MLB Player News

Vargas was recalled from Triple-A Columbus on Friday, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

Vargas spent plenty of time at Double-A Akron earlier in the year after returning to full health following Tommy John surgery that he underwent in April of 2021. However, he was promoted to the Triple-A club at the beginning of September and allowed a run on four hits and two walks while striking out 12 in six innings over four relief appearances. The right-hander will likely serve as a multi-inning option out of Cleveland's bullpen, and his first appearance with the Guardians will be his major-league debut.

Richards will start a bullpen game against the Orioles on Friday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Richards threw 29 pitches in relief Thursday against the Rays and gave up five runs on three hits and two walks while failing to strike out a batter in two-thirds of an inning. However, he'll serve as an opener during Friday's matchup, while Yusei Kikuchi will likely be available as a bulk reliever.

Herget was optioned to Triple-A Durham on Friday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Herget gave the Rays' extra bullpen depth in Toronto with Brooks Raley unable to cross the border into Canada. Heget made a pair of appearances, allowing two runs in 2.2 innings in his first taste of major-league action.

Raley was reinstated from the restricted list Friday.

Raley was unavailable for the Rays' series in Toronto this week due to his vaccination status, but he'll rejoin the team's bullpen ahead of Friday's series opener against the Rangers. Over 19 appearances since the All-Star break, he's picked up 10 holds while posting a 0.92 ERA and 0.86 WHIP in 19.2 innings.

Payamps (3-6) took the loss against the Astros on Thursday, allowing two earned runs on two hits over one-third of an inning.

The right-hander faltered for the second time in as many appearances, with his trouble coming when he allowed an infield single to Jeremy Pena and a two-run home run to Aledmys Diaz immediately thereafter. The blast snapped a 2-2 tie and the Athletics were unable to come back from the deficit, handing Payamps his second loss in as many appearances and third in the last five trips to the mound overall.

Duran earned a save against Kansas City on Thursday, allowing two hits and striking out two batters in a scoreless ninth inning.

With the Twins up one run heading into the ninth inning, manager Rocco Baldelli called upon Duran to notch the tough save. The right-hander allowed consecutive singles to start the frame but retired the next three batters -- the final two by strikeout -- to slam the door. Regular closer Jorge Lopez has struggled of late, giving up four runs over his past 4.1 innings. Given Duran's dominance this season (he holds a 1.70 ERA and 84:14 K:BB over 63.2 innings), it wouldn't be surprising to see him get more opportunities to close down the stretch.

Montero earned the save Thursday against Oakland, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning in a 5-2 victory.

Following a line out, Montero struck out the final two batters to pick up his 13th save of the season. Ryan Pressly recorded saves on the last two nights, so Montero was called upon to close out the game for the first time since Sept. 5. He has not allowed a baserunner in six appearances in September, striking out six in six innings of work. He'll likely continue to receive the occasional save chance as the regular season winds down with Pressly continuing to work as the primary closer.

Cyr (1-0) recorded the win in a victory against the Rangers on Wednesday, firing 1.2 scoreless innings during which he issued a walk and recorded a strikeout.

Cyr extended an impressive early tenure with the Athletics via Wednesday's showing, which saw him record five outs on an efficient 23 pitches overall. The 28-year-old was claimed off waivers from the Phillies on Aug. 24 and summoned to the majors after four appearances with Triple-A Las Vegas, and he's now generated Wednesday's win, a 1.35 ERA, an 0.60 WHIP and a 7:1 K:BB across the 6.2 innings covering his first four appearances.

Pilkington was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Thursday, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

Pilkington won't be off the big-league roster for long, as it was announced Wednesday that he is in line to start the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Twins. Hunter Gaddis was recalled to take Pilkington's spot on the roster for the time being.

Fleming was optioned to Triple-A Durham on Thursday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Fleming allowed just one earned run while covering the final four frames of Wednesday's loss to the Blue Jays, but with him unavailable for at least a couple days the Rays removed him from the roster to open up a spot for fellow pitcher Shane McClanahan.