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Ben Joyce RP | LAA
Angels' Ben Joyce: Collects first save
Joyce picked up the save over the Mets on Saturday, hurling 1.1 perfect innings while striking out one batter.
Joyce entered the contest with two outs in the top of the eighth and a runner on third and was able to get Tyrone Taylor to ground out to escape the frame. The right-hander returned for the ninth and retired all three batters he faced, topping things off with a swinging strikeout of J.D. Martinez on a 104 mph fastball to end the game and secure his first save of the campaign. It stands to reason that the dazzling performance will earn Joyce more save opportunities moving forward, especially after Hunter Strickland coughed up multiple runs in the seventh of Saturday's contest to put the Angels behind late. The former has not allowed a run since June 11 against the Diamondbacks.
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Alex Faedo SP | TB
Tigers' Alex Faedo: Drawing opener assignment Sunday
Faedo will serve as the Tigers' opening pitcher for Sunday's game against the Royals.
Faedo will be making his third start of the season, but he's pitched just two and one innings in those outings and will likely be in store for a similar workload Sunday. Once Faedo exits the contest, left-hander Brant Hurter is expected to take over and serve as Detroit's bulk reliever in what will be his MLB debut.
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Kirby Yates RP | PIT
Rangers' Kirby Yates: Nails down save No. 20
Yates gave up two hits and struck out two over 1.1 scoreless innings Saturday to record his 20th save of the season in a 7-4 win over the Red Sox.
It's the first time since April 21 that Yates has worked more than one inning to notch a save, but the veteran right-hander hasn't seemed to care how many outs he needs to get the job done. He has yet to blow a save in 2024, and after four injury-plagued years he's managed to re-discover the form that saw him lead the majors with 41 saves in 2019 while earning NL Cy Young Award votes. Yates' 1.13 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 35.5 percent strikeout rate this season are also comparable to his 1.19 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 41.6 percent K rate from 2019.
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Hunter Bigge RP | ATH
Rays' Hunter Bigge: Opening Sunday's game
Bigge will serve as the Rays' opening pitcher for Sunday's game in Houston, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
After being acquired from the Cubs last Sunday as part of the three-player deal that sent Isaac Paredes to Chicago, Bigge was added to the Rays' 26-man active roster two days later. He's already turned in a pair of scoreless frames for Tampa Bay and has now given up just one earned run while striking out seven over his first 5.1 big-league innings, and he was dominant at the Triple-A level before that, accruing an 0.68 ERA, 0.69 WHIP and 20:6 K:BB in 13.1 innings for the Cubs' affiliate in Iowa. Sunday will mark Bigge's first career start, but he's unlikely to cover more than inning or two before turning to game over to lefty Tyler Alexander, who is expected to operate as a bulk reliever.
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Jason Foley RP | SF
Tigers' Jason Foley: Earns win in relief Saturday
Foley (3-3) allowed two unearned runs on one hit across two innings of relief to earn the win in extra innings Saturday against the Royals. He struck out one.
Foley didn't enter the contest until the top of the 10th inning, when he allowed the automatic runner on second base to score following a fielder's choice and a sacrifice fly. He allowed the automatic runner to score again in the 11th, but the Tigers scored twice in the bottom half to give the righty the win. Foley has ceded some ninth-inning work to other relievers, though he's still clearly trusted in high-leverage spots and remains the team's top closer. He leads the Tigers by a wide margin with 15 saves this season.
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James McArthur RP | KC
Royals' James McArthur: Blows another save Saturday
McArthur (4-5) blew the save and took the loss Saturday, giving up two runs (one earned) on two hits and a walk over two-thirds of an inning in a 6-5 extra-innings loss to the Tigers.
The Kansas City bullpen had a disastrous day, as Hunter Harvey and Kris Bubic blew leads in the ninth and 10th innings, respectively, before McArthur finished the job by surrendering a walk-off single to Wenceel Perez in the bottom of the 11th. The big takeaway was manager Matt Quatraro's reluctance to use McArthur in a save situation, and with good reason -- since the beginning of July, the right-hander has an 8.71 ERA, 1.84 WHIP and 5:2 K:BB in 10.1 innings, and he's blown two of his last three save opportunities including Saturday. Harvey's usage in the ninth could mark him as the next man up to get a chance to close for the Royals, but Lucas Erceg might also be in the mix after he picked up a hold with a perfect eighth inning. McArthur hasn't officially been removed from the role, but his job security seems to be hanging by a thread.
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Yennier Cano RP | BAL
Orioles' Yennier Cano: Nabs fifth save
Cano earned a save against the Guardians on Saturday, striking out one batter in a scoreless ninth inning.
Cano made things look easy in protecting a three-run lead in the ninth inning, needing just eight pitches to retire the side in order. The righty reliever has picked up a save in two of his past three appearances and has given up just one run across his past 10 outings. Cano's save chance may have been tied to primary closer Craig Kimbrel pitching two of the previous three days, but Kimbrel has also struggled of late and blown his past two save opportunities, so it wouldn't be shocking if Cano gets more ninth-inning opportunities moving forward.
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Clay Holmes SP | CHC
Yankees' Clay Holmes: Earns 23rd save
Holmes struck out the only batter he faced to earn the save in Saturday's 8-3 win over the Blue Jays.
Holmes was called upon with the bases loaded in the ninth inning and struck out George Springer to earn a one-out save. The 31-year-old has rebounded from a rough patch of three consecutive blown saves by converting back-to-back chances on just 11 total pitches. On the season, he is 23-for-31 in save chances with a 2.80 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 46:12 K:BB across 45 innings.
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Dany Jimenez RP | ATL
Athletics' Dany Jimenez: Beginning assignment Tuesday
Jimenez (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Jimenez has been on the shelf since late June working his way back from a Grade 2 strain in his left oblique. He threw live batting practice Saturday without any issues and now figures to be just a handful of minor-league outings away from returning to Oakland's bullpen. However, the A's haven't specified how many appearances they want the 30-year-old to make with Las Vegas.