MLB Player News

Alexander (3-2) allowed one hit while striking out one over two-thirds of a scoreless inning to earn the win Friday against Baltimore.

Alexander took over for Nathan Eovaldi with one out in the sixth and prevented the Orioles from adding to their 1-0 advantage, retiring two of the three hitters he faced. Texas then moved ahead on Joc Pederson's two-run homer in the bottom half of the inning, putting Alexander in position for his third win of the campaign. The left-hander owns a 3.20 ERA and continues to operate as a versatile piece of the Rangers' pitching staff, though his role doesn't provide much appeal in standard mixed leagues. He has a 3-2 record and 11 holds while converting four of six chances in 2026.

Latz allowed two hits and a walk while striking out three over two scoreless innings to earn the save in Friday's 2-1 win over Baltimore.

Latz was asked to protect a one-run advantage for the final two frames and ultimately converted his 22nd save of the season, though the ninth inning provided some drama. Baltimore put the potential tying run in scoring position before Christian Franklin singled to right, but Brandon Nimmo threw Leody Taveras out at the plate. Latz clinched the save by striking out Christian Encarnacion-Strand to end the game. Latz has been reliable all season long for Texas, posting a 1.87 ERA and converting 22 of his 25 save chances.

Lovelady (triceps) threw a light bullpen session Friday, MLB.com reports.

Lovelady won't be eligible to return from the 60-day injured list until Aug. 28, but he could have a shot at returning on or around that date now that he's reached the point in his rehab that he's been able to get back on a mound. Before hitting the shelf June 29 due to a left triceps strain, Lovelady had notched four saves and nine holds while pitching to a 3.91 ERA and 1.87 WHIP in 27 appearances for Washington.

Thielbar allowed two runs on three hits while retiring just one batter in relief during Friday's 6-4 win over the Royals.

After seven strong innings from new Chicago starter Kevin Gausman in which he allowed just two runs, Thielbar quickly ran into some trouble in the eighth. The lefty got the hook before Trent Thornton finished out the frame to earn a hold. Thielbar has been struggling recently with a 17.18 ERA across his last five appearances, which has pushed his overall ERA up to 5.30. With Thornton, Jacob Webb and Ryan Zeferjahn all seemingly ahead of him in the bullpen pecking order, and Daniel Palencia (elbow) expected back soon, Thielbar doesn't have much fantasy appeal at the moment.

Smith walked one and struck out none in a scoreless and hitless inning to earn the save in Friday's 5-2 win over the Tigers.

This was the Giants' first save chance since the trade deadline, so it's notable Smith got the call to close and answered it with a decent performance. The right-hander took a loss in two of his first three appearances in August, and he's allowed two runs with a 2:3 K:BB over 3.1 innings this month. On the year, he's posted a 2.95 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 24:11 K:BB across 21.1 innings while adding two saves and six holds. Smith is the only reliever currently on the Giants' roster with multiple saves, so he may be the slight favorite to lead a closing committee for now. That said, the 49-67 Giants are not a team to target for saves in general.

Diaz (1-1) allowed two runs on one hit and one walk while logging one strikeout over one-third of an inning to take the loss and a blown save Friday versus the Diamondbacks.

Diaz walked Max Kepler and then served up a walk-off blast to Ryan Waldschmidt two batters later. Across three innings since he returned from an elbow injury, Diaz has allowed four runs with a 4:2 K:BB, converting one of his two save chances. His closer job isn't in doubt yet, but the seat is likely getting hot, especially given the quality performances of many other members of the Dodgers' bullpen. Diaz is carrying an 11.00 ERA while converting five of seven save chances over his nine innings this season.

Iglesias took a blown save in Friday's 3-2 extra-inning loss to the Yankees, allowing two runs on three hits and one walk while striking out two across two-thirds of an inning.

Neither team could score through the first seven innings of Friday's game, but Iglesias was brought in for the ninth to protect a two-run lead after solo home runs from Austin Riley and Matt Olson. Iglesias struck out two of the first three batters he faced, but he proceeded to allow the next three Yankees on base, including an RBI double from Austin Wells and an RBI single by Ben Rice, tying the game at 2-2. It was the third blown save chance of the season for Iglesias in 27 attempts, and he's given up two earned runs in both of his last two outings. He has a 3.02 ERA and 1.20 WHIP over 41.2 innings on the year.

Fermin was credited with the save in Friday's 4-3 win over the Marlins, allowing one run on three hits in the ninth inning.

Ben Joyce was already deployed for the eighth inning, so the Angels turned to Fermin to keep the 4-1 lead safe in the ninth. It was not smooth sailing for Fermin, who gave up three hits to the five batters he faced, though he escaped with just the one run given up after Leo Jimenez was thrown out at home for the final out of the game. It was the first save of Fermin's career, though he's given up at least one earned run in each of his last three outings and has a 3.29 ERA and 1.28 WHIP over 38.1 innings this season.

Baker allowed one run on one hit and struck out three over one inning to earn the save in Friday's 2-1 win over the Mariners.

He came into the game on a 13-inning scoreless streak dating back to June 27. Julio Rodriguez snapped that streak with a two-out homer, but Baker bounced back to strike out Josh Naylor to end the game. Baker continues to dominate in the closer role, having converted 33 of 36 chances this season, and he's picked up a save in 14 of his last 15 appearances. The right-hander has a stellar 1.59 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 51:15 K:BB through 45.1 innings on the year.

Phillips did not factor into the decision in Friday's loss to the Angels, allowing one run on five hits and one walk while striking out four across four innings.

Phillips gave up a solo home run to Mike Trout in the first inning, but that ended up being the only run that the right-hander yielded in Friday's start. Phillips was pulled from the game after giving up a single in the fifth inning and ended up tossing only 61 pitches (45 strikes) while inducing nine whiffs. He'll take a 3.47 ERA and 1.36 WHIP over 93.1 innings into his next start, which is lined up for next week at home against the Pirates.