MLB Player News

Cruz will serve as the Reds' opening pitcher for Saturday's game against the Brewers, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

For the second time in five games, Cruz will operate as an opener for the Reds. Despite not having recorded more than six outs in any of his prior 61 appearances this season, Cruz covered three innings as an opener in Wednesday's 9-6 loss to the Athletics, striking out six while allowing one earned run on two hits and zero walks. Cruz tossed 42 pitches in that outing and will be taking the hill Saturday on just two days' rest, so he shouldn't expected to push up his innings count much, if at all, in his second start of the season.

Miller (6-8) allowed two runs (one earned) on one hit across 1.1 innings of relief to take the loss Friday against the Red Sox. He struck out two.

Miller worked through the top of the ninth inning in order, with the last two batters retired via strikeout. The veteran righty came back out for the 10th with the game tied 4-4 but allowed a Ceddanne Rafaela home run with one out to make it 6-4, after which Miller got the hook. Despite the loss, Miller has been pitching well lately, as this performance snapped a streak of nine straight scoreless outings. His ERA sits at 4.76 after being north of 6.00 at the end of June.

Miller allowed three runs on two hits and a walk while retiring only a single batter in relief during Friday's 7-6 win over the Nationals.

Miller was tasked with the bottom of the ninth inning in a non-save situation with the Cubs up 7-3. However, things quickly went awry for the righty, and Chicago eventually turned to Drew Smyly and then Keegan Thompson to record the last two outs of the frame, with the latter picking up the save. Miller saw his ERA climb from 1.64 to 2.17 in the process. His previous success suggests he'll bounce back quickly from the rough outing, as this was the first time he allowed a run since late July, breaking a streak of 11 straight scoreless appearances.

Sewald allowed two runs on two hits while striking out one over 1.2 innings in Friday's 10-9 loss to the Dodgers.

The Diamondbacks didn't have all bullpen arms available -- Ryan Thompson and Justin Martinez worked the previous two days -- and manager Torey Lovullo wanted to save Kevin Ginkel and A.J. Puk in case Arizona took a lead, the manager told Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports. As such, Lovullo went with Sewald in a high-leverage situation -- two on and one out in the seventh inning. Sewald retired the first batter faced before giving up a three-run home run to Will Smith. An inning later, Shohei Ohtani took Sewald deep. That second blast turned out to be the difference maker, as Arizona got within one with a four-run ninth inning. Sewald has now allowed five earned runs in his last three appearances.

Oller allowed two hits and two walks while striking out eight over six scoreless innings in a no-decision versus the Giants on Friday.

Oller threw 53 of 90 pitches for strikes to earn his first quality start since Aug. 27, 2022. His strong effort went to waste when Mike Baumann allowed three runs in the eighth inning, denying Oller his second win of the year. Oller is at a 3.31 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 16:8 K:BB over 16.1 big-league innings. He's tentatively projected to make his next start at home versus the Phillies in what's likely to be a challenging matchup.

Rogers (3-4) pitched a perfect inning to earn the win Friday over the Marlins.

Rogers got three groundouts in the top of the eighth inning, and Matt Chapman's three-run double gave the Giants a lead in the bottom of the frame. Aside from a disastrous outing Aug. 23 versus the Mariners, Rogers has been sharp this month -- he hasn't allowed a run in any of his other August appearances. For the season, he has a 3.06 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 45:4 K:BB over 61.2 innings while adding a save and 29 holds. Rogers also leads the majors in appearances with 68, matching his total from each of the last two years, though he's more frequently been asked to get less than three outs in 2024.

Walker struck out two in a perfect inning to earn the save in Friday's 3-1 win over the Marlins.

Walker has allowed just one unearned run on seven hits and two walks over his last 14.2 innings, striking out 27 in that span. He's picked up all five of his saves this year over his last eight appearances, and it doesn't look like Walker will be letting go of the closer role any time soon. He's now at a 1.92 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 92:15 K:BB through 70.1 innings this season. Walker's 67 appearances have him tied for second in the majors with Houston's Bryan Abreu and trailing only his Giants teammate Tyler Rogers (68), who earned the win Friday.

Avila (5-1) retired both batters he faced, including one via strikeout, to earn the win Friday over the Pirates.

Avila got the last two outs of the fifth inning after starter Ben Lively was chased following a barrage of hits from the Pirates in that frame. The Guardians replied with a four-run rally of their own and led the rest of the way, giving Avila his second win in 14 appearances this month. He's allowed six runs on 12 hits and five walks while striking out 16 over 14.2 innings in that span. For the year, Avila has done fairly well in a middle-relief role with a 3.95 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 74:31 K:BB over 70.2 innings between the Guardians and the Padres.

Martin earned the save in Friday's 7-5 extra-inning win over the Tigers, allowing one unearned run while logging a strikeout in the 10th.

After Kenley Jansen blew a save in the ninth inning, the Red Sox responded with three runs in the top of the 10th, setting up Martin for the save chance. The right-hander would allow the free runner to score, but Martin would hold the Tigers there, earning his second save on the campaign. The 38-year-old Martin sports a 2.72 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 41:2 K:BB across 36.1 innings while working primarily in a setup role this season.

Jansen (4-2) blew the save but picked up the win in Friday's 7-5 extra-inning win over Detroit, allowing a run on two hits in the ninth. He struck out two.

Called in to protect a one-run lead, Jansen gave up a leadoff single to Zach McKinstry before Jake Rogers laced a one-out double, tying the game at 4-4 and sticking Jansen with his fourth blown save this year. However, he'd wind up with the win after Boston responded with three runs in the top of the 10th. It's the first blown save in over a month for Jansen, who had allowed just two runs on two hits in his last 10 innings prior to Friday. The veteran closer has converted 25 of 29 save chances this year with a 2.98 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 56:15 K:BB across 48.1 innings.