MLB Player News

Hatch (1-0) earned the win against the Tigers on Wednesday, allowing two hits and one walk with three strikeouts over 4.1 scoreless innings.

Hatch was excellent in bulk relief, throwing 38 of 56 pitches for strikes while limiting the Tigers to just two singles. The 30-year-old gave up two runs in a one-inning outing for the Royals on Friday and had posted a 4.22 ERA with a 78:28 K:BB over 91.2 innings at Triple-A Omaha before being claimed off waivers by the Twins this week. Though he's made just two major-league appearances this season, Wednesday's performance likely earned him another look with Minnesota.

Garcia (1-7) took the loss Wednesday against the Yankees, giving up one run on two hits in two-thirds of an inning. He struck out one.

Making his first appearance since a bout of back spams last weekend, Garcia was brought into a 2-2 tie in the seventh inning and served up what proved to be a game-winning solo shot to Paul Goldschmidt. Garcia has been taken deep in three straight games, and since the beginning of July he's stumbled to a 4.82 ERA, 1.93 WHIP and 16:5 K:BB in 9.1 innings, ratios that would be even worse if it weren't for four unearned runs on his ledger. Phil Maton got the save for the Rangers on Tuesday, and Garcia's hold on the closer role could be hanging by a thread.

Bednar struck out five batters over 1.2 scoreless innings Wednesday, giving up one hit and two walks, to record his 18th save of the season in a 3-2 win over the Rangers.

The trade-deadline acquisition collected his first save in pinstripes with the rest of the Yankees' high-leverage crew having seen heavy usage lately -- Devin Williams, Luke Weaver and Camilo Doval all pitched both Monday and Tuesday, forcing Bednar to throw 42 pitches (25 strikes) Wednesday to get the job done. That said, Williams has been struggling again of late, getting tagged for runs in four straight outings and taking two blown saves and a loss in his last three. If he gets removed from the closer role again, Bednar might be the next man up, although Weaver has been very effective of late with a 2.13 ERA, 0.71 WHIP and 13:3 K:BB over his last 12.2 innings. Despite the team's efforts to bring in help, the back of the Yankees' bullpen appears to be just as unsettled as ever.

Fairbanks earned the save in Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Angels, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning.

After blowing his last save chance on July 30 against the Yankees, Fairbanks has responded with three straight scoreless appearances, striking out six over three innings in that span. Overall, the right-hander is 19-for-23 in save chances this year with a 2.70 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 40:15 K:BB across 43.1 innings.

Gaddis recorded the final out of Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Mets to record his second save of the season.

Gavin Williams took a no-hitter into the ninth inning, only for Juan Soto to spoil it with a solo shot. After Williams then walked a batter with two outs, Gaddis got the call to close things out. Cade Smith was unavailable after having pitched the prior two days and remains the favorite for saves in the Guardians' bullpen, but Gaddis appears to be the next man up for ninth-inning duty. Since the beginning of July, Gaddis has delivered a 2.94 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 15:2 K:BB in 15.1 innings while collecting a win, two saves and five holds over 16 appearances.

The Athletics recalled Ferguson from Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday.

Ferguson was one of the club's better relievers last season, but he was sent down in June following a rough stretch in which he yielded 10 runs over four appearances. The 31-year-old seemed to get back on track at Las Vegas, permitting just one earned run with an 11:3 K:BB over 10 innings. Ferguson could pitch his way back into leveraged situations in an unsettled bullpen, though that probably won't happen right away.

The Athletics optioned Nunez to Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday.

Acquired from the Padres in the Mason Miller trade, Nunez was roughed up for five runs on six hits and four walks over 2.1 innings in his first two appearances with the Athletics. He will be replaced on the 26-man active roster by right-hander Tyler Ferguson, who was recalled from Las Vegas.

Hader walked one and struck out two across a scoreless ninth inning Tuesday against the Marlins.

Hader hadn't appeared in a game since Friday, so he made an appearance despite Houston holding a four-run lead. He walked the second batter he faced but ran into little trouble and has now turned in seven consecutive scoreless appearances since the All-Star break.

Smith worked a perfect ninth inning Tuesday to record his fourth save of the season in a 3-2 win over the Mets. He didn't walk or strike out a batter.

The right-hander fired 14 of 17 pitches for strikes and leaned on his defense to get the job done. This was Smith's first save since Emmanuel Clase was placed on non-disciplinary leave, with his other three coming back in late April, but he remains the favorite to handle closing duties for Cleveland for the rest of the season with Clase's future uncertain. Over his last 12 appearances, Smith has posted a 1.98 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 13:5 K:BB over 13.2 innings.

Topa struck out one batter in a perfect ninth inning to earn a save against Detroit on Tuesday.

Topa threw 12 of his 15 pitches for strikes and quickly retired the Tigers' 8-9-1 batters to preserve the 6-3 win. He joined Erasmo Ramirez as the two bullpen arms to record saves for the Twins since the team traded Jhoan Duran at the deadline. Topa owns a 3.86 ERA and a 41:12 K:BB through 46.2 saves this season. It was his first save with Minnesota, and he entered Tuesday's contest with three in his career, all of which came during his final season with Seattle in 2023. Cole Sands allowed two runs in the eighth inning Tuesday, and it appears the Twins are still working out how the bullpen arms will be utilized moving forward.