the final step before their activation.

Martin was not used in a save situation Thursday, as Matt Moore closed out a 2-0 win over the Angels.

It's not clear if Martin was available, as he pitched on consecutive days leading into the game but had thrown only 18 pitches in total Tuesday and Wednesday. He has been filling in as the Rangers' closer, but the left-hander's most recent work may have played a role in not being used Thursday. Martin's given up seven runs (five earned) on nine hits and two walks over 5.1 innings spanning his last four appearances.

Pressly earned a save against the Mariners on Thursday, allowing one hit and striking out two batters in a scoreless inning.

Pressly allowed a two-out single before striking out Cal Raleigh to preserve the 4-2 win. He fanned multiple batters for the sixth time in his past eight contests, which is particularly notable since he accomplished that feat only twice through his first 19 outings of the campaign. Pressly hasn't allowed a run in any of his past 10 appearances, and he has yielded only one hit while posting a 19:0 K:BB and picking up two wins along with seven saves over 11 innings during that span.

Barlow (4-3) allowed a solo home run in one-third of an inning to take the loss in Thursday's 1-0 defeat at the hands of the Yankees.

The Yankees had only four baserunners all game, but the last one was a home run trot for Aaron Judge when he took Barlow deep in the ninth inning. Entering Thursday, Barlow hadn't allowed a run in his last 10 innings. Since the game was tied when he began his appearance, he'll avoid a blown save -- the Royals' closer is 16-for-18 in save chances this year. He's added a 2.11 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 45:12 K:BB through 47 innings overall as a reliable part of an otherwise shaky bullpen group that ranks fourth-worst in the majors with a 4.53 ERA.

Romano earned a save over the Tigers on Thursday, pitching 1.1 perfect innings. He didn't strike out any batters.

A vast majority of Romano's appearances this season have been one inning or less, but he was brought in with two outs in the eighth frame Thursday to face Jeimer Candelario with the go-ahead run on first base. Romano got Candelario out, then set down the side in order in the ninth inning to finish off the save. This was the right-hander's 22nd save of the season and the third in which he's recorded more than three outs.

Moore allowed a hit in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Thursday's 2-0 win over the Angels.

Brett Martin had pitched three of the last four days and was presumably unavailable for Thursday's save chance. Moore gave up a one-out single to Luis Rengifo but didn't give up anything else to secure his second save of the season. Through 12 innings this month, Moore has allowed four runs (one earned), nine hits, four walks and a hit-by-pitch while striking out 11. He's maintained a 1.70 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 52:24 K:BB through 47.2 innings while adding four holds and a 4-2 record. Given his solid pitching this year, the veteran southpaw could be traded prior to Tuesday's deadline, though his multi-inning capability makes it a bit less likely that he'll see significant high-leverage chances.

Howard (2-2) allowed three hits and struck out five over five innings to earn the win Thursday over the Angels. He did not issue a walk.

Nathaniel Lowe's solo home run in the fourth inning was all the run support Howard and the Rangers needed to get the win. Considering the right-hander had surrendered 12 runs (11 earned), including four home runs, in his previous four outings, Thursday's effort was a massive success. He trimmed his ERA to 5.93 with a 1.58 WHIP and 26:12 K:BB across 30.1 innings in eight appearances (six starts). Howard's next outing is projected to be a home start versus the Orioles next week.

Alexander (2-4) allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits across four innings to take the loss Thursday against the Blue Jays. He walked one and struck out one.

Alexander was making his fifth start of the season and first since April 29. The lefty pitched decently against a strong Toronto lineup, but he was limited to just 69 pitches across four innings of work. With Michael Pineda (triceps) hitting the injured list last weekend, Alexander will likely stick in the rotation for the time being and might be able to build up his pitch count moving forward. He's tentatively lines up to take the mound again Wednesday against the Twins.

Castillo struck out one and issued a walk in a scoreless inning of relief during Tuesday's 10-3 win over the Cardinals.

Castillo had made two turns through the rotation as the Blue Jays' No. 5 starter heading into the All-Star break, but he was moved to the bullpen in advance of Yusei Kikuchi's (neck) return from the 15-day injured list Thursday. The rookie right-hander will likely be ticketed for lower-leverage work in relief, at least initially.

Barlow (finger) will begin a rehab assignment over the weekend, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Barlow was placed on the injured list July 13 due to a blister. He's set to miss slightly more than the minimum 15 days but should return in early August, barring a setback. Barlow's role will be worth monitoring, as he was removed as closer shortly before suffering the injury. However, Brett Martin has struggled of late, which could open up save chances in Texas.