MLB Player News

Braves closer Craig Kimbrel shut the door on his 21st save Thursday, in a 3-0 win over the Nationals.

Kimbrel allowed one base runner by way of a walk, but was never in much trouble. He struck out two batters for the win, his fifth straight successful save.

Kimbrel has 21 saves in 24 chances on the season, to go with 52 strikeouts in 28 1/3 innings of work.

Cardinals pitcher Shelby Miller was not at his best Thursday night against the Phillies, dropping to 7-6 on the year. The right-hander permitted four runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four over 6 2/3 innings of a 4-1 defeat.

Over his last three starts covering 22 1/3 innings, Miller has allowed only five earned runs. He owns a 3.56 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP through 15 starts (91 innings). He will make his next start Tuesday at Colorado.

Cardinals starting pitcher Joe Kelly told MLB.com that he hopes to go on a Minor League rehab assignment as early as next week. Kelly also threw another side session Thursday without any reported issues.

Kelly has been sidelined since mid-April while recovering from a hamstring injury, and he'll likely need multiple rehab appearances before returning to the major-league team. He could be back in the majors in approximately two to three weeks.

Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen secured his 20th save Tuesday, giving up two hits and striking out two in his team's 4-2 win over the Rockies.

Jansen ran into trouble immediately, giving up singles to the first two batters he faced, but he was able to retire the next three batters to squash the potential rally, with the last two outs coming via strikeout. Jansen owns a 3.72 ERA and 49:11 K:BB ratio in 29 innings.

Reds closer Aroldis Chapman earned his 12th save Tuesday after giving up one hit and one walk in a scoreless ninth inning and striking out two in his team's 6-5 win over the Pirates.

Chapman has been in a groove in June, giving up two hits and two walks in eight scoreless innings while racking up 17 strikeouts. He wasn't quite as good in May, but he still owns an excellent 1.06 ERA, 0.65 WHIP and 33:5 K:BB ratio in 17 innings.

Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said starting pitcher Joe Kelly (hamstring) could be back in the majors in "two to three weeks," according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Kelly is expected to need a rehab assignment before returning.

Braves closer Craig Kimbrel picked up a rare two-out save Sunday night against the Angels. Kimbrel struck out Josh Hamilton and Howie Kendrick to secure a 7-3 victory. He has converted 20 of 23 save chances, with a 1.98 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP in 27 1/3 innings of relief.

Rockies reliever Matt Belisle (2-2) struck out one in a perfect inning of work for the win Sunday afternoon against the Giants in San Francisco. Belisle owns a 4.82 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP in 28 innings of work this season.

The Giants optioned pitcher George Kontos back down to Triple-A Fresno and reinstated reliever Santiago Casilla from the 15-day disabled list, the San Francisco Chronicle reports Sunday.

With Daisuke Matsuzaka forced out after one inning due to an upset stomach, Mets reliever Carlos Torres came on and pitched four innings of one-run ball in Sunday's 3-1 win over the Padres. Torres (3-4) struck out four, walked one and allowed three hits while lowering his ERA to 3.43.

It was easily his longest outing of the year.