MLB Player News

De Leon (back) was lifted from Wednesday's start for High-A Charlotte with forearm tightness, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

This helps explain why De Leon lasted just two innings -- his shortest outing of the season -- and failed to throw a pitch faster than 84 mph. He'll head for further evaluation Thursday, after which there should be a clearer idea regarding his status.

Manager Ned Yost said Junis is "probably" the option to start Monday's game against the A's, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Junis could be back with the big club sooner than expected, as he is the leading candidate to make a spot start in place of the injured Trevor Cahill (shoulder). The 24-year-old has compiled a 4.70 ERA and 37:16 K:BB through 44 innings (10 appearances, seven starts) with the Royals this season.

Zych notched his 11th hold in Wednesday's 6-3 win over the Athletics, firing a scoreless inning in which he recorded a strikeout.

Zych impressively disposed of Khris Davis, Ryon Healy and Matt Olson on a mere nine pitches, posting his third scoreless outing in four August appearances. The 27-year-old has coaxed his ERA down to 2.17 and has notched four holds in his last five outings.

Pagan (1-2) fired 2.2 scoreless innings in Wednesday's 6-3 win over the Athletics, allowing just one hit and recording a pair of strikeouts.

Pagan has shaken off the rare stumble against the Royals that he opened August with, now having put together two subsequent scoreless outings. Pagan has blanked opponents in four of the last five appearances in which he's worked multiple innings, rendering him manager Scott Servais' most consistent long-relief option at present.

Smith was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo on Thursday, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Smith was summoned back to the big-league bullpen to take the place of Taylor Cole, who was placed on the disabled list with a fractured toe. The 28-year-old owns a 5.40 ERA and 1.60 WHIP through five major-league innings this season, so he isn't expected to see anything other than low-leverage innings with the Blue Jays.

Maurer (0-1) ended up on the hook for Wednesday's loss after being charged with two runs on a hit and a walk; he didn't record an out.

To be fair, he just left the runners on base, with fellow reliever Peter Moylan serving up a grand slam that brought them home, but it wasn't an effective outing for Maurer nonetheless. Through eight appearances since being dealt to Kansas City, he's been rocked for six runs on 10 hits and six walks (that's almost as many bases on balls as he'd allowed all season with San Diego) over 6.2 innings -- an 8.10 ERA and 2.40 WHIP. Those struggles have deprived him of nearly all his fantasy value, even in leagues that count holds.

De Leon (back) pitched two scoreless innings for High-A Charlotte against Jupiter on Wednesday, allowing a hit and issuing three walks. He also recorded a pair of strikeouts.

De Leon has been effective since returning to game action July 18, averaging a strikeout an inning over five outings. However, Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times notes that Wednesday's appearance was De Leon's shortest, and that he didn't throw a pitch over 84 mph.

McHugh (0-1) was tagged for seven runs on nine hits and three walks over 5.1 innings in Wednesday's loss to the White Sox. He struck out five.

He was cruising along with four shutout innings, but the wheels totally came off in the fifth -- Tim Anderson hit a two-run homer off him, then McHugh let the White Sox rally for a couple more runs. Yet he was still allowed to come out and start the sixth, only to get pulled with one out and two on after Anderson doubled another run home; the bullpen made sure his inherited runners came around. This was by far McHugh's worst outing since returning from a season-opening elbow injury that cost him almost four months, and it serves as a reminder of how unsteady he was as a fantasy asset last season. Utilize the 30-year-old righty with caution, particularly with his next start lined up to take place in hitter-friendly Arizona on Monday.

Manager Paul Molitor said Santiago (back) will likely need one more rehab start with Triple-A Rochester before rejoining the Twins' rotation, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Wednesday was supposed to be Santiago's final rehab start, but after he allowed six walks in 4.1 innings, it appears the Twins may opt to keep him at Rochester for one final tuneup. If this turns out to be the case, his return to the big-league rotation would be pushed back to Aug. 20 against the Diamondbacks, and recently recalled Dietrich Enns would likely make another start in his place.

Diaz walked one and struck out two in a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday to record his 25th save of the season in a 6-3 win over the A's.

He's now reeled off six straight scoreless appearances, lowering his ERA to 2.90 on the season. Diaz has pitched in three of the last four days, so he may not be available Thursday if the Mariners have a lead to protect in the ninth inning as they begin a four-game set at home against the Angels.