MLB Player News

Varland struck out the side in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his 28th save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Yankees.

It was a dominant performance from Varland, who wrapped up an effective bullpen day for the Blue Jays by fanning Ben Rice, Heliot Ramos and Luis Garcia on 13 pitches (nine strikes). It's the first time since July 27 that Varland has struck out multiple batters, but fatigue could be creeping in for the first-year closer -- his 58 appearances have him tied for seventh in the majors, and he shares a bullpen with three of the pitchers ahead of him on the list (Mason Fluharty, Braydon Fisher and Tyler Rogers). Since the All-Star break, Varland has a 1.76 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 12:4 K:BB in 15.1 innings while converting eight of nine save chances.

Perez (elbow) will serve as the Royals' designated hitter and bat fourth Saturday against the Angels.

Perez sat out Friday's contest to recover from an elbow issue he picked up Wednesday, but he now seems to be feeling well enough to return to action. The veteran backstop has recorded a hit in all but two of the games he's played this month but still carries just a .628 OPS in August.

Schlittler didn't factor into the decision Saturday during the Yankees' 4-1 loss to the Blue Jays, allowing one run on four hits and three walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out seven.

The 25-year-old right-hander let runners get into scoring position in three of the six innings in which he appeared, but Schlittler only paid for it in the third when Alejandro Kirk got a ball past Jazz Chisholm up the middle for an RBI single. Schlittler has fanned at least six batters in all eight of his starts since the beginning of July, a stretch in which the AL Cy Young frontrunner has a 2.44 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and 66:13 K:BB in 48 innings. He'll look for his first win since July 24 in his next outing, which is set to come at home next weekend in a rematch with Toronto.

Kiner-Falefa (forearm) will start his rehab assignment Wednesday with Triple-A Worcester, Sean McAdam of MassLive.com reports.

Kiner-Falefa was diagnosed with a stress reaction in his left forearm in late June, prompting the Red Sox to place the veteran utility man on the injured list. He was cleared to begin a hitting progression shortly after the All-Star break, and Kiner-Falefa is ready to take the next step in his recovery program by embarking on a rehab assignment. It looks like the Red Sox are set to receive significant reinforcements for the final weeks of the regular season, as both Roman Anthony (finger) and Trevor Story (sports hernia) have also been cleared to start their respective rehab assignments.

Anthony (finger) will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Double-A Portland, Sean McAdam of MassLive.com reports.

Anthony has been on the injured list since early May due to a sprained wrist and sprained finger, but he's hit all the benchmarks to be cleared for a rehab assignment. He may need a lengthy stint in the minors given his extended absence, but the Red Sox are inching closer to getting significant reinforcements for the final weeks of the regular season.

Boyd (8-2) took the loss Saturday as the Cubs fell 8-4 to the Cardinals, coughing up seven runs on five hits -- including four home runs -- and three walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out two.

It's the first time since 2019 that Boyd has served up four homers in the same game, and three of them came off the bat of rookie Joshua Baez, who became the first player in MLB history to go yard in his first three plate appearances. This also marks the first time since June 30 that Boyd has failed to complete six innings, and since the beginning of July he's produced a 3.33 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 31:16 K:BB over 51.1 innings. Incredibly, the loss was his first since Opening Day. Boyd will try to shake this one off in his next outing, which lines up to come on the road next weekend in Seattle.

Story (sports hernia) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Sunday, Sean McAdam of MassLive.com reports.

Story traveled to Worcester on Friday for a workout, and after checking out fine, he's been given the green light to play in games for the first time since May 14. Given the length of Story's absence due to sports hernia surgery, he'll likely need to make several appearances in the minors before making his return from the 60-day injured list. Once activated, Story could displace Andruw Monasterio as the Red Sox's preferred option at shortstop.

Burleson went 1-for-3 with a walk, a home run, two RBI and three runs scored in Saturday's 8-4 win over the Cubs.

The 27-year-old slugger capped the scoring for the Cardinals with a solo shot off Collin Rea in the eighth inning. While his performance was overshadowed by Joshua Baez's history-making three-homer day in his MLB debut, Burleson achieved a milestone of his own, becoming the first player in the majors this season with 30 doubles and 20 homers. Over 13 games in August, Burleson is batting .311 (14-for-45) with five long balls, 11 runs and 15 RBI.

Soderstrom is not in the Athletics' starting lineup against the Rangers on Saturday.

The Rangers are sending southpaw MacKenzie Gore to the mound, so the lefty-hitting Soderstrom will be on the bench for the start of Saturday's game while the Athletics go with Zack Gelof, Henry Bolte and Lawrence Butler in the outfield from left to right. Soderstrom is in the midst of an 11-game hitting streak, during which he has gone 12-for-42 (.286) with one steal, two home runs, five doubles, six RBI and eight runs scored.

Baez went 3-for-4 with three home runs and five RBI in Saturday's 8-4 win over the Cubs.

Making his big-league debut at storied Wrigley Field, Baez did something no other player in MLB history had ever done, homering in his first three trips to the plate. All three long balls came off Matthew Boyd, with the first being a massive 449-foot blast to center field on the very first pitch Baez saw, and the three homers combined traveled 1,199 feet. The 23-year-old outfielder earned his promotion Saturday by launching 34 home runs in 79 Triple-A games this season, and it doesn't look like he's going to have much trouble translating that power to the top level of baseball.