MLB Player News

King (shoulder) could throw off a mound by this weekend, Joseph Hoyt of the Dallas Morning News reports.

King began a throwing program this week, but the Rangers won't determine the next steps until they see him on the mound. The left-hander was placed on the 10-day injured list prior to the All-Star break while building up to become a starter.

Pressly struck out one over a scoreless ninth inning in Wednesday's 5-4 loss to Cleveland.

Houston manager Dusty Baker brought Pressly in for a non-save situation, as the closer hasn't thrown much lately. He saved Monday's game, which was the closer's first action since July 10. With the team not playing Thursday, Pressly should be available when the Astros open a home series against the Rangers on Friday.

Bard struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Wednesday to record his 15th save of the season in a 6-3 win over the Mariners.

The flamethrowing right-hander is a perfect 4-for-4 on save chances in July, and Bard has only been scored upon once in his last nine appearances. On the season, the 36-year-old sports a 3.86 ERA, 1.49 WHIP and 50:18 K:BB through 39.2 innings.

Barlow struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Wednesday to record his fifth save of the season in a 6-3 win over the Brewers.

He needed only 11 pitches (seven strikes) to carve through the bottom of Milwaukee's order. Barlow has three of his saves in July, and while he's also been charged with two blown saves this month, both came in set-up situations and not in the ninth inning. The Royals will likely continue to mix and match in the closer spot, but at the moment Barlow seems to be the top option as only Greg Holland has also picked up a save this month.

Strahm (knee) is slated to begin a rehab stint with Triple-A El Paso on Friday, per MLB.com.

Strahm has yet to pitch this season after undergoing knee surgery last October. He has thrown a handful of bullpen sessions, however, and recently advanced to tossing a simulated game. Strahm will likely need a fair amount of time to get his arm game-ready considering his lengthy layoff, but he appears on track to rejoin the Padres in the coming weeks. He could emerge as a key addition to the bullpen after registering a 2.61 ERA and 0.87 WHIP across 20.2 innings last season.

Karinchak fired a perfect ninth inning en route to earn the save in the win over the Astros on Wednesday.

Karinchak retired the side in the ninth inning, getting all three batters to pop up in the infield. The 25-year-old recorded his 11th save, tying teammate Emmanuel Clase for most on the team. Cleveland's closing situation has been somewhat inconsistent and the save opportunities usually go to Clase or Karinchak depending on the matchup. Karinchak hasn't struck anyone out over his last three appearances, which is uncharacteristic considering his 14.5 K/9. The 25-year-old has 2.55 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP across 42.1 innings.

Morgan allowed three earned runs on three hits while striking out five across five innings in the win over the Astros on Wednesday. He did not factor into the decision.

Morgan was perfect through three innings and had allowed only a pair of hits through five frames. Unfortunately, both of those hits were home runs. In addition, he surrendered a leadoff double in the sixth inning before being pulled and the runner came around to score. He tossed five innings for the fifth time in a row, and he has now allowed three runs in three straight starts. However, this was the 25-year-old's best start of his career with just three batters reaching base off him. He still has a bad ERA of 7.47 in 31.1 innings but a decent K/BB of 6.6.

Jansen (1-3) earned the loss and blown save in Wednesday's 4-2 defeat at the hands of the Giants, allowing three runs on three hits, two walks and a strikeout in one third of an inning.

Jansen entered in the ninth to protect a 2-1 lead and immediately surrendered a single and two-run home run to blow that before allowing three more runners to reach base while recording just one out. This was far and away Jansen's worst outing of the year, as the three runs allowed increased his season total by 50 percent and bumped his ERA from 1.45 to 2.15.

Shaw (3-3) allowed one earned run on two hits while striking out one across one inning, getting the win over the Astros on Wednesday.

Shaw entered the sixth inning with a two-run lead and a runner on second. He allowed a double to Jose Altuve and surrendered another single in the inning to tie the game. Cleveland took the lead back in the seventh to give Shaw the win. The 33-year-old allowed a run for just the third time over his last 13 appearances. During that stretch, he has a 1.91 ERA and 18 strikeouts over 14.1 innings. This season, he has a 2.98 ERA and a 11.3 K/9 in 42.1 innings.

Barnes pitched a perfect inning against Toronto on Wednesday, striking out one batter to earn the save.

The right-hander entered in the ninth inning with the task of preserving a three-run lead and did so with ease, needing only 11 pitches to set down the side in order. The save was his first since July 4 in only his second appearance since that date. Barnes has allowed only one earned run over his past 10 appearances and has a solid 2.54 ERA on the campaign.