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Tyler Cyr RP | LAD
Athletics' Tyler Cyr: Picked up by A's
The Athletics claimed Cyr off waivers from the Phillies on Wednesday and optioned him to Triple-A Las Vegas.
Cyr made his MLB debut with the Phillies last weekend before being pushed off the 40-man roster, but since he still has three minor-league options remaining, he'll head to Las Vegas. Prior to getting his brief cup of coffee in Philadelphia, the 29-year-old reliever posted a 2.50 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 37:18 K:BB across 36 innings at Triple-A Lehigh Valley.
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Trevor Stephan RP | CLE
Guardians' Trevor Stephan: Emerging as setup man
Stephan has posted a 1.42 ERA and 1.34 WHIP while collecting eight holds in 13 appearances since the All-Star break.
Stephan has racked up an impressive 23:3 K:BB in that span, and he's kept opponents off the board in 11 of those 13 outings. One of the keys to his success has been an improvement with his splitter -- per Statcast, he's throwing it 27 percent of the time this year compared to 8.1 percent in 2021. It's been effective, limiting opponents to a .141 batting average and .156 slugging percentage. That's allowed the right-hander to post a 2.44 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 62:12 K:BB, 13 holds and two saves through 48 innings while emerging as a setup man to top-tier closer Emmanuel Clase.
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Nick Sandlin RP | LAA
Guardians' Nick Sandlin: Collects fifth win
Sandlin (5-2) struck out two in 1.1 perfect innings to earn the win Tuesday over the Padres.
After starter Aaron Civale fell one out shy of qualifying for the win, Sandlin struck out Jorge Alfaro to end the fifth inning and then retired the side in the sixth to preserve the Guardians' lead. This extended Sandlin's scoreless run to 13.1 innings, a span in which he has a 14:1 K:BB. The right-hander's strong pitching hasn't led to a more prominent role yet -- he hasn't logged a save or a hold during the streak, though he took one blown save for allowing an inherited runner to score. For the season, Sandlin has a 2.18 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 29:19 K:BB while adding five holds through 33 innings.
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Josh Staumont RP | CIN
Royals' Josh Staumont: Hit hard again
Staumont (3-3) took the loss Tuesday versus Arizona, allowing four runs on three hits and three walks with one strikeout in 1.1 innings.
Staumont has given up at least one run in five of his eight appearances in August, with Tuesday's outing being one of the worst this month. He entered with the game tied at 1-1 in the seventh inning and yielded a sacrifice fly. He remained in the game to begin the eighth, but was charged with all three of Arizona's runs in that frame after Luke Weaver struggled to contain the mess. Staumont's bad month has him up to a 6.45 ERA, 1.75 WHIP and 43:29 K:BB through 37.2 innings this year. He hasn't logged a hold since June 21 -- his last appearance before missing nearly a month with a neck injury -- so it's fair to question if he's even in the high-leverage mix at this stage. The Royals' bullpen has a collective 4.76 ERA, so there are few better options to serve as setup man to closer Scott Barlow.
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Brent Honeywell RP | LAD
Athletics' Brent Honeywell: Hit hard in Vegas debut
Honeywell (elbow) allowed three earned runs on three hits while recording two strikeouts over one inning in Triple-A Las Vegas' loss to Sugar Land on Tuesday.
Making his rehab debut with the Aviators, Honeywell didn't fare well with the boost in competition. The right-hander did pound 17 of his 21 pitches in for strikes, but he gave up a solo home run to Korey Lee and a two-run shot to Yainer Diaz to account for the damage against him. Honeywell is expected to retake the mound for Las Vegas by the weekend, where the organization will undoubtedly be looking for him to show an ability to miss more bats.
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Jimmy Yacabonis RP | NYM
Rays' Jimmy Yacabonis: Sticks in Tampa Bay organization
Yacabonis cleared waivers Saturday and was outrighted to Triple-A Durham.
After being scooped up off waivers from the Marlins on Aug. 4, Yacabonis surrendered five runs (four earned) in 3.2 innings over his four appearances with the Rays before being pushed off the 40-man roster. He's expected to serve as a multi-inning reliever as he heads to Durham.
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Joel Payamps RP | ATL
Athletics' Joel Payamps: Debuts with multi-inning effort
Payamps, just activated Monday after being claimed off waivers Saturday, fired two scoreless innings during which he allowed two hits and recorded two strikeouts in a loss to the Marlins on Tuesday.
Payamps labored some, needing a total of 39 pitches to record his six outs. The 28-year-old is highly capable of handling multi-inning assignments such as Tuesday's on a regular basis, having averaged well over one frame per relief appearance during his 29 outings with the Royals prior to his release.
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Josh Winckowski RP | TOR
Red Sox's Josh Winckowski: Early exit against Jays
Winckowski (5-7) took the loss Tuesday, coughing up six runs on six hits and two walks over 2.2 innings as the Red Sox were downed 9-3 by the Blue Jays. He struck out two.
The right-hander's return to the big-league rotation went smoothly for two innings, before the wheels completely fell off for Winckowski in the third. He got the hook after 61 pitches (34 strikes) in his shortest start yet in the majors. A promising start to the season for the rookie has quickly turned sour, and over his last eight outings for Boston, the 24-year-old has a 7.71 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and 19:16 K:BB through 37.1 innings.
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Wandy Peralta RP | SD
Yankees' Wandy Peralta: Collects second save
Peralta recorded the final out of Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Mets to pick up his second save of the season.
Clarke Schmidt tried to do his best Goose Gossage impression and save the rest of the bullpen by working three scoreless innings in relief of Frankie Montas, but after Schmidt loaded the bases with two outs in the ninth inning, Peralta was brought in and got Francisco Lindor to fly out. With Clay Holmes (back) and Scott Effross (shoulder) both on the injured list and Aroldis Chapman still untrustworthy, just about every Yankees reliever could find himself in a save situation, but Peralta might be the top high-leverage lefty the club has at the moment. On the season, he sports a 2.44 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 38:17 K:BB through 48 innings with two wins and eight holds in addition to his saves.
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Josh Fleming RP | TOR
Rays' Josh Fleming: Begins rehab assignment
Fleming (oblique) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Durham on Tuesday, according to MLB.com.
Fleming has been sidelined since July 12 and was projected to miss up to a month. He threw 31 pitches across two innings as a reliever with Durham on Tuesday, so he could beat his original timeline if the Rays intend to utilize him as a reliever across the final month of the season.