MLB Player News

Barnes allowed two hits and an inherited runner to score in two-thirds of an inning in Tuesday night's win over the Orioles.

Barnes was dreadful in August when he allowed 12 runs in 10.2 innings and appeared to be pitching himself out of high-leverage situations as well as any discussion about the postseason makeup of the bullpen. But with the roster expansion, manager John Farrell has been able use him less frequently and get him some rest. While Tuesday's performance wasn't ideal, it was his eighth straight scoreless outing and the rest he's gotten this month puts him in a better position for October baseball.

Manaea threw six shutout innings and allowed three hits and two walks with seven strikeouts in a no-decision Tuesday against the Astros.

Manaea has been excellent in two starts since returning from a back injury last week. He has thrown 11 scoreless innings with a 12:3 K:BB and just six hits allowed. Manaea has allowed 19 homers in 22 starts, but with a 116:35 K:BB, there's plenty for the rookie to work with heading into 2017.

Giles picked up 13th save despite allowing a hit and two walks in the 10th inning Tuesday against the Athletics.

Giles loaded the bases with one out but got a popout and a strikeout to finish the contest and hold the one-run lead. The walks were just his fourth and fifth in 18 innings since taking over as closer Aug. 9, good for a solid 2.5 BB/9 -- no reason to worry about his control unless this becomes a trend.

Kimbrel nailed down his 28th save Tuesday in Baltimore, allowing one walk while striking out one in a hitless inning of work.

Kimbrel hasn't given up a single hit in his last five appearances and hasn't allowed an earned run since Aug. 9. He's about as reliable as it gets in the ninth inning.

Betances struck out one in a clean ninth to notch his 12th save of the season Tuesday against the Rays.

Betances hadn't pitched since blowing a save and taking the loss late last week. In fact, the 28-year-old has been tagged as the losing pitcher in each of his last two appearances before bouncing back Tuesday. Overall, Betances is 12-for-17 in save chances this season, though 12-for-14 since taking over closer duties in the wake of the trade deadline.

Farmer will start Wednesday's game in Minnesota, MLive's Evan Woodberry reports.

His move to the rotation will send Anibal Sanchez and Mike Pelfrey to the bullpen, at least for now. Farmer has a 4.32 ERA and 10:7 K:BB in 8.1 innings of relief since being recalled at the start of September, and his career 10.09 ERA in 30.1 innings as a big league starter make it awfully tough to trust him, even in a solid matchup Wednesday.

Giles struck out two in a scoreless inning for his 12th save Monday against the Athletics.

Giles has bounced back from a blown save September 13 against the Rangers by converting consecutive saves with four combined strikeouts. He is now a sharp 11-for-12 with a 25:3 K:BB in 16 innings since taking over the closer's role August 9, as Giles has finally given the Astros some valuable stability in the back of their bullpen.

Garton (1-1) gave up a go-ahead solo homer and one other hit over the course of an inning in Sunday's 2-1 loss to the Orioles. He also recorded a strikeout.

The reliever gave up a 429-foot blast to Mark Trumbo in the eighth, which led to a 2-1 final score in favor of the Orioles. Garton saw a streak of three straight scoreless appearances snapped, but still sports a solid 3.24 ERA over the 8.1 innings covering his current Rays stint.

Pomeranz has insisted his recent struggles are not related to fatigue despite pitching a career-high 164.1 innings this season, Chris Mason of the Boston Herald reports. The left-hander has managed just 5.2 innings over his last two starts.

Pomeranz's previous career high was 96.2 innings in 2012, and he's thrown a combined 176.2 innings from 2013 through 2015. There's some merit to the argument that fatigue is catching up to him. At least that's what manager John Farrell feels may be a root cause for his recent short outings. "It's the command that's been lacking," Farrell said. "Whether or not that's a direct result of the number of innings pitched to date - it comes down to just locating better, more consistently." Pomeranz will next take the mound Friday against the Rays in Tampa.

Pomeranz took a no-decision after allowing four runs on seven hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 3.2 innings in Sunday's 5-4 win over the Yankees.

After lasting just two innings in his previous outing, Pomeranz got another early hook with the Red Sox falling behind 4-0. Pomeranz had been pitching well prior to his last two starts, however, and still owns a 3.40 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 180 strikeouts in 164.1 innings. He'll look to bounce back Friday against the last-place Rays at Tropicana Field.