MLB Player News

Barlow did not allow a baserunner and struck out two to earn the save Sunday against the Twins.

Trevor Rosenthal had pitched in each of the Royals' past two contests, meaning he was likely unavailable for Sunday's game. That gave Barlow the chance to step in and secure the save, and he did so on only 12 pitches. Barlow has been a strong member of the Royals' bullpen, striking out 12 and allowing only two earned runs across 10 innings this season. Even with that success, Rosenthal appears to be the top candidate to pitch in save situations for the time being.

Lopez (shoulder) threw a side session Saturday, and manager Rick Renteria said "it went very well," James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

The 26-year-old landed on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation July 27, but he began his throwing program Wednesday. Lopez remains without an official timetable for his return, though he's clearly progressing in his recovery.

Norris is slated to work as the primary pitcher following opener Michael Fulmer in Monday's game against the White Sox, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Norris was recently bumped from the rotation in favor of Tyler Alexander, and now the former will have to settle for this piggyback arrangement with Fulmer. Manager Ron Gardenhire said he'd like to get about three innings out of each pitcher Monday. Norris had a delayed start to his season due to coronavirus testing protocols and he's made just one appearance so far, allowing two earned runs in 1.2 innings of work last Sunday against the Reds.

Fulmer is slated to work as the opener in Monday's game against the White Sox, with Daniel Norris following him, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Fulmer has only made one appearance so far this season, as he had a start rained out last weekend, and then the Tigers and Cardinals postponed an entire series due to a coronavirus outbreak within the St. Louis organization. Because of the long layoff between outings and the fact that he's still building up stamina in his first season back after Tommy John surgery, Fulmer is expected to serve as a glorified opener Monday. Meanwhile, Norris is expected to handle the middle innings as the team's primary pitcher. Manager Ron Gardenhire indicated that he'd like to get three innings out of each pitcher.

Jimenez pitched a perfect ninth inning with two strikeouts to earn the save in Sunday's 2-1 win over the Pirates.

Jimenez last pitched Friday, when he allowed three earned runs and blew his first save of the season, so it was good to see the Detroit closer bounce back Sunday and record his fifth save of the year. He still has a bloated 6.43 ERA through seven appearances and his velocity has been a bit down to begin the season, but he should stick in the ninth inning with the Tigers lacking a ton of other great options in their bullpen.

The Orioles claimed Lopez off waivers from the Royals on Sunday.

The 27-year-old was a prospect of some repute while coming up through the Brewers' system, but he never developed as the Royals hoped when the team acquired him in the July 2018 trade that sent Mike Moustakas to Milwaukee. Over parts of three seasons in Kansas City, Lopez failed to blossom as a starter or reliever, posting a collective 6.12 ERA and 10.9 K-BB% over 175 innings. The Orioles are evidently hoping that a change of scenery can help jump start Lopez's career. Since he has no minor-league options remaining, Lopez should join the active roster right away, likely slotting into a bullpen role.

The Twins selected Gearrin's contract from their alternate training site Sunday.

Gearrin will assume the active roster spot of reliever Sean Poppen, who was optioned one day after working two innings out of the bullpen. A veteran of 336 career MLB appearances, Gearrin is expected to work mostly in low-leverage situations initially.

Diekman was credited with his fourth hold in a win over the Astros on Saturday, allowing a hit and no walks over a scoreless eighth inning while also recording a strikeout.

Diekman was exceedingly sharp, throwing nine of his 10 pitches for strikes while extending his season-opening scoreless streak to 6.2 innings over seven appearances. The hard-throwing left-hander is one of several veteran later-inning options for manager Bob Melvin that have thrived this season, leading to Oakland's bullpen sporting a 1.80 ERA and .195 BAA across a sample of 219 batters faced going into Sunday's action.

Graveman (neck) will see a specialist during the coming week to help determine his path to recovery, but he remains without a timetable for return, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. "He's going to miss more than one start," manager Scott Servais said. "It's going to be some significant time. We don't have a definite timetable, but I would not expect to see him back in our rotation any time soon."

The right-hander recently noted the neck issue is one that's been a recurring one for him throughout his career, although it hasn't felled him to the tune of an injured-list stint until this point. Graveman's spot in the rotation was taken by Nick Margevicius on Saturday, and considering the left-hander gave a solid accounting of himself, he may continue in that role for the time being.

Fairbanks (2-1) was credited with the victory in a win over the Yankees in the second game of a doubleheader Saturday despite allowing an earned run on two hits and a walk over an inning. He also recorded a strikeout.

Fairbanks gave up a game-tying RBI single to Luke Voit in the fourth inning of the seven-inning affair, but he became eligible for the win when Austin Meadows singled in Willy Adames and Kevin Kiermaier with his own run-scoring hit in the home half of the frame. Fairbanks had opened August with back-to-back scoreless one-inning efforts, but Saturday marked the third time in six appearances he's allowed an earned run.