MLB Player News
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Michael Kopech SP | LAD
White Sox's Michael Kopech: Crumbles in ninth
Kopech (2-8) allowed four runs on two hits and two walks against Miami on Sunday. He was charged with a blown save and a loss.
Kopech entered the ninth inning with a 4-3 lead but quickly gave it up on a Josh Bell RBI double. Two batters later, Jake Burger would crush a walk-off three-run homer. Kopech hadn't blown a save chance since June 13 but is now just 8-for-13 in opportunities this season. His ERA jumped to 5.45 with a 51:23 K:BB through 38 innings. John Brebbia could begin to push for more ninth-inning work; he threw a scoreless eighth inning Sunday and has given up just two runs over 16.1 frames since the start of June.
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Josh Hader RP | HOU
Astros' Josh Hader: Gets walked off Sunday
Hader (3-5) took the loss Sunday against the Twins, allowing a solo home run without recording an out.
Hader entered with the game tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth. He served up a solo shot to Christian Vazquez, which gave the Twins the walk-off win. This is the fourth time in six outings that Hader has given up a run -- all of which have been on homers -- though he hasn't taken a blown save since April 2. He's at a 4.15 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 61:11 K:BB through 39 innings while converting 15 of 16 save chances this season. Since his missteps have rarely resulted in trouble so far, Hader's security as the Astros' closer remains high, but his recent struggles with the long ball are reminiscent of his awful second half of 2022, which is at least worth keeping an eye on for fantasy purposes.
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Jhoan Duran RP | PHI
Twins' Jhoan Duran: Earns fourth win
Duran (4-3) earned the win Sunday over the Astros, allowing a hit and a walk while striking out one over a scoreless inning.
Duran was tasked with keeping the game tied at 2-2 in the ninth inning, and he got the job done. He then earned the win when Christian Vazquez walked it off for the Twins with a solo home run in the bottom of the frame. Duran has been dialed in with 11 scoreless outings over his last 12 appearances, allowing just two runs with a 10:3 K:BB in that span. For the year, the closer has a 3.25 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 25:9 K:BB through 27.2 innings while converting 13 of 14 save chances and adding one hold.
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Liam Hendriks RP | MIN
Red Sox's Liam Hendriks: Throws another bullpen session
Hendriks (elbow) threw another bullpen session Sunday and is expected to ramp up his activity during the upcoming week, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.
Hendriks finished his three throwing sessions of the week in New York on Sunday, and he'll now progress toward the next step in his recovery from the Tommy John surgery he underwent last August. The right-hander remains without an expected timetable to return, but his ability to complete the bullpen sessions without any sort of setbacks is a positive outcome nonetheless.
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Josh Winder RP | ARI
Twins' Josh Winder: Optioned to Triple-A
Winder was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul after Sunday's 3-2 win over the Astros, Audra Martin of Bally Sports North reports.
Winder was called up Friday and appeared in the team's 13-12 loss to Houston, pitching two innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits while striking out two batters. The right-hander will now have to wait for his next chance to join the major-league roster while the vacancy he leaves behind with the big-league club is expected to be filled by Chris Paddack (arm).
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Kyle Muller SP | ATH
Athletics' Kyle Muller: Comes off IL
The Athletics reinstated Muller (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list Sunday.
Muller had been on the shelf since May 30 with left shoulder tendinitis but will rejoin Oakland after completing four rehab appearances with Triple-A Las Vegas. The southpaw covered three innings and tossed 61 pitches in his final outing for Las Vegas on Saturday, so the Athletics would presumably prefer not to use him in Sunday's series finale with the Orioles. Left-hander Jack O'Loughlin was optioned to Las Vegas in a corresponding move.
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Jack O'Loughlin SP | COL
Athletics' Jack O'Loughlin: Heading back to minors
The Athletics optioned O'Loughlin to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday.
Though he was called up from Las Vegas on June 25, O'Loughlin went unused out of the bullpen until the Athletics' 19-8 win over the Orioles on Saturday, when he gave up five runs on seven hits and two walks over 2.2 innings while mopping up. The Athletics activated Kyle Muller (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list to replace O'Loughlin in the bullpen.
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Shelby Miller RP | CHC
Tigers' Shelby Miller: Earns win Saturday
Miller (5-6) tossed two scoreless innings of relief to earn the win in Saturday's 5-3 victory over the Reds. He allowed one hit and struck out three.
It was a badly needed positive effort for Miller, who came into the contest having allowed nine earned runs across 2.1 innings in his previous three appearances. The veteran righty lowered his ERA to under 6.00 in the process. Miller is in a high-leverage role for the Tigers, but he'll need more good performances to earn any trust in fantasy leagues.
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Kirby Yates RP | LAA
Rangers' Kirby Yates: Collects 13th save
Yates pitched a perfect ninth inning Saturday without a strikeout to record his 13th save of the season in a 4-3 win over the Rays.
The right-hander needed just 10 pitches to produce two flyballs and a comebacker by Ben Rortvedt that Yates knocked down before calmly throwing out the Tampa Bay backstop. Yates still has yet to blow a save chance this season, and he's been tagged with just one earned run over his last 16 appearances, posting a 0.60 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 26:7 K:BB through 15 innings over that dominant stretch.
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Andrew Chafin RP | MIN
Tigers' Andrew Chafin: Records first save
Chafin earned a save against the Reds on Saturday by striking out the only batter he faced.
Detroit held a three-run lead heading into the ninth inning and turned the ball over to closer Jason Foley. However, the right-hander wasn't effective, giving up a leadoff homer to Spencer Steer and a two-out single to Noelvi Marte. Chafin was subsequently brought in to get the final out of the contest and did so by fanning Santiago Espinal on six pitches. Chafin recorded a career-high eight saves with Arizona last year, but this was his first save this season.