MLB Player News

Pena went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in Sunday's 12-3 loss against the White Sox.

Pena wasted no time making an impact, leading off the game with a solo homer against Erick Fedde before taking the right-hander deep again in the third inning. The shortstop has caught fire of late, homering five times over his last six games after hitting just six long balls through his first 53 contests of the season. During that six-game stretch, Pena is batting 13-for-26 (.500) with eight RBI. For the season, he's slashing .319/.373/.504 with nine doubles, 11 home runs, 30 RBI, 47 runs scored and eight stolen bases across 249 plate appearances.

Blanco (0-1) took the loss Sunday against the White Sox, allowing five runs on four hits and three walks while striking out four over 5.1 innings.

Blanco was hurt by the long ball Sunday as he threw 55 of his 85 pitches for strikes. After walking the leadoff hitter in the first inning, he surrendered a two-run homer to Munetaka Murakami. Miguel Vargas took him deep for another two-run shot in the sixth. Both of Blanco's starts since returning to Houston have featured multiple home runs allowed and three walks, though he has also piled up 12 strikeouts across 10 innings. The right-hander is scheduled to make his next start Saturday on the road against the Rangers.

The Mets promoted Santucci from Double-A Binghamton to Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday, 2TheBigs.com reports.

Santucci will move up a rung on the minor-league ladder after turning in a 3.57 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 120:45 K:B over 90.2 innings in 19 starts with Binghamton. Considered one of the Mets' top overall prospects, the 23-year-old southpaw could have an outside shot at making his major-league debut later in 2026, as the organization hasn't been overly shy about promoting its top arms in recent years.

Fedde did not factor into the decision Sunday against the Astros, allowing three runs on five hits and one walk while striking out two over 4.1 innings.

Fedde was hurt by the long ball Sunday, surrendering three home runs. Jeremy Pena took him deep twice, including a leadoff blast to begin the game, while Taylor Trammell added a solo shot of his own in the fifth inning. It marked the first time since May 12 that Fedde has allowed multiple home runs in a start. After compiling a 5.40 ERA and 0-5 record through his first 11 starts, Fedde has now gone 5-1 with a 2.93 ERA over his last 10 outings. He's scheduled to make his next start Friday on the road against the Rays.

Drake took a no-decision Sunday against the Nationals, allowing four runs on five hits and two walks in four-plus innings. He struck out one.

Drake wasn't able to replicate the results from his big-league debut Tuesday versus the Athletics, when he fired five innings of one-run ball. The rookie left-hander served up a pair of home runs Sunday, and he was unable to record an out in the fifth frame. Drake is helping plug up Arizona's injury-riddled rotation for the time being, but he might get only one more turn next weekend in Cleveland if Michael Soroka (glute) is ready to return in early August.

Miller earned the save Sunday against the Marlins, striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.

Miller was unsurprisingly called upon to protect a two-run lead and retired Miami in order on 15 pitches (eight strikes). The right-hander has now tossed eight consecutive scoreless appearances while racking up 14 strikeouts during that stretch. Miller continues to dominate in the closer's role, posting a 0.82 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 80:27 K:BB across 43.2 innings while leading the National League with 27 saves.

Durbin went 2-for-4 with a run scored in Sunday's 6-1 win over the Blue Jays.

Durbin had gone hitless in his last three games, but he broke through with a pair of base hits in the series finale to lift his average up to .237 on the season. The 26-year-old remained in the starting nine at third base, and interim manager Chad Tracy confirmed prior to the contest that Durbin is expected to remain at the hot corner while the Red Sox break in the newly acquired Curtis Mead primarily at second base when he joins the team Monday, per Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald. Durbin is expected to take more reps at second base and shortstop as part of his pregame work, but the Red Sox have been pleased with how he's performed defensively at third base during his first season in Boston.

Mikolas took a no-decision Sunday against the Diamondbacks, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk in four innings. He struck out four.

Mikolas rejoined the rotation following a pair of outings as a long reliever, but the shift in role didn't yield better results Sunday. The 37-year-old right-hander has had a hard time putting batters away all year long -- he's yet to exceed four strikeouts in any of his 22 appearances and remains without a single quality start. Mikolas is unlikely to carry much fantasy appeal his next time out in Atlanta, where he'll bring a 5.65 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 52:21 K:BB over 102 innings.

Junk did not factor into the decision Sunday against the Padres, allowing one run on seven hits while striking out six over 4.2 innings.

Junk threw 55 of his 75 pitches for strikes and matched his season high with six strikeouts despite generating only four whiffs. He was one strike away from completing five scoreless innings before Manny Machado ripped an RBI double in the fifth, ending both the shutout and Junk's outing. Through three starts since returning from a right shin injury, the right-hander has allowed nine runs (eight earned) across 13.2 innings. Junk owns a 4.89 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 57:20 K:BB over 73.2 innings this season and is scheduled to make his next start on the road against the Mets.

Manager Tony Vitello said Sunday that Chapman (abdomen) is still without a target date for his return from the 10-day injured list, which suggests that the veteran third baseman won't be activated before the Giants' homestand ends Wednesday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Earlier in the week, Vitello left the door open for Chapman to return at some point during the Giants' six-game homestand that began Friday, but the five-time Gold Glove Award winner looks like he'll require some additional time to fully heal from the abdominal strain that sent him to the shelf July 1. On a positive note, Chapman is said to be making good progress in his recovery, as he took batting practice Friday and also ran the bases over the weekend, per MLB.com. Until Chapman is ready to return, Casey Schmitt will continue to hold down the fort at third base.