MLB Player News

Castro allowed one hit and struck out one over a scoreless inning in Saturday's 12-1 win over the Blue Jays.

Castro made his first appearance since being activated off the injured list Thursday. He pitched a scoreless eighth inning with the Diamondbacks ahead 8-1. Castro had missed nearly three months with shoulder inflammation.

Nunez earned a save against the Rockies on Saturday, striking out three batters over two perfect frames.

Nunez entered in the eighth inning in a tight situation with New York up one run and runners on first and second base with no outs. He induced a double play and a foul out to impressively escape the jam, then watched the Mets score three times in the bottom of the frame. The right-hander returned for the ninth and struck out all three batters he faced to cap his first big-league save. Nunez isn't likely to see many more save opportunities with Edwin Diaz established as New York's closer, but the rookie has nonetheless worked his way up to high-leverage work with an impressive campaign during which he's recorded a 2.35 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 39:5 K:BB through 30.2 frames. In addition to Saturday's save, he's registered seven holds and two wins through 21 outings.

Rogers (1-3) allowed a run on two hits and struck out one in one-third of an inning, taking the loss Saturday versus the Twins.

Rogers served up a go-ahead solo home run to Carlos Santana in the sixth inning, and the Giants couldn't bounce back from it. This was Rogers' first loss in two months, and prior to Saturday he had given up just two runs (one earned) over his prior 22 innings. He's now at a 2.15 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 41:13 K:BB through 37.2 innings while adding four holds in a middle-relief role this year.

The Nationals are expected to call up Willingham from Triple-A Rochester on Sunday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

A 26-man roster spot opened up Saturday when Washington traded reliever Hunter Harvey to Kansas City in exchange for a minor-league infielder, and Willingham looks set to fill the vacancy in the bullpen. Although Harvey worked as a setup man, Willingham isn't likely to handle high-leverage work considering that he's logged a 4.54 ERA across 39.2 innings for Rochester this season.

Finnegan earned the save Saturday against the Brewers with one walk in a scoreless ninth inning. He didn't allow a hit and struck out one.

Washington rallied to turn a one-run deficit into a one-run lead in the top of ninth inning, and Finnegan worked around a one-out walk in the bottom of the frame to record his 25th save of the campaign. The right-hander has blown only four chances and is closing in on the career-high 28 saves he tallied last year. With just one more game before the All-Star break, Finnegan has a 2.45 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 42:13 K:BB over 39.1 innings.

Megill (0-2) was charged with a blown save and the loss Saturday versus the Nationals after he allowed two runs on two hits over 1.1 innings. He struck out two and walked none.

The right-hander entered with two outs in the eighth inning and stranded a pair of runners with a strikeout, but he was unable to maintain a one-run lead in the ninth as CJ Abrams clubbed a two-run homer. The blown save ends a stretch of 12 straight conversions for Megill, who also hadn't given up a run in his previous 10 outings. The 30-year-old remains locked in as Milwaukee's closer for now, but Devin Williams (back) began a rehab assignment Saturday and should reclaim the job early in the second half.

Wesneski (3-6) took the loss in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Cardinals, surrendering 11 runs (four earned) on 10 hits and a walk over four innings. He struck out four.

The right-hander's own errors during a nightmarish nine-run first inning prevented more damage to his ERA, but it was still a poor outing for Wesneski at the worst possible time, as it put extra pressure on the Cubs' bullpen ahead of the nightcap. In four starts since rejoining the rotation in late June, he's posted a 5.59 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 20:6 K:BB in 19.1 innings while serving up five homers, including a three-run blast by Alec Burleson on Saturday.

The Cubs recalled Palencia from Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Palencia will join the big-league roster ahead of the second half of Saturday's twin bill against the Cardinals. The right-hander has been with Iowa since being activated from the IL on June 3. Ethan Roberts, who pitched two innings in Game 1, was optioned to Iowa in a corresponding move.

The Cubs optioned Roberts to Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Roberts threw two scoreless innings and struck out three batters during a loss to the Cardinals in Game 1 of Saturday's twin bill, and he'll now be sent back to the minors between games. Daniel Palencia was recalled from Iowa in a corresponding move.

Ortiz did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-2 win over the White Sox, allowing one run on four hits and one walk with five strikeouts over 5.2 innings.

Ortiz tossed five scoreless innings before allowing an RBI single in the sixth. He was pulled just shy of a quality start at 94 pitches and has now yielded a total of two earned runs in his three opportunities to start this season. While it is unclear if the 25-year-old will remain in the rotation after the All-Star break, he has likely earned additional starting opportunities by posting a 2.84 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 57:19 K:BB across 66.2 innings this season.