MLB Player News

Ramirez was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma on Friday.

Ramirez has spent a lot of time on Interstate 5 lately, as he was called up Aug. 12, optioned four days later and has now been called up again four days after that. He's thrown a total of 12.1 innings at the major-league level this season, struggling to a 5.11 ERA despite a 0.89 WHIP. He'll take the bullpen spot that had belonged to Casey Sadler, who was placed on the paternity list.

Merryweather (oblique) suffered a setback following his rehab outing with Low-A Dunedin on Wednesday, Scott Mitchell of TSN.ca reports.

Per Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca, the club is labeling the setback as "general soreness," though the extent of the issue remains unclear. Merryweather's next rehab outing was previously scheduled for Saturday, but now the club is unsure when he'll next take the mound. Unless the right-hander is able to progress well enough to make an appearance in the next couple days, it seems likely that his eventual activation from the 10-day injured list will be pushed back to early September at best.

King (shoulder) was transferred to the 60-day injured list Friday.

King has been out since early July with shoulder inflammation but was trending toward a return before suffering a setback in a rehab outing last week. Previous reports indicated he still had a chance to return before the end of August, but he's now ineligible to do so prior to Sept. 5.

Chafin recorded his 18th hold in a win over the White Sox on Thursday, firing a perfect eighth inning during which he issued a walk and recorded a strikeout.

The veteran southpaw has been quite the trade-deadline find for the Athletics, as he's now recorded scoreless efforts in each of his first 10 appearances with Oakland. Chafin has an impressive 10:2 K:BB during that span as well while already picking up a win, a save and a hold. The impressive stretch has whittled down Chafin's career-best ERA and WHIP to 1.63 and 0.83, respectively.

Fairbanks (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Durham on Sunday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Fairbanks apparently felt good after he faced hitters in Port Charlotte on Thursday, as he'll now return to game action with the minor-league club. Since the right-hander has spent time building up through bullpen sessions and live batting practice, he's unlikely to require many rehab appearances before he rejoins the Rays.

Zimmermann is dealing with a severe right ankle sprain and could miss the rest of the season, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.

Zimmermann was slated to return to the starting rotation last weekend, but he sprained his ankle while exercising. The southpaw had spent two months recovering from biceps tendinitis, and he'll now be sidelined indefinitely due to his ankle injury.

Barlow landed on the 10-day injured list due to a blister Friday.

Barlow appeared to be emerging as the closer for Texas, recording the team's last two saves, but he won't see any more time in the ninth or any other inning for at least 10 days. Nick Snyder's contract was selected to take his place in the bullpen.

Fleming will be available out of the bullpen during Friday and Saturday's games against the White Sox, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

It's not clear if the southpaw will move to the bullpen permanently, but that decision will likely depend on a variety of factors, including how Chris Archer (forearm) performs in his return from the injured list Sunday. In any scenario, Fleming should be an option to provide length out of the bullpen in the coming days.

Montero was diagnosed with a strained right lat Friday and has yet to resume throwing, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Montero has spent the minimum 10 days on the injured list with what was originally described as shoulder soreness. As it turns out, the injury is worse than originally reported, and he won't be returning any time soon. It's not yet clear exactly when the Astros expect him back.

Valdez was designated for assignment by the Orioles on Friday.

Valdez surprisingly emerged to record his first three career saves in 2020 and saved eight more games in the early part of this year during his age-36 season, but he hasn't been good enough for high-leverage opportunities since, struggling to a 5.76 ERA in 45.1 innings. He's allowed at least one run in five of his last six outings, and the Orioles have evidently seen enough. They'll drop the veteran from the roster to give innings to younger options down the stretch, including 28-year-old Chris Ellis, who was claimed off waivers from the Rays on Friday.