MLB Player News

Littell is expected to start one of the Twins' doubleheader games against the White Sox on Tuesday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Littell, a 22-year-old who was acquired from the Yankees last season in the deal that sent Jaime Garcia to New York, will be summoned from the minors to make a spot start for the big club next week. He owns a solid 2.57 ERA and 30:10 K:BB across 28 innings (four starts, one relief appearance) with Triple-A Rochester since earning a promotion at the start of May. There's a good chance Littell will head back to the minors after Tuesday's spot start, but a strong showing could earn him another opportunity with the big club sooner than later.

Hendriks (groin/hip) allowed a hit -- a solo home run -- over one inning in Triple-A Nashville's loss to Round Rock on Saturday.

Hendriks gave up a homer to the first batter he faced, Tommy Joseph. However, he then settled down to retire the next three hitters, hitting 94-95 mph on multiple occasions during his 13 pitches, Sounds play-by-play announcer Jeff Hem reports. Hendriks has thrown 23 pitches overall across his pair of rehab appearances, and it remains to be seen if he'll now be deemed ready for a big-league return after being sidelined since April 14.

Kimbrel struck out two over a scoreless inning to pick up a save in Saturday's 5-4 win over the Astros.

Kimbrel was lucky enough to face the bottom third of the Astros' order and blew away Max Stassi, Tony Kemp and J.D. Davis to notch his 19th save of the season, tying him with Seattle's Edwin Diaz for the MLB lead in saves. He's converted 10 straight save opportunities.

Jimenez pitched a clean ninth inning Saturday against the Blue Jays, picking up his first save of the season.

Jimenez was called upon to close things out with Shane Greene unavailable after working three straight days, and the right-hander needed just 13 pitches -- eight of which went for strikes -- to end things and secure the win for the Tigers. He doesn't figure to see more than the occasional save chance with Greene performing well in the closer's role ahead of him, but Jimenez now owns a solid 2.54 ERA and 28:7 K:BB across 28.1 innings this season.

Graterol was placed on the minor-league disabled list Saturday with a right wrist injury, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Specifics regarding the injury remain unclear, but it will force Graterol to miss at least one start. The move is retroactive to May 30, so he'll be eligible to return June 6 should he prove ready. He compiled a 1.78 ERA and 12.9 K/9 with Low-A Cedar Rapids prior to landing on the shelf.

Pruitt, who recorded three strikeouts and allowed three earned runs on seven hits over five innings in an extra-innings loss to the Mariners on Friday, has now pitched at least five innings in three consecutive relief appearances.

Included in that sample is an extremely rare five-inning-plus save May 27 against the Orioles. Three straight long-relief outings of five innings or more qualify as highly unusual as well, but given how creative manager Kevin Cash has been with the use of his pitching staff this season, it's a slightly more plausible scenario in Tampa than it would be virtually anywhere else. Pruitt's ability to essentially work a starter's workload -- irrespective of the order in which he enters the game -- figures to continue affording him plenty of opportunities while he remains at the big-league level.

Barria was optioned to Triple-A Salt Lake following Friday's win over the Rangers.

Barria tossed six scoreless innings to earn the win Friday but will once again head back to the Bees. The 21-year-old has pitched quite well for the Angels this season, posting a 2.48 ERA and 1.05 WHIP across 36.1 innings. Barria should see more opportunities in the majors if he sustains his current level of play, though he will likely continue to bounce back and forth to Salt Lake, regardless.

Colome was credited with his second hold in Friday's extra-innings win over the Rays, firing a scoreless eighth inning in which he recorded a strikeout.

Colome encountered his former Rays teammates for the first time and breezed through his one frame on 10 pitches, eight of which he threw for strikes. The Mariners looked well on their way to felling Tampa with a lethal late-inning 1-2 punch of Colome and Edwin Diaz before the latter blew a 3-2 lead in the ninth, but Colome's outing was certainly encouraging. He's now generated three consecutive scoreless efforts since arriving in Seattle, recording a save and a pair of holds during that stretch.

Andriese (1-3) allowed one earned run on two hits over one inning in an extra-innings loss to the Mariners on Friday.

Andriese entered the game in the bottom of the 12th and promptly set Jean Segura down on a swinging strikeout. He then induced an inning-ending double play from Denard Span after yielding a single to Kyle Seager, but he promptly gave up a leadoff, game-winning home run to Mitch Haniger in the bottom of the 13th. Andriese has struggled with consistency of late, as Friday's outing marked his fifth over the last nine in which he's given up at least one run. However, his season ERA (3.32) and WHIP (1.02) remain solid. Moreover, the unorthodox manner in which manager Kevin Cash often deploys his pitching staff -- as well as Andriese's ability to work long relief -- could result in the right-hander being in line for a decision more often than a reliever typically would be.

Chavez allowed three hits and one walk while striking out four over five scoreless innings of relief in Friday's 6-1 loss to the Angels.

Chavez had a bullpen-saving outing Friday when starter Bartolo Colon was chased after three innings. A long-relief role was what the Rangers envisioned for Chavez, who has thrown multiple innings 13 times in 18 outings. After a rough introduction to the season, Chavez has a 2.08 ERA with 22 strikeouts over his last 21.2 innings, spanning 12 outings. If the Rangers decide to make a change in the starting rotation -- Texas starters rank 28th in MLB with a 5.46 ERA -- Chavez, who started 21 games for the Angels in 2017, is an internal option.