MLB Player News

Rodney tossed a perfect ninth inning in Thursday's 12-2 win over the Reds, striking out two batters.

Though manager Torey Lovullo is often reluctant to use Rodney outside of save situations, the Diamondbacks haven't had any arise since the All-Star break, so the 40-year-old was called upon for mop-up duty as a means of getting some work in for the first time in nearly two weeks. Rodney only needed 11 pitches to retire the side, so he should remain available out of the bullpen for the next two games, barring heavy usage Friday against the Nationals. Rodney's 5.40 ERA and 1.29 WHIP make him far from a reliable closing option, but with 22 saves in 27 chances, he hasn't blown enough games for the Diamondbacks to ponder a change just yet.

Maurer pitched a scoreless ninth inning to collect his 20th save of the season during Thursday's win over San Francisco. He did allow two hits and walk.

Maurer has now converted six consecutive saves and made eight straight appearances without allowing a run. For the year, Maurer's 5.17 ERA is still an eyesore, but his 1.15 WHIP, 8.9 K/9 and 2.79 FIP are all encouraging marks. As long as he's strutting out to the mound in the ninth inning, the 27-year-old righty is a strong fantasy asset.

White was promoted to Double-A Tulsa on Thursday, Eric Stephen of SB Nation reports.

The Dodgers promoted several of their talented prospects to Double-A on Thursday, including White, Yadier Alvarez, and Dennis Santana. A broken toe kept White out for the month of June, but he responded with three scoreless outings with eight strikeouts (7.0 IP) after returning at High-A Rancho Cucamonga. The 22-year-old will now head to Double-A, where he figures to remain for the rest of the 2017 season.

Nelson (8-5) allowed four runs on six hits and a walk while striking out five batters in Thursday's loss to the Pirates.

As has been the case during their series in Pittsburgh, it's tough to point at the pitching as the reason behind the loss. Nelson was plagued by a number of bloop hits strung together, although Gregory Polanco did leave the yard in the fourth inning to tie the game at that point. This is the first start since June 23 in which he allowed more than three earned runs. Nelson's ERA is still a solid 3.43 mark and he's striking out batters at a good rate, but he'll look to get back into the win column in his next start Wednesday against the Nationals.

Szapucki will miss the remainder of the 2017 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in New York on Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

This is a big blow for the pitching prospect, although not an unexpected one given his history of arm troubles, as he had been dominating at Low-A Columbia (2.79 ERA, 27:10 K:BB in 29 innings pitched) prior to being shut down at the beginning of the month. Szapucki will start on the long road back from the operation, likely rendering him unavailable until the latter half of the 2018 season or perhaps even the start of the 2019 campaign.

Stephenson is a candidate to start Saturday's game against the Marlins, John Fay of WCPO.com reports.

The Reds are not yet listing a probable starter for Saturday, but Stephenson would be on normal rest, having last pitched for Triple-A Louisville on Monday. Manager Bryan Price said the team is pleased with what it's seen from Stephenson at Louisville since his demotion in late May, and indeed the numbers in eight appearances (seven starts) are impressive. Cincinnati may also consider starting Michael Lorenzen on Saturday, making it a bullpen game.

Koch, who was recalled from Triple-A Reno on Thursday, missed more than two months earlier this season due to a shoulder impingement, Bill Mitchell of Baseball America reports.

Koch is completely healthy after missing significant time with the injury, and should see his first appearance of the season Thursday against the Reds or during the Diamondbacks' three-game series with the Nationals over the weekend. With Koch taking over Taijuan Walker's spot on the active roster after Walker hit the paternity list, it's possible that Koch could be called upon to make a spot start Saturday against the Nationals if he goes unused over the next two days. Koch wouldn't make for an appealing streaming option in that scenario, as he was sporting a 8.47 ERA in 17 innings at Reno prior to his promotion.

The Diamondbacks recalled Koch from Triple-A Reno on Thursday.

The right-hander accrued a 2.00 ERA in 18 major-league innings last year but has an 8.47 figure in 17 Reno frames. Koch will occupy a depth role among Diamondbacks relievers and may head back to the minors when Taijuan Walker returns from the paternity list, likely in the next few days.

Layne signed a minor-league deal with the Dodgers on Wednesday.

After being cut by the Yankees on July 5, the southpaw reliever will now attempt to make his way back to the majors through the Dodgers' organization. In 13.0 innings with New York this season, Layne gave up 11 runs on 16 hits with nine strikeouts before being outrighted to Triple-A in the middle of June.

Brebbia fired three scoreless innings in Wednesday's 7-3 loss to the Mets, allowing just one hit and recording three strikeouts.

The 27-year-old reliever was razor sharp, throwing 28 of his 37 pitches for strikes and extending his streak of not allowing an earned run to nine appearances. Brebbia has quietly become one of manager Mike Matheny's most trusted bullpen options, with Wednesday's outing lowering his ERA and WHIP to 1.64 and 0.77, respectively.