MLB Player News

Hand worked around a hit to throw a scoreless ninth inning against the Tigers on Friday to earn his 13th save of the season. He struck out two.

The lefty needed 20 pitches, but he eventually shut the door and preserved the shutout after Zach Plesac and James Karinchak tossed eight scoreless innings. Early on, it looked like Karinchak might seize hold of the closer role, but Hand tightened his grip on the job with a stellar performance and has ended up as one of the better closer picks in fantasy baseball this season.

Loaisiga (3-0) allowed one run (zero earned) on one hit and one walk along with a punchout across two innings Friday as he picked up the win over the Red Sox.

Loaisiga entered in the 11th and instantly ran into trouble as he allowed Michael Chavis to advance to third on a wild pitch before he came in to score on a Christian Arroyo single. Loaisiga soon found himself in a bases-loaded jam with one out but was able to pitch himself out of it by striking out J.D. Martinez and getting Christian Vazquez to fly out. He came back out for the 12th after the Yankees were able to retake the lead in the top half of the inning and sent the Red Sox hitters down in order to pick up his third win of 2020. Loaisiga owns a 2.70 ERA and 21:5 K:BB across 20 innings, and he should see more work down the stretch while the Yankees push for a playoff spot.

Barnes blew his fourth save in Friday's extra-innings loss to the Yankees. He allowed one run on one hit while striking out one over one inning.

Boston's bullpen failed to support starter Martin Perez, who pitched a gem and left with a 4-0 lead. Barnes surrendered a game-tying home run to Gary Sanchez, the fourth home run he's allowed in 21.2 innings (1.7 HR/9).

Neris walked two batters in a scoreless seventh inning to record his fifth save of the season in an 8-7 win over the Blue Jays in the second game of Friday's doubleheader.

The right-hander continues to walk a tightrope with his control, but Neris has mostly been able to avoid any serious damage, posting a 1.93 ERA through 9.1 innings in September and converting all three of his save chances this month despite an 11:7 K:BB. He should be the top closing option for the Phillies over the final days of the regular season.

Weber (1-3) allowed two runs (zero earned) on three hits while striking out three across three innings in a 6-5 loss to the Yankees on Friday.

Weber entered in the 10th inning and got a quick 1-2-3 inning, but he came back out for the 11th after his team failed to score and immediately gave up a single to Luke Voit which brought around Mike Tauchman to put the Yankees up 5-4. The Red Sox were able to tie it back up once again and so Weber trotted back out for the 12th and surrendered a two-out double to DJ LeMahieu to put the Yankees back up again. The Red Sox were unable to match it in the bottom of the inning, giving Weber his third loss of 2020. The right-hander has a 4.76 ERA and a troublesome 24:14 K:BB across 39.2 innings this season.

Ponce de Leon didn't factor into the decision in the second game of Friday's doubleheader against the Pirates, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out nine.

It was the second straight outing in which Ponce de Leon fanned nine batters while giving up only two runs, but he wasn't rewarded with the win in either as the Cards waited until he was out of the game to take the lead in both contests. The right-hander has a 3.86 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 22:4 K:BB over 14 innings in September, and he's currently scheduled for one more start in the regular season during a doubleheader against the Brewers on Sept. 25.

Helsley walked two batters without allowing a run in two-thirds of an inning to record his first save of the season in a 6-5 win over the Pirates in the first game of Friday's doubleheader.

Alex Reyes got the first out of the seventh inning before handing the ball to Helsley, who loaded the bases with two outs thanks to a Paul DeJong error sandwiched between the free passes. The right-hander was then able to escape the jam by getting John Ryan Murphy to fly out to end the game. Helsley has not pitched well at all since coming off the COVID-19 list, posting an 11.81 ERA, 2.63 WHIP and 2:6 K:BB over 5.1 innings while going 1-for-3 on save chances, but he will apparently remain in the high-leverage mix for manager Mike Shildt.

Stiever (0-1) took the loss after giving up four home runs to the Reds on Friday. He allowed six runs on five hits and two walks over 2.2 innings.

Stiever made his second start and was unable to avoid damage like he did the first time out. The Reds ambushed the 23-year-old right-hander in a five-run third inning, launching three homers. With Dallas Keuchel (back) set to return to the rotation Saturday, it's unlikely the White Sox will need Stiever for starting duty the rest of the way unless another injury crops up.

Crochet struck out two over a scoreless inning in Friday's 7-1 loss to the Reds.

Crochet, the White Sox's first-round pick (11th overall) in the 2020 draft, made his major-league debut in the sixth inning with Chicago down by six runs. The 21-year-old threw six of 13 pitches at 100 MPH or harder, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports. Chicago general manager Rick Hahn said that Crochet will pitch out of the bullpen over the final 10 games to see if the left-hander can help the club during the postseason. Crochet is still viewed long term as a starter.

Castano allowed three runs on five hits and no walks while striking out one over 4.1 innings in Game 2 of Friday's doubleheader against the Nationals. He didn't factor into the decision.

Castano made his sixth start of the season during Friday's nightcap and was relatively effective. He gave up two runs in the first inning and allowed one more run in the fifth inning prior to his removal from the game. The southpaw now has a 3.86 ERA over 23.1 innings this season, but it's unclear whether he'll make another start in 2020.