MLB Player News

Santos earned a save against the Yankees on Wednesday, issuing one walk and striking out two batters over two hitless and scoreless innings.

Santos recently returned from a stint on the bereavement list, and this was his first appearance since Aug. 3. The right-hander entered the game with no outs, one runner on base and Chicago holding a 5-2 lead in the eighth inning, and he worked his way through the heart of New York's order to escape without allowing any damage. When the White Sox scored four times in the bottom of the frame, it made Santos' second inning of work stress-free, and he retired the side in order to earn the save. He's emerged as Chicago's primary closer after Liam Hendriks was lost for the season with an elbow injury and both Kendall Graveman and Reynaldo Lopez were shipped out at the trade deadline.

Hicks earned a save against the Guardians on Wednesday by retiring the only batter he faced.

With Toronto clinging to a 1-0 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth frame, it was Tim Mayza who got the call from the bullpen to close things out. The southpaw retired two of the three batters he faced, but the right-handed Hicks was called upon to finish the job against righty Oscar Gonzalez with two outs and a runner on first. Hicks needed just two pitches to do so, getting Gonzalez to pop out to second base. In doing so, the hurler recorded his third save in the past five days. Hicks appears to be the favorite for save opportunities among Blue Jays relievers for the time being, though Jordan Romano (back) tossed another bullpen session Wednesday and will almost certainly resume closer duties upon his return.

Estevez allowed a hit in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Giants.

Estevez has had some gnarly outings lately, but he was fairly sharp Wednesday to pick up his first save since July 23. In the five outings between saves, he surrendered 14 runs (nine earned) on 11 hits and seven walks over 5.1 innings. For the season, he's 24-for-26 in save chances with a 3.50 ERA, 1.49 WHIP and 56:27 K:BB through 46.1 innings.

Cox will serve as the Royals' opening pitcher for Thursday's game against the Red Sox, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Nearly a week after earning his first career save, Cox will make his third start of the season Thursday and his first since early July. The 26-year-old lefty had a brief trial in the rotation shortly before the All-Star break, but he was demoted to Triple-A Omaha after he was blasted for three runs on seven hits and two walks over 4.2 innings in a July 3 start versus the Twins. He's been a full-time reliever for Kansas City since being called back up, accruing a 5.14 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over seven appearances while working no more than 1.1 innings on any occasion. With that in mind, Cox is unlikely to work more than once through the Red Sox batting order Thursday, leaving Alec Marsh as the most likely candidate to cover the bulk of the innings out of the bullpen.

Green (elbow/head) is in concussion protocol after getting beaned by a catcher's throw to second base Tuesday with Triple-A Buffalo, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Green was making what might have otherwise been his final rehab appearance when Buffalo catcher Tyler Heineman drilled him in the head while trying to cut down a stolen base attempt from Triple-A Worcester shortstop Ryan Fitzgerald. Green is fully recovered from Tommy John surgery, but there is no longer an exact timetable for his Blue Jays debut. He'll likely be sidelined for at least a week before beginning a new minor-league rehab stint.

The Tigers outrighted Logue to Triple-A Toledo on Wednesday.

Logue was moved off the Tigers' 40-man roster earlier this week, but he'll stick around the organization after clearing waivers. The 27-year-old lefty has spent the majority of the season at Toledo, where he's compiled a 6.22 ERA and 1.74 WHIP across 63.2 innings.

The Yankees announced that Hamilton will serve as their opening pitcher for Wednesday's game against the White Sox, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.

Wednesday is Luis Severino's turn in the rotation, but because the right-hander has struggled in most of his recent outings, manager Aaron Boone will see if Severino fares any better while working behind an opener. Hamilton will be making his second "start" of the season, with his first coming during a July 1 game against the Cardinals in which he worked just one inning. He'll likely be capped at around 1-to-3 innings Wednesday before turning the game over to Severino and the bullpen.

The Mariners designated Muckenhirn for assignment Wednesday.

The southpaw will move off the Mariners' 40-man roster with Seattle needing to clear a spot for right-hander Emerson Hancock, whose contract was selected from Double-A Arkansas ahead of his first MLB start Wednesday versus the Padres. Since being acquired in a trade with the Mets on July 3, Muckenhirn has pitched exclusively at Triple-A Tacoma, where he turned in a 9.35 ERA and 1.95 WHIP over 8.2 innings.

The Mariners optioned Sweet to Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday.

Sweet will cede his spot on Seattle's 26-man active roster to right-hander Emerson Hancock, who had his contract selected from Double-A Arkansas in advance of his first MLB start Wednesday versus the Padres. After getting called up from Tacoma shortly after the All-Star break, Sweet made just two relief appearances for Seattle, giving up two earned runs over two innings.

Martinez, recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas earlier in the day, allowed two earned runs on four hits and three walks over 4.2 innings during a loss to the Rangers on Tuesday. He recorded five strikeouts and did not factor into the decision.

The young right-hander was afforded an 82-pitch assignment right out of the gate in his first taste of major-league action since May 26. Martinez ate up some valuable innings in the process, getting all but the last out of the night for the Athletics after starter JP Sears exited following four laborious frames. Martinez is slotting into a bullpen role for the time being, but as the length of Tuesday's appearance indicates, he's capable of serving in a bulk-relief capacity or even moving into the rotation if necessary.