MLB Player News

Civale (5-7) was tagged with the loss Friday against the White Sox after allowing four runs on six hits and a walk across 2.1 innings. He struck out four.

Civale worked behind Jacob Lopez, who tossed 1.2 scoreless innings as the opener, but he didn't have his best stuff against one of the hottest lineups in the American League. Civale has dropped his last six starts, posting an inflated 10.17 ERA over 23 innings in that stretch. Civale doesn't look like the pitcher who posted a 2.70 ERA over his first nine starts of the campaign. He's tabbed to make his next start on the road against the Diamondbacks on Monday, July 20.

Okamoto went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in Friday's 5-3 win over the Padres.

Okamoto has three homers and eight RBI over his last four games. The third baseman has often collected his homers in bunches this season, and he's up to 22 on the year. He's batting .238 with a .786 OPS, 62 RBI, 49 runs scored, 11 doubles and no stolen bases through 91 contests in a near-everyday role.

Caminero went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, a double, a walk and an additional run scored in Friday's 7-2 win over the Mariners.

Caminero went yard for a second straight game, and the star third baseman extended his impressive power stretch -- he's launched five homers in 10 games since the beginning of July and 13 over his last 17. Caminero now has 28 homers on the year and is hitting .280 with a .927 OPS across 92 games.

Varland allowed a run on three hits and struck out one over one inning to earn the save in Friday's 5-3 win over the Padres.

Varland was scored upon for just the second time in his last 11.1 innings, and he also has an 18:3 K:BB during that span. However, he was able to convert the save despite the rough performance. Varland is 19-for-19 in save chances with a 1.10 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 67:13 K:BB through 49 innings this season.

Bieber allowed two runs on six hits and three walks while striking out four over 4.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Padres on Friday.

Bieber did better in this outing than his last one, but it was still an inefficient performance. He threw 54 of 97 pitches for strikes and wasn't able to stay in the game long enough to earn his first win. He's pitched to a 7.64 ERA and 13:10 K:BB across 17.2 innings over his four starts in the majors this season, and he's also allowed seven home runs. If Bieber continues to get hit hard, that will limit his effectiveness.

Martinez (8-2) earned the win Friday against the Mariners after allowing two runs on four hits and a walk across 5.1 innings, striking out one.

Martinez gave up a solo shot to Cole Young, his 11th of the year, in the top of the fifth inning, but that would be the only run the right-hander allowed. Martinez has allowed just one earned run in each of his past three starts, posting a blistering 1.65 ERA across 16.1 frames over that stretch. His next start should come against the Blue Jays on the road on Monday, July 20.

Castillo (3-8) took the loss Friday against the Rays, allowing four runs on nine hits and a walk while striking out four batters across five innings.

Castillo allowed three homers and has dropped three of his last five starts. However, the veteran hurler has given up two or fewer runs in seven of his last nine outings, so he's been pitching well lately, all things considered. Castillo saw his season ERA rise to 4.93 after this start, but he has a more respectable 3.90 ERA in six starts and 32.1 innings since the beginning of June.

DeLauter went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Friday's 3-2 win over the Marlins.

DeLauter launched his 10th long ball of the season in the fourth inning off Sandy Alcantara, and he's gone yard in three of his last five games. This two-hit performance also extended his current hitting streak to six games, with four multi-hit efforts and a .416 average (10-for-24) over that stretch.

Messick (8-5) earned the win Friday against the Marlins, tossing six innings of one-run ball during which he allowed one hit and issued four walks. He struck out one.

Messick delivered a solid outing and limited the damage to just one run on a solo home run by Heriberto Hernandez. However, the strikeout total was a season low for Messick, and his four walks were a season high. Messick has allowed two or fewer earned runs in four of his last five starts, and he'll carry a 2.73 ERA into his next start, tentatively scheduled for Sunday, July 19, at home against the Pirates.

Smith earned the save Friday against the Marlins after tossing a perfect ninth inning.

Smith didn't record a strikeout en route to his MLB-leading 28th save of the season, but he needed just nine pitches (seven strikes) to get the job done in the bottom of the ninth. Smith has yet to allow a hit in five appearances so far in July while posting a 4:1 K:BB across five innings.