MLB Player News

Melancon (elbow) will toss another bullpen session Tuesday and may face live hitters this weekend, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Melancon continues to throw scheduled bullpen sessions, but an advancement to seeing live hitters would be an encouraging milestone in the closer's rehab. The veteran remains without a firm timetable for return, but it appears that he's trending in the right direction and may be able to rejoin the Giants' bullpen in the coming weeks.

Strahm (knee) was traded to the Padres by the Royals on Monday along with Travis Wood and Esteury Ruiz for Brandon Maurer, Trevor Cahill and Ryan Buchter, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports reports.

Although Strahm underwent season-ending knee surgery earlier in July, he still possesses enough upside to be part of the return package that's brought a trio of arms to Kansas City. The left-hander is hopeful that he'll be ready for spring training, but only time will tell.

Albaladejo signed a minor-league contract with the Mets on Monday, Marc Carig of Newsday reports.

The former big-league pitcher will make a return to provide starting pitching depth for the Mets. He spent the earlier portion of the 2017 season in independent ball, where he went 7-6 and produced a 4.44 ERA in 16 starts. Albaledejo will be thrown right into the fire, as he's starting for Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday night.

Lamb was traded to the Rockies on Monday.

Lamb primarily acted as a reliever in the White Sox system this season, although he also made a few starts following his promotion to Triple-A. The southpaw found a lot of success in Double-A, although he struggled once he advanced up the organizational ladder, producing a 7.46 ERA and a 1.86 WHIP with Charlotte. His strikeout numbers are solid, however, so he could create some intrigue in the future if he can control his offerings better.

Beede was scratched from Monday's scheduled start with Triple-A Sacramento due to a groin strain, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The pitching prospect reportedly incurred the injury during pregame warmups, although the severity of the issue is currently unknown. Consider him day-to-day for the time being. Prior to this setback, Beede held a 4.79 ERA and a 1.47 WHIP in 19 starts for the River Cats.

Hader threw 1.2 scoreless innings in a loss to the Phillies on Sunday, working around a base hit and a hit batsman.

Hader did not record a strikeout Sunday, but he didn't give up a run for the 10th time in 12 big-league appearances. The rookie has 11 walks in 16.2 innings, so control has been an issue, and although he hit someone, he at least didn't issue a walk for the third consecutive outing Sunday. He now owns a 1.08 WHIP -- exactly the same mark as his 1.08 ERA. Expect him to continue working out of the bullpen for the Brewers, but Hader's long-term future is in the rotation.

Gearrin danced around a pair of baserunners while striking out two batters over an inning of work in Sunday's loss to the Padres.

Gearrin's scoreless outing lowered his season ERA to 2.30 despite his FIP sitting north of 4.00 for the majority of the season. His mediocre 1.6 K/BB ratio is the biggest red flag, but it's possible that Gearrin can keep his ERA low due to his groundball tendencies (1.9 GB/FB ratio) coupled with a stellar defensive infield behind him in San Francisco. Either way, the 31-year-old doesn't provide enough in the important categories for fantasy relievers (strikeouts, saves and holds) to warrant much consideration.

Jansen gave up three runs on three hits over 1.1 innings Sunday against Atlanta, failing to convert a save for the first time in 25 attempts this season.

The Dodgers closer allowed two Braves to get on base before falling victim to a three-run homer off the bat of Matt Adams that sent the game into extras. The fact that this was Jansen's first blown save of the year just goes to show how dominant he's been all season. Even after Sunday's blowup, the 29-year-old still owns a sparkling 1.49 ERA with an unreal 62:2 K:BB over 42.1 innings.

Garcia recorded a strikeout and didn't allow a baserunner during a scoreless ninth inning to record his first save of the season in Sunday's win over Milwaukee.

Hector Neris had pitched in each of the past two games, so that's likely why Garcia entered in the ninth for the save opportunity. However, the Philadelphia closer job has been somewhat fluid all season, so it isn't out of the question that Garcia sees more work closing out games moving forward. He should at least be on your fantasy radar, and especially if you're chasing saves.

Hand struck out one in a perfect ninth inning for his third save Sunday.

Hand's 16 holds show that he's usually used before the ninth inning, but his ability to put this game away with ease makes the lefty even more intriguing for the myriad teams looking for bullpen help as the July 31 trade deadline approaches. He has put a 16.1-inning scoreless stretch together over his past 16 appearances amid swirling trade rumors.