MLB Player News

Kelly picked up a hold against Seattle on Monday, striking out one batter in a perfect inning of work.

Kelly served as the bridge between starter Gavin Stone (who pitched seven scoreless innings) and Evan Phillips (who handled the ninth for a save). Though Kelly missed over two months from early May to mid-July due to a shoulder injury, he ranks second on the Dodgers with 13 holds. The right-hander has posted a 4.88 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 28:11 K:BB over 24 innings on the campaign.

Matzek (elbow) began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Sacramento last week and has given up two runs (one earned) on one hit and one walk while striking out a batter across two innings over his two appearances.

Matzek had resided on Atlanta's injured list since early May while recovering from elbow inflammation before he was dealt to San Francisco on July 29. The left-hander completed his throwing progression shortly after joining his new organization and is now in the midst of a rehab assignment that could be extended into September if the Giants aren't satisfied with his results at Sacramento. He's scheduled to make his next appearance for the Triple-A club Tuesday, according to MLB.com.

Beck (arm) struck out four and allowed four earned runs on five hits and no walks over three innings in his most recent rehab start Sunday with Triple-A Sacramento.

Beck has now covered three innings in each of his three rehab starts with Sacramento, logging a 5.00 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 11:1 K:BB. According to MLB.com, Beck is scheduled to make his next start for Sacramento on Friday and is likely to work 4-to-5 innings. Though Beck appears to be getting stretched out for a traditional starting role as he works his way back from an the upper right arm aneurysm that he had addressed surgically in early March, the Giants likely won't have a spot available in the rotation for the right-hander once he completes his rehab assignment.

Triple-A Buffalo placed Rodriguez on its 7-day injured list Friday with an unspecified injury.

The Blue Jays optioned Rodriguez to Buffalo on Aug. 11, but he didn't make any appearances for the Triple-A club before being deactivated. If his injury proves to be a season-ending concern, the Blue Jays could rescind Rodriguez's option to Triple-A and place him on the major-league 60-day IL at some point to open up an extra spot on the 40-man roster.

Atlanta transferred Minter (hip) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Tuesday.

The transaction clears a spot on the 40-man roster for the addition of new signee Gio Urshela. Minter needs surgery to repair his left hip and will miss the rest of the season.

Hader (6-6) didn't allow a baserunner in a scoreless ninth inning to earn the win Monday against Boston.

Hader entered the game in the ninth inning with the score knotted at 4-4. He turned in his 10th consecutive scoreless appearance -- covering 10.1 innings -- during which he's maintained a 12:3 K:BB while also recording seven saves and two wins. Though Hader has a relatively inflated 3.36 ERA for the season, his 0.91 WHIP is his lowest mark since 2021.

The Cubs selected Neely's contract from Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday, Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com reports.

Acquired from the Yankees in the Mark Leiter trade, Neely has collected a 2.42 ERA and 76:17 K:BB over 48.1 innings between the Double- and Triple-A levels in 2024. The 24-year-old will likely be used in low-leverage spots initially, but he could work his way into a more prominent role as part of an unsettled Cubs bullpen. Neely will be making his major-league debut when/if he gets into a game.

Astros manager Joe Espada said that Pressly (back) played catch Monday, MLB.com reports.

Pressly was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday with a lower-back strain, but the fact that he resumed throwing two days later bodes well for his chances of rejoining the Astros when first eligible Aug. 29. Espada said that the right-hander had been nursing the back strain for about two weeks before he was deactivated over the weekend.

Murfee experienced soreness in his surgically repaired right elbow following his rehab appearance with Single-A Fayetteville on Thursday and will be held back from throwing for another day or two, MLB.com reports.

The Astros haven't pulled Murfee off his rehab assignment, but it's possible he doesn't make his next appearance until later this week or next week while he waits for the soreness to fully subside. In his first outing since undergoing Tommy John surgery last July, Murfee gave up four earned runs on three hits and one walk while retiring just one batter in his 19-pitch appearance with Fayetteville.

Urena (4-8) scooped up a win while working in long relief in Monday's 4-3 victory over the Pirates covering four scoreless innings and striking out three batters. He scattered two hits and two walks.

After starting in his last three appearances and taking losses each time out, Urena was moved to the bullpen Monday with the Rangers opting to keep Cody Bradford and Dane Dunning in place as back-end starters in the rotation. Dunning opened Monday's game and gave up three runs over four innings prior to getting piggybacked by Urena, who was able to maintain the Rangers' one-run lead for the next four innings before handing the ball off to closer Kirby Yates in the bottom of the ninth. Though Urena could have a chance at poaching more wins if the Rangers continue to deploy him in tandem with Dunning in the latter's future starts, manager Bruce Bochy is likely to be more flexible with his usage of Urena, making it difficult to stream him with much reliability.