MLB Player News

Holmes earned a hold against Tampa Bay on Saturday, allowing one hit in an inning of work.

After New York rallied to take a 3-2 lead in the top of the eighth inning, manager Aaron Boone turned to Holmes to face the heart of the Rays' order in the bottom of the frame. He gave up a leadoff single that was quickly erased on a double play and needed just seven pitches overall to get through the scoreless inning. However, rather than being kept in the game to go for a multi-inning save, Holmes was relieved by Ian Hamilton, who closed things out for his first career save. There was no changing of the guard here -- if anything, it was a testament to Boone's faith in Holmes that he brought him in to face the toughest part of Tampa's lineup -- but the outing was a reminder that Holmes won't always work the ninth inning. He had been struggling of late, so a positive spin is that the effective performance against MLB's top team could help the closer regain any diminished confidence.

Hamilton earned a save against the Rays on Saturday, allowing one hit and striking out one batter in a scoreless ninth inning.

After New York rallied to take a 3-2 lead in the top of the eighth inning, it turned to closer Clay Holmes to protect the advantage against the heart of Tampa's order in the bottom of the frame. He did so on just seven pitches, but rather than have Holmes go for a multi-inning save, manager Aaron Boone opted to bring in Hamilton to close things out with the score still 3-2 in the bottom of the ninth. Hamilton allowed a two-out double but got Isaac Paredes to fly out to end the contest and notch his first career save. The righty reliever has been fantastic for New York this season, posting a 1.42 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 23:7 K:BB over 19 innings. Based on those numbers and his surprise ninth-inning usage Saturday, it wouldn't be surprising if he starts to see more high-leverage work, though Holmes and Michael King remain the prime candidates for saves in the Yankees' bullpen.

Davidson tossed two-thirds of an inning against Texas on Saturday, allowing seven runs on seven hits and one walk.

The game wasn't completely out of reach for the Angels when Davidson entered in the ninth inning, as they were down 3-0 at the time. By the end of the frame, the team had deployed position player Brett Phillips to the mound after Davidson allowed seven straight batters to reach base with two outs. Five of those came around to score while the the southpaw was in the contest, and two more crossed the plate after he departed, resulting in an unsightly seven runs charged to his final tally. Davidson entered Saturday with a 2.25 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over seven appearances -- those numbers are now 5.94 and 1.62, respectively.

Texas manager Bruce Bochy said Smith will remain pitching in high-leverage situations following Friday's blown save, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

In Smith's first appearance after he was anointed as the team's closer -- taking over for Jose Leclerc -- the left-hander was rocked by the Angels in Friday's 5-4 extra-inning loss. However, Smith retains the confidence of the manager, who's seen the bullpen during a 13-game stretch either blow a lead or turn a tied game into a deficit in the seventh inning or later six times. There aren't many dependable arms for Bochy to choose from to close out games, so Smith should be safe.

Chafin allowed three runs and an inherited runner to score on four hits and picked up a blown save in Saturday's 8-7 win over Washington.

Chafin was part of a bullpen implosion that let a 6-2 lead entering the ninth inning slip away. Fortunately for Arizona's closer, Chafin avoided the loss when his teammates mounted their own comeback in the bottom of the frame. The left-hander, who's converted five of seven save chances, has pitched better (2.50 SIERA, 2.36 xFIP) than his 4.26 ERA suggests.

Finnegan (1-2) took the loss and blew the save against the Diamondbacks on Saturday, allowing two runs on two hits and three walks over one-third of an inning.

Washington mounted an impressive ninth-inning comeback Saturday, scoring five runs in the top of the frame to take a 7-6 lead. However, Finnegan couldn't close the door on Arizona, serving up a leadoff homer to Lourdes Gurriel and retiring just one batter before the winning run crossed the plate. Finnegan's problems were largely due to his lack of control -- he threw just eight of 17 pitches for a strike and walked three batters (one intentionally), with the final blow being a walkoff free pass issued to Pavin Smith. The outing lifted Finnegan's season ERA to an ugly 6.75, though he likely has some cushion as the team's closer since he has converted seven of nine opportunities on the campaign. The right-hander has had two bad blow-ups this season (including Saturday's), but in his other 13 appearances he's posted a 2.13 ERA over 12.2 frames.

Jansen allowed one hit and struck out one batter in a scoreless inning against the Phillies on Saturday to earn a save.

Jansen appears to be past a back injury that sidelined him late last week and into the beginning of this week, as he pitched for the second straight day Saturday. The veteran closer was sharp against Philadelphia, throwing 11 of 14 pitches for a strike and allowing just an infield single. Jansen has been dominant in his first season with Boston, allowing only one earned run and posting a 16:4 K:BB over 10.2 innings while converting eight of nine save chances. He's now at 399 saves for his career -- with his next one, he'll become the seventh pitcher in MLB history to reach 400.

Montero (0-1) allowed four earned runs on three hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning to take the loss Saturday against the Mariners.

Montero was tasked with protecting a three-run lead in the eighth inning, and he retired the first two batters he faced. However, he allowed the next four batters he faced to reach base -- two of which were on infield singles -- to suffer the ugly line and his first loss of the campaign. Montero has otherwise been solid, as he had turned in scoreless appearances in 10 of his 14 previous opportunities.

Iglesias picked up a save against the Orioles on Saturday with a perfect inning during which he struck out two batters.

Iglesias was reinstated from the injured list Friday and didn't have to wait long for his first save opportunity. The right-hander got the ninth inning in his season debut Saturday and protected a one-run lead with aplomb, throwing 10 of 13 pitches for a strike and fanning the first two batters he faced. A.J. Minter -- who filled as Atlanta's closer while Iglesias was out of commission -- handled the eighth inning and got the win Saturday, which is a further indication that Iglesias will likely have closing duties to himself moving forward.

Gallegos (1-2) allowed an unearned run on three hits and struck out one without walking a batter in two innings, taking the extra-inning loss Saturday versus the Tigers.

Gallegos was bailed out by a double play in the ninth inning, but he didn't have the same luck when Akil Baddoo hit an RBI double in the 10th. Ryan Helsley (knee) was unavailable Saturday, which likely factored in the decision to give Gallegos multiple innings in this appearance. Over his last four outings, the right-hander has surrendered five runs (four earned) and taken two losses over 4.1 innings. He's at a 2.84 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 12:2 K:BB through 12.2 frames this season. If Helsley's knee issue requires more than just a couple of days, Gallegos would likely get a look for save opportunities despite his poor pitching recently.