MLB Player News
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Brant Hurter P | DET
Tigers' Brant Hurter: Serving as opener Saturday
Hurter will serve as the Tigers' opening pitcher for Saturday's game against the Rays, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Hurter will draw his fourth start of the season, but as was the case in the previous three outings, he'll be operating as an opener once again Saturday rather than a traditional starter. The southpaw tossed 23 pitches in his most recent relief appearance Thursday against the Pirates, so the Tigers are unlikely to ask him to cover more than 2-to-3 frames Saturday. Once Hurter exits the game, right-hander Sawyer Gipson-Long is expected to work in bulk relief.
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Tyler Alexander RP | TEX
White Sox's Tyler Alexander: Shines in bulk relief
Alexander (4-7) was the pitcher of record in Friday's 7-1 win over the Blue Jays after striking out two batters while giving up four hits and no walks in four innings of relief.
Davis Martin had initially been scheduled to start Friday, but he was instead placed on the injured list prior to the game due to a right forearm strain. As a result, the White Sox had right-hander Grant Taylor step in for a spot start, though he covered just one inning before turning the game over to Alexander. The veteran lefty delivered a quality performance in the extended relief outing, retiring 12 of the 14 batters he faced on 49 pitches. The White Sox will have an opening in the rotation the next time Martin's turn comes up Wednesday versus the Diamondbacks, and Alexander might have performed well enough Friday to serve as a starter or primary pitcher in that outing over Mike Vasil, who was roughed up for six runs in 3.2 innings against the Cardinals on Thursday.
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Felix Bautista RP | BAL
Orioles' Felix Bautista: Collects 16th save
Bautista struck out two batters in a perfect ninth inning to come away with the save in Friday's 5-3 win over the Yankees.
Bautista needed 17 pitches (11 strikes) to convert the save opportunity, forcing a flyout from Trent Grisham before striking out Aaron Judge and Jazz Chisholm. Bautista has converted on each of his last nine save opportunities, and over that span he sports a 0.82 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 19:6 K:BB across 11 innings. His 16 saves are tied with Emmanuel Clase and Trevor Megill for eighth most in the majors this season.
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Luke Weaver SP | NYM
Yankees' Luke Weaver: Tagged with loss in return
Weaver (1-2) took the loss against the Orioles on Friday, allowing two runs on two hits and one walk while striking out one batter in two-thirds of an inning.
Weaver was activated from the 15-day injured list ahead of Friday's game. He was brought in for the eighth inning with the game tied at 3-3, but things quickly got out of hand as he gave up a solo home run to Ramon Urias before being tagged for another run later in the frame. It was a less-than-ideal return for Weaver, given that he was deployed in a high-leverage situation and is expected to split closing duties with Devin Williams.
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Aroldis Chapman RP | BOS
Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Logs 14th save
Chapman struck out two in a perfect inning to earn the save in Friday's 7-5 win over the Giants.
Chapman has been perfect over his last five outings, striking out eight over 4.2 innings while earning three saves and a hold in that span. He's given up just one unearned run with a 14:1 K:BB across nine innings in June. For the season, the closer is 14-for-15 in save chances with a 1.41 ERA, 0.78 WHIP and 45:9 K:BB across 32 innings. He's added two holds and a 3-2 record.
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Robert Stephenson RP | LAA
Angels' Robert Stephenson: Could start throwing soon
Stephenson is still feeling some discomfort in his right biceps but is hopeful to start throwing during the Angels' nine-game homestand that begins Friday, Erica Weston of Bally Sports West reports.
Stephenson is working his way back from biceps inflammation but is on track to begin throwing before the end of June. The veteran reliever is without an official timeline to return from the 15-day injured list, but he'll most likely remain on the shelf through the All-Star break.
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Nick Sandlin RP | LAA
Blue Jays' Nick Sandlin: Activated from IL
The Blue Jays activated Sandlin (lat) from the 15-day injured list Friday.
Sandlin hasn't pitched in the majors since April 19 but did make five rehab appearances ahead of his activation. Prior to his injury, Sandlin held a 2.25 ERA and 10:4 K:BB across eight innings of work. He should slide back into a middle-relief role for Toronto.
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Luke Weaver SP | NYM
Yankees' Luke Weaver: Set to split closing duties
Manager Aaron Boone said Friday that Weaver (hamstring), who was reinstated from the 15-day injured list earlier in the day, and Devin Williams will both see save chances, Max Goodman of NJ.com reports.
Weaver was serving as the Yankees' closer when he landed on the injured list in early June, but Williams is in strong form with a 1.72 ERA, 0.77 WHIP and 23:2 K:BB across his past 15.2 innings. Weaver has been consistently dominant this year with just three earned runs allowed in 24 appearances, and he still has a fair amount of fantasy value while splitting save chances for the Yankees, though it remains unclear exactly how even the split will be.
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Devin Williams RP | NYM
Yankees' Devin Williams: To split save chances
Aaron Boone said Friday that Williams and Luke Weaver will both receive save opportunities, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
Williams has turned things around after allowing 12 runs in his first 10 appearances this season, notching a 2.79 ERA in 19.1 innings since. He saw extended action at closer recently while Weaver was on the shelf and impressed enough to earn a share of the save chances even though Weaver is healthy. It's not clear exactly how ninth-inning duties will be divvied up, so fantasy managers should keep a keen eye on both Williams and Weaver moving forward.
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Luke Weaver SP | NYM
Yankees' Luke Weaver: Moved off IL
The Yankees reinstated Weaver (hamstring) from the 15-day injured list Friday.
Weaver officially beats his initial 4-to-6 week timeline for return by over a week, returning to the active roster just 17 days after being placed on the IL for a strained hamstring. The 31-year-old had served as New York's primary closer before sustaining the injury, but Devin Williams has gone 4-for-4 on save chances while Weaver's been idle, leaving some room for competition. It's worth noting Weaver has been the more reliable option throughout the campaign, boasting a 1.05 ERA compared to Williams' 5.27 ERA.