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Jhoan Duran RP | PHI
Phillies' Jhoan Duran: Secures 18th save
Duran tossed a perfect inning and earned the save in Saturday's win over the Brewers. He struck out one.
Duran is on the verge of reaching at least 20 saves for the fourth consecutive season, and he should be able to hit that mark before the All-Star break. One of the best closers in the National League, Duran has gone 18-for-19 in save chances while posting a 1.90 ERA and 0.97 WHIP across 23.2 innings and 25 appearances this season.
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Jasson Dominguez RF | NYY
Yankees' Jasson Dominguez: Goes yard in return
Dominguez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Blue Jays.
Activated from the IL earlier in the day, Dominguez produced the Yankees' only hit off Kevin Gausman when he hooked a splitter down the right-field line in the fourth inning for his second homer of the season in 10 games. Dominguez got the start in right field and hit second Saturday, and the 23-year-old figures to maintain a prime spot in the lineup due to Aaron Judge (ribs) and Trent Grisham (hamstring) both being sidelined.
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David Bednar RP | NYY
Yankees' David Bednar: Secures 14th save
Bednar struck out the side in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his 14th save of the season in a 3-1 win over the Blue Jays.
The Yankees closer got Andres Gimenez and Nathan Lukes to flail away at splitters, while he fanned George Springer on a 97.5 mph fastball. Bednar held a 5.14 ERA on May 18, but since then he's reeled off seven straight scoreless appearances, allowing just two hits in 7.2 innings with an 11:3 K:BB over that span to lower his ERA to a more palatable 3.77.
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Cam Schlittler SP | NYY
Yankees' Cam Schlittler: Stingy in no-decision Saturday
Schlittler didn't factor into the decision Saturday in a 3-1 win over the Blue Jays, allowing one run on six hits and four walks over seven innings. He struck out seven.
The right-hander dialed up his ninth quality start of the season on 101 pitches (65 strikes), but Schlittler's four free passes were a season high as he issued more than two walks in an outing for the first time since May 4. The breakout star will take a 1.82 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 96:18 K:BB through 89 innings into his next start, which is scheduled to come at home next weekend against the Reds.
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Royce Lewis 1B | MIN
Twins' Royce Lewis: Keeps raking Saturday
Lewis went 2-for-4 with a double and a solo home run in Saturday's 9-6 loss to the Cardinals.
The 27-year-old continues to rake since returning to the majors in early June. After an 0-for-3 showing in his first game back, Lewis has hit safely in six straight contests, batting .435 (10-for-23) with two doubles, three homers, four runs and four RBI. Five of those seven starts have come at first base, and that appears to be Lewis' new defensive home while Brooks Lee remains at third base.
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Byron Buxton CF | MIN
Twins' Byron Buxton: Goes yard again Saturday
Buxton went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 9-6 loss to the Cardinals.
The center fielder took Matthew Liberatore deep in the fourth inning to get the Twins on the board. Buxton's been locked in since a collision with the outfield wall cost him two games last weekend -- since returning to the lineup, he's homered four times in five games while batting .421 (8-for-19). On the season, Buxton is slashing .269/.331/.596 with 22 home runs, six steals, 34 RBI and 47 runs in 60 contests.
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Connor Prielipp SP | MIN
Twins' Connor Prielipp: Escapes with no-decision Saturday
Prielipp came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 9-6 loss to the Cardinals, giving up four runs on seven hits and two walks over six inning. He struck out two.
The ball was flying out of Target Field as the two teams combined for seven home runs, and Prielipp served up the first of them when Ivan Herrera put a ball into the second deck in left field in the first inning. Prielipp wound up getting tagged for four runs in the first two frames, but the rookie southpaw was able to settle in and he exited after 98 pitches (66 strikes) with the score tied 4-4. He's still allowed at least four earned runs in four of his last five starts, stumbling to a 7.66 ERA, 1.74 WHIP and 22:11 K:BB in 24.2 innings over that stretch, and he may need to turn things around before the likes of Bailey Ober (elbow) and Mick Abel (elbow) get healthy to keep his spot in the rotation. Prielipp is set to make his next trip to the mound on the road next weekend in Arizona.
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Blaze Jordan 3B | STL
Cardinals' Blaze Jordan: Belts first career homer
Jordan went 2-for-4 with a triple, a three-run home run and a second run scored in Saturday's 9-6 win over the Twins.
After a 2-for-4 performance in his big-league debut Friday with a pair of singles, Jordan began flashing his power potential Saturday, leading off the second inning with a triple before crushing a Travis Adams fastball 418 feet to center field in the seventh inning to cap a five-run, three-homer frame for the Cardinals. Jordan was slashing .313/.373/.548 over 57 Triple-A games when he got the call to the majors, and the 23-year-old is making a strong early claim to the starting job at third base.
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Ivan Herrera DH | STL
Cardinals' Ivan Herrera: Goes yard twice in Saturday's win
Herrera went 2-for-3 with a walk, two home runs and three RBI in Saturday's 9-6 win over the Twins.
The 26-year-old catcher snapped an 18-game power drought with his first multi-homer performance of the season, as he launched a two-run homer off Connor Prielipp in the first inning and a solo blast in the seventh off Justin Lawrence. Herrera has been an on-base machine so far in June, batting .324 (12-for-37) over the last 10 games with a .479 OBP fueled by six walks and five HBPs. That surge has boosted his slash line on the season to .270/.400/.437 with nine homers, three steals, 31 RBI and 46 runs in 68 contests.
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Matthew Liberatore SP | STL
Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Squanders early lead
Liberatore didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 9-6 win over the Twins, giving up four runs on five hits -- including three home runs -- and a walk over 4.1 innings. He struck out four.
The Cardinals gave the southpaw an early 4-0 lead after two innings, but Liberatore served up a trio of long balls in the third and fourth frames to tie it up, eventually getting lifted in the fifth after 70 pitches (46 strikes). It's the first time since April 25 he's been taken deep multiple times in a start, but Liberatore's been shaky over the last month even when keeping the ball in the yard, stumbling to a 5.65 ERA, 1.60 WHIP and 36:11 K:BB through 28.2 innings over his last six outings. He'll look to bounce back in his next start, which lines up to come on the road next week in Kansas City.