MLB Player News

The Nationals are expected to recall Perales from Triple-A Rochester on Wednesday, Kyle Williams of TheBanner.com reports.

The 23-year-old righty will get his first big-league opportunity after posting a 3.64 ERA and 1.30 WHIP over 96.1 innings at Triple-A. Perales has worked primarily as a starter this season but will likely begin his MLB career in the bullpen after pitching two innings or fewer in each of his last four minor-league outings.

The Nationals optioned Bird to Triple-A Rochester following Tuesday's 3-1 loss to the Rockies.

Bird pitched a scoreless inning Tuesday, bringing his ERA down to 5.35 through 38.2 innings on the season, but the Nationals will send him down to Rochester to make room in the bullpen for right-hander Luis Perales, who will be recalled from Triple-A on Wednesday. Bird could still return to Washington later in the season to provide the parent club with a fresh arm, but he would likely be limited to middle-relief duty.

Iglesias recorded a save Tuesday against the Dodgers, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out one over a scoreless ninth inning.

Iglesias was called upon in the ninth to protect a one-run lead but immediately found himself in trouble after allowing a leadoff triple to Shohei Ohtani. After retiring the next two batters, Atlanta elected to intentionally walk Max Muncy before Iglesias put away the final batter to escape the threat. The veteran closer has now recorded a save in each of his last four appearances and owns 28 total on the year. Despite the recent production, Iglesias has struggled to a 4.32 ERA in the second half after posting a 2.23 mark before the All-Star break.

Waldron will serve as the opening pitcher in Wednesday's game against Colorado, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Waldron was claimed off waivers from Toronto on Saturday, and he's now set to make his Nationals debut in the first inning of Wednesday's contest. The 29-year-old righty owns an unsightly 7.54 ERA and 1.62 WHIP through 37 innings in the majors this season and will likely pitch just an inning or two before coming out of the game.

Jansen pitched a scoreless inning of relief with a strikeout to record the save in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Rays.

After allowing two earned runs and blowing the save his last time out Wednesday, Jansen bounced back with a much better performance to secure his 17th save of the season in 22 chances. The active MLB saves leader hasn't been as sharp this year as he has been in the past, and his current 4.08 ERA would be a new career worst, but Jansen is still locked in as Detroit's closer due to his impressive track record across 17 seasons in the majors.

Sommers (1-3) tossed 1.2 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win in Tuesday's 4-1 victory over the Rays. He struck out one.

Sommers came on for Jackson Jobe, who covered the first 4.1 innings of the contest, and the lefty reliever continued his strong recent play to pick up his first win at the MLB level. Over his last 11 appearances, Sommers has a sparkling 0.64 ERA across 14 innings of work, and he's struck out 24 batters. The 26-year-old is starting to emerge as a weapon out of Detroit's bullpen, which could earn him more high-leverage work in the final weeks of the regular season.

Natera (back) threw a bullpen session Tuesday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Natera was placed on the 15-day injured list with lower-back spasms Aug. 20, and the move was made retroactive to Aug. 17. The southpaw felt good after Tuesday's session, and he outlined that he expects his stint on the IL to be short. Natera is eligible to be activated on Sept. 1, and he may be tracking towards returning on or close to that date.

The Pirates optioned Curtis to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Curtis threw three shutout innings out of the bullpen during Sunday's contest to remain unscored upon through eight frames to begin his MLB career. Despite his success, he'll move back to the minors to make room for a fresh bullpen arm in the form of Noah Murdock.

The Pirates recalled Murdock from Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Murdock owns a 4.21 ERA and 1.15 WHIP across 25.2 innings at Triple-A this season, and he's fired three shutout frames in the majors. He'll rejoin Pittsburgh's bullpen to provide the team with another fresh arm, replacing Khristian Curtis.

The Giants recalled Bivens from Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday, per Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Bivens will come up for his second stint in the majors this season. With Sacramento, the 32-year-old owns a 5-3 record with a 5.16 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 63:25 K:BB over 68 innings this season. The Giants added Bivens to the active roster with Carson Whisenhunt (elbow) sidelined for the rest of the year.