MLB Player News

Bautista picked up the save in Thursday's 3-0 victory over the Rays. He allowed zero runs on zero hits and zero walks while striking out three over 1.1 innings.

Bautista came on in the eighth inning with runners on second and third and struck out Randy Arozarena to end the frame before breezing through the ninth, earning his first save since May 12 and his third overall. The reliever hasn't allowed a run or a hit over his last eight appearances and sports a 14:1 K:BB during that stretch. Jorge Lopez is still the Orioles' closer -- unless he gets shipped out at the trade deadline -- but Bautista got the opportunity Thursday after Lopez took the loss in his last outing.

Yarbrough (0-6) took the loss Thursday, allowing one run on four hits and zero walks over six innings against the Orioles. He struck out eight.

Yarbrough set a season high with eight strikeouts and finished at least six innings while allowing one or fewer runs for the first time this season. However, the lefty didn't get any run support in a 3-0 loss. Yarbrough sports a 5.11 ERA with a 34:13 K:BB and is tentatively scheduled to pitch next Wednesday against the Blue Jays.

Barnes (shoulder) retired all three batters he faced, including two by strikeout, in the fourth inning for Double-A Portland on Thursday.

Barnes made his seventh rehab outing Thursday and is seemingly close to returning to the majors. The organization has scheduled him to throw back-to-back days so he's expected to appear Friday as well, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. When relievers on rehab pitch back-to-back days, that's typically the final step before their activation.

Martin was not used in a save situation Thursday, as Matt Moore closed out a 2-0 win over the Angels.

It's not clear if Martin was available, as he pitched on consecutive days leading into the game but had thrown only 18 pitches in total Tuesday and Wednesday. He has been filling in as the Rangers' closer, but the left-hander's most recent work may have played a role in not being used Thursday. Martin's given up seven runs (five earned) on nine hits and two walks over 5.1 innings spanning his last four appearances.

Pressly earned a save against the Mariners on Thursday, allowing one hit and striking out two batters in a scoreless inning.

Pressly allowed a two-out single before striking out Cal Raleigh to preserve the 4-2 win. He fanned multiple batters for the sixth time in his past eight contests, which is particularly notable since he accomplished that feat only twice through his first 19 outings of the campaign. Pressly hasn't allowed a run in any of his past 10 appearances, and he has yielded only one hit while posting a 19:0 K:BB and picking up two wins along with seven saves over 11 innings during that span.

Barlow (4-3) allowed a solo home run in one-third of an inning to take the loss in Thursday's 1-0 defeat at the hands of the Yankees.

The Yankees had only four baserunners all game, but the last one was a home run trot for Aaron Judge when he took Barlow deep in the ninth inning. Entering Thursday, Barlow hadn't allowed a run in his last 10 innings. Since the game was tied when he began his appearance, he'll avoid a blown save -- the Royals' closer is 16-for-18 in save chances this year. He's added a 2.11 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 45:12 K:BB through 47 innings overall as a reliable part of an otherwise shaky bullpen group that ranks fourth-worst in the majors with a 4.53 ERA.

Romano earned a save over the Tigers on Thursday, pitching 1.1 perfect innings. He didn't strike out any batters.

A vast majority of Romano's appearances this season have been one inning or less, but he was brought in with two outs in the eighth frame Thursday to face Jeimer Candelario with the go-ahead run on first base. Romano got Candelario out, then set down the side in order in the ninth inning to finish off the save. This was the right-hander's 22nd save of the season and the third in which he's recorded more than three outs.

Doval allowed a hit and struck out three in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Thursday's 4-2 win over the Cubs.

This was Doval's second appearance since the All-Star break -- the Giants' seven-game losing streak entering Thursday had limited the need for manager Gabe Kapler to deploy the closer. Through 8.1 innings in July, Doval's been a little shaky, allowing four runs (two earned), eight hits and four walks while racking up 12 strikeouts. He's 13-for-15 in save chances with a 2.81 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 52:17 K:BB across 41.2 innings this season. This was the 25-year-old's first save in a month.

Dominguez recorded two outs without allowing a baserunner to earn his sixth save of the season Thursday against the Pirates.

The Phillies entered the ninth inning with a comfortable 8-2 lead, but Jeurys Familia allowed five earned runs on four hits and a walk to make the game interesting. Dominguez managed to get the last two outs of the contest without incident to record his sixth save of the season. Though the Phillies have used a committee to fill the closer role, Dominguez has converted three of the team's last four saves. He's been in good form across the last month, maintaining a 2.00 ERA with a 9:4 K:BB in nine innings.

Moore allowed a hit in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Thursday's 2-0 win over the Angels.

Brett Martin had pitched three of the last four days and was presumably unavailable for Thursday's save chance. Moore gave up a one-out single to Luis Rengifo but didn't give up anything else to secure his second save of the season. Through 12 innings this month, Moore has allowed four runs (one earned), nine hits, four walks and a hit-by-pitch while striking out 11. He's maintained a 1.70 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 52:24 K:BB through 47.2 innings while adding four holds and a 4-2 record. Given his solid pitching this year, the veteran southpaw could be traded prior to Tuesday's deadline, though his multi-inning capability makes it a bit less likely that he'll see significant high-leverage chances.