MLB Player News

Howard (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Howard has missed over a month with a strained right oblique. It's unclear how many rehab appearances he'll need to make, but he doesn't need to build up a high pitch count as a reliever, so he could be back before too long.

Farmer was released by the Tigers on Tuesday.

Farmer passed through waivers unclaimed and will now have to search for a new suitor on his own, likely on a minor-league deal. The 30-year-old struggled to a 6.37 ERA this season while walking 12.3 percent of opposing batters. He now owns a career 5.33 ERA in parts of eight seasons at the highest level.

Armstrong's contract was selected by the Rays on Tuesday.

Armstrong was acquired in exchange for cash considerations from the Orioles at the deadline. He's been mediocre at best for most of his seven-year big-league career, posting a 4.65 ERA over 151 innings of work. Mike Brosseau was optioned to clear a space on the active roster, while Kevin Padlo was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man.

Herget signed a minor-league contract with the Angels on Tuesday, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

After electing free agency over the weekend when he cleared waivers, Herget quickly found a new opportunity with an American League West organization. Over his four relief appearances with Texas prior to being designated for assignment, the 27-year-old right-hander gave up four earned runs on five hits and no walks over four innings. He'll likely begin his tenure with the Angels at Triple-A Salt Lake.

The Red Sox reinstated Andriese (hamstring) from the 10-day injured list Tuesday and designated him for assignment.

Andriese looks to be healthy again after he recently completed a three-game rehab assignment, but rather than reporting to Boston, he'll stick around at Triple-A Worcester for the time being while waiting to see how the waiver process plays out. If Andriese goes unclaimed by MLB's other 29 teams, he could continue pitching out of the Worcester bullpen with the hope of earning a call-up to Boston during the final six weeks of the season. Over 37.1 innings in the majors this season, Andriese has posted a 6.03 ERA and 1.77 WHIP.

The Red Sox reinstated Taylor from the COVID-19-related injured list ahead of Tuesday's doubleheader versus the Yankees.

Taylor was on the COVID-19 IL for only two days, an indication that he never tested positive for the virus and was instead deactivated for contact-tracing reasons. With the reliever having cleared all health and safety protocols in quick fashion, he should be available out of the bullpen for the twin bill. Through 48 appearances on the season, Taylor has posted a 3.23 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 51:20 in 39 innings.

Atlanta optioned Webb to Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday.

Webb's demotion clears a spot on the active roster for starting pitcher Huascar Ynoa (hand), who was reinstated from the 60-day injured list ahead of his scheduled outing Tuesday in Miami. During his four-day stint with the big club, Webb made two appearances out of the Atlanta bullpen, tossing a scoreless frame in both outings.

Hendriks struck out the side in the ninth inning to record the save in Monday's 5-2 win over the Athletics.

Hendriks, who had allowed three home runs in his last two ninth-inning appearances, had no issues dispatching Oakland batters Monday. He was the third in a line of dominant relief performances, following Michael Kopech (two innings, three strikeouts) and Craig Kimbrel (one inning, three strikeouts). The save was Hendriks' 27th and allays concerns that built up over the previous two outings.

Fleming (10-6) picked up the win Monday, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk over 5.2 innings of relief in a 9-2 victory over the Orioles. He struck out two.

Collin McHugh worked two scoreless innings before Fleming entered the game, and the southpaw got the credit when the Rays took the lead for good in the fourth. Fleming has had a couple brutal outings in the second half but he's still gotten the win in four of his last seven appearances as he swings between starting and a bulk-relief role. On the season, he sports a 4.86 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 62:29 K:BB through 96.1 innings.

Castro (3-4) took the loss in Monday's 7-5 defeat at the hands of San Francisco, allowing two runs on two hits with two strikeouts in 1.1 innings.

Castro relieved Rich Hill with two on and two out in the fourth and induced a Tommy La Stella lineout to escape the threat, but he surrendered a Kris Bryant two-run home run in the fifth to fall in line for the loss. The earned runs were the first in August so far for Castro, who now has 3.38 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 56:29 K:BB in 50.2 innings this season.