Gage will serve as the Giants' opener for Friday's game against Washington, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Gage will likely handle the first inning or two of Friday's contest, with Kai-Wei Teng as the top candidate to serve as a bulk reliever. In seven appearances with the Giants this season, Gage hasn't allowed a run and owns an 8:3 K:BB across 9.1 innings.

Sewald (shoulder) said he "felt great" after a recent throwing session and is optimistic that he can play a key role for the Tigers toward the end of the regular season and into the playoffs, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

Sewald, who was transferred to the 60-day injured list after coming over from the Guardians in a July 31 trade, is ineligible to return until Sept. 10. While that doesn't give the veteran righty a lot of time to impact fantasy squads, he might help the Tigers in real life once he fully recovers from his moderate teres major strain. With Tommy Kahnle struggling recently, the team could use another battle-tested bullpen option, and Sewald has World Series experience from his time with the Diamondbacks in 2023.

Perkins is slated to start Saturday's game against the Orioles at Camden Yards.

Perkins posted a 2.75 ERA while working as a reliever in his first eight MLB appearances, before being moved into the rotation this past weekend. In his first career start Sunday, the young righty struck out four over three innings but was tagged for four earned runs on five hits and three walks. The Athletics intend to develop him as a starter, so Perkins should have an extended runway in the rotation even after his inauspicious first start. Perkins tossed a season-high 62 pitches in that loss to the Diamondbacks, so he may have some kind of workload restriction in place for his second start.

Iglesias earned the save Thursday against the Marlins, working a perfect ninth inning with two strikeouts.

Called on to protect a two-run lead, Iglesias shut down the top of the Marlins order with ease. Over his last eight appearances, the veteran right-hander has posted a 1.13 ERA while allowing just five total baserunners. He's up to 15 saves on the season and should remain locked into the closer role after Atlanta refrained from moving him at the trade deadline.

Alverado (suspension) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Thursday.

Alvarado was handed an 80-game PED suspension in mid-May and is now closing in on his return. The reliever is eligible to be activated Aug. 19 and will make some appearances with Lehigh Valley to get back up to speed. However, the southpaw will not reclaim the closer role for the Phillies, who acquired Jhoan Duran at the trade deadline.

The Astros designated Contreras for assignment Thursday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

The Astros sent Contreras down to Triple-A on Sunday, and he'll now be stripped of his spot on the 40-man roster in favor of Enyel De Los Santos, who signed a major-league deal with the team on Thursday. Contreras carries a 6.75 ERA and 1.58 WHIP through 12 innings in the big leagues this season, but his 3.34 ERA in the minors may be enough for another team to take a chance on him.

The Astros optioned Hernandez to Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Although he's pitched two scoreless innings since being elevated from Triple-A on Friday, Hernandez will head back to the minors in order to make room for the newly signed Enyel De Los Santos. Hernandez boasts a 1.70 ERA and 0.97 WHIP through 37 innings at Sugar Land, and if he continues at that pace, he more than likely will find himself back in Houston later this season.

De Los Santos signed a one-year, major-league contract with the Astros on Thursday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

De Los Santos elected free agency after being DFA'd by Atlanta on July 30, and he'll now find a new home in the Astros' bullpen. The 29-year-old owns a 4.53 ERA and 1.31 WHIP through 43.2 innings this season and is likely ticketed for a middle-relief role in Houston. In order to clear roster space, the Astros optioned Nick Hernandez to Triple-A Sugar Land and designated Luis Contreras for assignment.

The Cardinals claimed Alcala off waivers from the Red Sox on Thursday.

Alcala has split time between the Twins and Red Sox this season, posting a 6.64 ERA and 46:23 K:BB over 40.2 frames. The 30-year-old reliever cannot be optioned to the minors, so he will go onto to the Cardinals' active roster. St. Louis will have to make a corresponding transaction once Alcala officially reports to the club.

The White Sox designated Varland (undisclosed) for assignment Thursday.

Varland had been on the White Sox's 40-man roster all season, but he had pitched exclusively in the minors before landing on Triple-A Charlotte's injured list in July. Over 5.1 innings with Charlotte, Varland posted a 5.01 ERA and 1.96 WHIP. He made his last appearance for the affiliate June 28 and was later shifted to the 60-day IL, so the White Sox apparently weren't counting on him pitching again until at least late August or early September. He's likely to go unclaimed off waivers and could go back on Charlotte's IL if he opts to stay in the organization and accept an outright assignment to Triple-A.