MLB Player News

Holmes picked up the save over the Padres on Saturday, pitching a perfect ninth inning while striking out one.

Holmes made it look easy Saturday, retiring all three batters he faced in the ninth on a total of just seven pitches to record his 15th save of the season. The right-handed reliever has now converted his last two save opportunities after surrendering four runs to the Mariners on May 20, striking out at least one batter in each of those appearances. Holmes sits just one save behind Emmanuel Clase (16) for the American League lead after Saturday's outing.

Clase picked up the save over the Angels on Saturday, allowing one hit over one inning while striking out two.

Clase entered the game with a one-run lead in the bottom of the ninth and surrendered a leadoff single to Logan O'Hoppe before retiring the next three batters in succession, with two of them going down on strikes. It marked Clase's third appearance this month in which he's registered multiple strikeouts and he's now converted each of his last three save opportunities. The right-hander currently sits at 16 saves on the season, which ties him for the major league lead with Ryan Helsley.

Kopech (1-4) blew the save and took the loss Saturday, giving up three runs on three hits in two-thirds of an inning as the White Sox fell 5-3 to the Orioles. He struck out one.

Chicago rolled into the eighth inning with a 3-0 lead, but after Jordan Leasure served up a two-run homer to Ryan O'Hearn, Kopech got the call and threw more gas on the fire, getting taken deep himself by Anthony Santander and Jordan Westburg. Kopech has been tagged for five home runs in 23.2 innings this season, fueling a 4.18 ERA, and his issues keeping the ball in the park have followed him to the bullpen. He'll continue to get the majority of the save chances for the White Sox, but his reliability as a high-leverage reliever is still in question.

Perez struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his first save of the season in a 5-3 win over the White Sox.

Craig Kimbrel, Danny Coulombe and Yennier Cano had all pitched both Thursday and Friday, leaving manager Brandon Hyde without any of his usual late-inning options when Baltimore took the lead in the eighth. Perez stepped up with a strong performance, needing only 10 pitches (six strikes) to retire the bottom of Chicago's order. The 28-year-old southpaw has an unsightly 5.06 ERA on the season, but he has yet to serve up a homer in 10.2 innings and has blanked the opposition in eight of his 11 appearances while picking up four holds.

Suarez came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 5-3 win over the White Sox, allowing two hits and two walks over four scoreless innings. He struck out three.

The 34-year-old right-hander hadn't pitched more than an inning in any of his last three appearances, including an 11-pitch outing Wednesday, but Suarez slid right back into the O's rotation without any issues. He tossed 50 of 80 pitches for strikes before exiting the mound, and with John Means (forearm) and Dean Kremer (triceps) on the shelf, Suarez figures to plug a hole in the rotation for at least a couple weeks. He'll take a 1.53 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 24:8 K:BB through 29.1 innings into his next turn, which lines up to come at home next weekend against the Rays.

Duran threw a perfect ninth inning with one strikeout against the Rangers on Saturday to earn his sixth save of the season.

The Twins grabbed the lead in the bottom of the eighth on an Alex Kirilloff three-run homer, and Duran was there the next half inning to close the door. He retired the side in order on just eight pitches and is now the team leader in saves with six to Griffin Jax's five, even though Duran missed the first month of the season due to an oblique injury. Duran has been used occasionally in the eighth since making his return, but he's still clearly the preferred closing option in Minnesota when manager Rocco Baldelli has the luxury of holding him back for the ninth.

Sands (2-0) earned the win in Saturday's 5-3 win over Texas. He allowed no hits or walks while striking out two over two perfect innings.

It was a nice bounce-back outing from Sands after he allowed five earned runs on five hits and two walks over 2.1 innings over his prior three appearances. He was used in some high-leverage spots while Jhoan Duran was out for a month with a back injury, but Sands may be used earlier in games with Duran healthy.

Miller notched his 10th save of the season Saturday, striking out the side in a 4-1 win over the Astros.

Miller was coming off his worst appearance of the season his last time out against the Rockies, but he had no such trouble in this one. The flamethrower needed 15 pitches to dispose of the Astros in order, topping out at 102.2 mph with his fastball. Miller has struck out multiple batters in 14 of 18 outings this season.

McArthur (2-2) allowed an unearned run on one hit over two innings, earning the extra-innings win over the Rays on Saturday.

McArthur gave up a two-out RBI double in the 10th inning that tied the game at 4-4, but the Royals took the lead for good in the 11th. May hasn't been an easy month for McArthur, who has given up eight runs (six earned) over 10 innings while converting four of his six save chances. He's at a 3.80 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 23:3 K:BB over 23.2 innings while adding 11 saves in 14 chances and one hold. McArthur's role as the Royals' primary closer isn't in doubt yet, but it's possible Carlos Hernandez will be a factor in the late innings eventually after recovering from a shoulder injury that kept him out for the first two months of the campaign.

Anderson walked one and struck out one in a scoreless and hitless inning to earn the save in Saturday's 7-4 extra-innings win over the Rays.

Regular closer James McArthur worked the ninth and 10th innings, leaving the save chance to Anderson once the Royals pulled ahead in the 11th. Anderson got the job done with his third straight scoreless outing, though he has allowed four runs with a 4:6 K:BB over his last 5.1 innings. The right-hander has an acceptable 3.93 ERA for the year, but his 1.75 WHIP and 12:12 K:BB through 18.1 innings aren't great. Anderson has added a 2-1 record and two holds while seeing little high-leverage work, a situation that's unlikely to improve for him now that Carlos Hernandez is back from a shoulder injury.