MLB Player News

Axford has given up four runs on eight hits through his last 12 innings.

Axford was stellar in April, posting a 0.73 ERA, but then he dropped off a cliff with an 8.20 ERA over May and June. Now he's settled in the middle, sporting a 3.41 ERA since July 1.

Layne signed a major league deal with the Yankees on Tuesday, the Boston Globe reports.

Released by the Red Sox on Saturday, Layne will join the Yankees and is expected to be in uniform and available Tuesday night against his former team. The 31-year-old appeared in 34 games for Boston in 2016, amassing a respectable 3.77 ERA. The Red Sox's addition of Fernando Abad at the trade deadline prompted Layne's release.

Graveman (8-7) allowed just one run on six hits and struck out four over seven innings in a win Monday over the Orioles.

Graveman induced a ridiculous 14 groundball outs to control the powerful Orioles lineup. His 52.8 percent groundball rate has been his best peripheral statistic this season, but his inability to miss bats (5.5 K/9) has rendered him inconsistent. He kept the ball in the park Monday night, but hitters have managed 16 home runs off him in 22 starts, limiting him to a 4.29 ERA.

Diekman picked up his third save with a scoreless ninth Monday against the Rockies.

Sam Dyson had pitched and allowed runs in consecutive games, including a blown save on Sunday, so he was likely unavailable, leaving the save opportunity for Diekman. He has been fantastic of late, as Monday marked his 11th straight scoreless outing, a stretch in which he has allowed just two hits. Dyson has a 2.13 ERA and is 8-of-9 in save opportunities since July, so he should have some job security at this point, but Diekman would be a natural choice for the replacement should Dyson lose the job to injury or ineffectiveness.

Duffey (7-8) held the Astros to one run on four hits with eight strikeouts over six innings in a win Monday night.

Duffey was fantastic, breaking a streak of four rough starts with at least four earned runs allowed. He induced 14 swinging strikes to give him his fifth start with at least eight strikeouts in 19 outings this season. Perhaps most importantly, Duffey kept the ball in the ballpark. Home runs have been his major issue this season -- he had allowed 18 in his 18 previous outings this season, resulting in a brutal 1.7 HR/9.

Fulmer (9-3) took the loss Monday in Seattle despite allowing just two runs on five hits with a walk and six strikeouts over seven innings.

Fulmer's third straight quality start wasn't enough to pick up a win at Safeco Field, as counterpart Hisashi Iwakuma shut the Tigers out over seven brilliant innings of work. The rookie still deservedly sports a tremendous record, and has held the opposition to two or fewer runs in 12 of his last 14 outings. With manager Brad Ausmus indicating that Fulmer isn't in significant danger of being limited by an innings cap, the 23-year-old should continue going full steam ahead in Sunday's trip to Globe Life Park in Arlington despite this minor setback.

Diaz nailed his fifth save with a perfect inning, but once again failed to strike out a single hitter Monday against the Tigers.

That's two straight strikeout-free outings for the rookie, but his astronomical 16.8 K/9 suggests there's no reason to panic in that regard. Diaz has taken the closer job and run with it since taking over for Steve Cishek, going a perfect 5-for-5 in save opportunities.

McHugh (7-9) allowed three runs on 10 hits and a walk and struck out six over seven innings in a loss Monday to the Twins.

McHugh now has five quality starts in his last six outings but is just 2-3 over that span. He has showed flashes of brilliance, as he has struck out 10 batters three times this season, but he has lacked consistency. Monday marked the fourth time he has allowed 10 hits in a game, and he has given up at least four runs eight times in 23 starts.

May has allowed five runs over his last 15.2 innings, spanning July and August.

After a disastrous May and June (combined 9.95 ERA), the 26-year-old has steadied a bit, allowing runs just twice in his last 15 appearances. Even with his struggles, he has been particularly strong against lefties, posting a .140/.258/.263 line this season. Manager Paul Molitor's trust in May has deteriorated, though, and May is seeing limited close-game action, earning just one hold since May compared to the four he had in that month alone.

Norris was officially recalled from Triple-A Toledo on Monday.

As expected, Norris has officially joined the team, and he's slated to start Tuesday's game against Seattle, replacing the injured Jordan Zimmermann (back) in the rotation. Norris hasn't started a major league game since July 4, when he suffered an oblique injury, and he was less than stellar in a handful of relief appearances at Double-A and Triple-A.