MLB Player News

Blanco (elbow) struck out two over two perfect innings in a rehab appearance Tuesday with Triple-A Sugar Land.

After throwing 60 pitches and 4.1 innings in his third rehab outing last Wednesday with Double-A Corpus Christi, Blanco tossed 27 pitches (18 strikes) over two frames Tuesday before the game was called after the seventh inning due to inclement weather. While it's possible that Blanco was able to do some additional throwing in the locker room or bullpen to build on his workload, the abbreviated appearance could take him out of consideration to return from the 60-day injured list and fill the open spot in the Houston rotation this Sunday at Texas. If Blanco instead makes another rehab appearance later this weekend and if the Astros are satisfied with the quality of his stuff and his velocity, he'll likely be cleared to come off the IL following the All-Star break.

Sands (forearm) tossed a perfect inning in his rehab appearance with Triple-A St. Paul on Tuesday.

Initially placed on the injured list May 2 due to a right forearm strain, Sands was cleared to start a rehab assignment in early June but was pulled off of it after experiencing a setback following his lone appearance. Just over a month later, Sands was able to complete a throwing program and gain clearance to restart the minor-league assignment, and the results from his first outing on the farm were encouraging. He averaged 93.7 mph with his four-seam fastball Tuesday, just over a half-tick above his season average (93.0) over his 12 appearances with the Twins prior to landing on the shelf. Sands could be ready to rejoin the Minnesota bullpen following the All-Star break.

Hughes will start Wednesday's game against the Dodgers in Los Angeles, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Following his call-up from Triple-A Albuquerque last week, Hughes made his MLB debut out of the bullpen Friday, collecting a save while allowing three baserunners over three scoreless frames. The 24-year-old righty will now get the chance to make his first big-league start, joining the Colorado rotation as a replacement for the injured Tomoyuki Sugano (back). Prior to his promotion, Hughes had been working out of the Albuquerque rotation and posted a strong 48:11 K:BB in 40.2 innings, though pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League inflated his ERA (5.31) and WHIP (1.29).

Bruihl (ankle) logged two scoreless innings in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Brewers.

Bruihl had to be lifted from an outing Monday with a right ankle sprain, but he bounced back quickly and was available for the Cardinals' next game. Though he got off to a slow start this season, the lefty reliever has settled in nicely with a 1.31 ERA and 16:4 K:BB over 20.2 innings covering his last 15 appearances.

Cruz will serve as the Royals' opening pitcher for Wednesday's game against the Mets.

He'll draw his second start of the season, though Cruz is expected to work just one or two innings before giving way to the bullpen. Randy Dobnak hasn't been used since making a four-inning relief appearance last Thursday against the Rays, so the Royals could turn to him to cover multiple frames out of the bullpen once Cruz exits the contest.

Atlanta recalled Mederos from Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday.

Atlanta is swapping in Mederos for Connor Thomas, who was optioned to Triple-A after covering 3.2 innings out of the bullpen in Tuesday's loss to the Pirates. Mederos made one two-inning scoreless appearance for Atlanta earlier this season and holds a 5.40 ERA and 39:22 K:BB over 43.1 frames at the Triple-A level in 2026.

Atlanta optioned Thomas to Triple-A Gwinnett on Wednesday.

Thomas was called up Tuesday and allowed four runs over 3.2 innings in a loss to the Pirates. Atlanta is replacing him with a fresh bullpen arm, summoning Victor Mederos from Gwinnett.

Uribe recorded his sixth save of the season in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader sweep of the Cardinals, walking one and striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.

Trevor Megill had worked the prior two days and three of the last four, leaving him unavailable for closing duties in the afternoon contest, but Uribe is a more-than-capable alternative. It was Uribe's first save since May 19, but he's produced nine straight scoreless appearances, a stretch in which he's posted a 0.50 WHIP and 6:2 K:BB in 10 innings. He'll continue to be the next man up in the ninth inning whenever Megill is unavailable. With Milwaukee's primary closer headed into his final year of arbitration in 2027, it wouldn't be a shock to see Megill on the move at the trade deadline the way Josh Hader was in 2022, which would open the door for Uribe to take on the role full time.

Romano allowed a hit and a walk while striking out one over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Dodgers.

Romano made it interesting but was able to wiggle out of his own jam to earn his second save in as many appearances. He's now firmly in the closer conversation for the Rockies, though the team's overall struggles make this a risky bullpen for fantasy managers to pursue save chances. Romano has a 7.36 ERA, 1.91 WHIP and 17:7 K:BB through 11 innings between the Rockies and Angels this season, though he's pitched three scoreless frames since joining Colorado's big-league roster.

Miller earned a save against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, striking out two batters in a perfect inning.

Miller had a three-run cushion to work with when he entered in the ninth, and he mowed down a trio of Arizona batters on 14 pitches. The All-Star closer finished his outing with consecutive punchouts, marking the 24th time through 36 appearances that he's fanned multiple hitters. Miller has been arguably MLB's most dominant closer so far this season -- he ranks third in the league with 23 saves (without any blown saves) and holds a microscopic 0.96 ERA and 0.80 WHIP along with a dominant 69:13 K:BB across 37.2 frames.