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Jackson Kowar RP | BAL
Royals' Jackson Kowar: Struggles Monday
Kowar (0-5) got the loss after pitching 4.1 innings, giving up five runs on seven hits and walking one while striking out four versus Cleveland on Monday.
The right-hander was hit early, surrendering four runs in the first three innings including an Amed Rosario solo home run in the bottom of the third. It was the fourth straight outing for Kowar in which he gave up at least five runs. Since Sept. 7, he has thrown 15.1 innings while allowing 21 runs, good (or bad) for a 12.33 ERA. He'll look for his elusive first win in the season finale against the Twins on Sunday.
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Nick Anderson RP | ATH
Rays' Nick Anderson: Out with back strain
Anderson was placed on the 10-day injured list Monday due to a strained back, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Anderson allowed a solo homer while picking up his first save of the season Sunday against the Marlins, but he'll head to the injured list after giving up a run in each of his past three outings. The right-hander will miss the rest of the regular season but will be eligible to return for Game 1 of the ALDS on Oct. 7, though it's unclear if he's expected to be healthy by that juncture.
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Adam Ottavino RP | NYY
Red Sox's Adam Ottavino: Charged with blown save Sunday
Ottavino was handed a blown save in Sunday's 6-3 loss to the Yankees after allowing all three batters he faced to reach base. He hit a batter and surrendered a two-run double to Aaron Judge and a two-run home run to Giancarlo Stanton.
Ottavino was summoned from the bullpen in the top of the eighth inning with two outs and runners on the corners with Boston clinging to a 3-2 lead. The right-hander looked like he might get out of the jam unscathed after inducing a pair of fouled balls off the bat of Judge, but neither first baseman Bobby Dalbec nor catcher Christian Vazquez could secure the catch. Judge made the Red Sox pay for giving him a third chance, as he lined Ottavino's four-seam fastball to left-center field on the eighth pitch of the at-bat to score the go-ahead run. Neither of those runs were charged to Ottavino, but his ERA still took a hit when he served up the long ball to Stanton one batter later. Even though his last save came Sept. 1 and he's blown two saves since that span, Ottavino could still be Boston's preferred closing option. Ottavino has at least delivered value for fantasy managers during his save drought by scooping up four wins in relief.
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Albert Abreu RP | CIN
Yankees' Albert Abreu: Sent to Triple-A
Abreu was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday.
Abreu will make way for Jameson Taillon, who returned from an ankle injury ahead of his scheduled start against the Blue Jays. Abreu hasn't been particularly good in 36 innings of relief at the major-league level this season, struggling to a 5.25 ERA.
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Joe Jimenez RP | ATL
Tigers' Joe Jimenez: Clean relief appearance Sunday
Jimenez retired all four batters he faced in a 14-pitch relief appearance in Sunday's 2-1 loss to the Royals.
Since being reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list Wednesday, Jimenez has come on to deliver two perfect outings out of the bullpen. He'll remain part of the bridge to closer Michael Fulmer during the final week of the regular season.
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Aroldis Chapman RP | BOS
Yankees' Aroldis Chapman: Secures another save Sunday
Chapman secured the save Sunday against Boston after tossing a scoreless ninth inning, allowing one walk and one strikeout.
Chapman has nailed down each of his last 14 save chances and while he's not been as unhittable as he's been in the past, it's worth noting that he's been dominant when it comes to closing games out. He owns a 2.38 ERA through 12 appearances this month (11.1 innings) and has not given up a run in seven of his last eight trips to the mound.
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Chad Green RP | TOR
Yankees' Chad Green: Earns win over Red Sox
Green (10-7) earned the win Sunday against the Red Sox after tossing 1.2 scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two.
Green has now tossed four straight scoreless outings, and that stretch of four straight appearances giving up at least one run between Sept. 8 and Sept. 15 seems to be a distant memory now. The consistency has been the biggest issue with Green this year, but he seems to be gearing up for a strong end of the regular season -- he hadn't recorded this many scoreless outings in a row since early July.
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Griffin Jax SP | TB
Twins' Griffin Jax: Allows four runs in loss
Jax (3-5) allowed four runs on six hits while striking out two over five innings as he took the loss against the Blue Jays on Sunday.
Jax was punished by the long ball Sunday. He allowed two runners on in the second before serving up a three-run blast to Danny Jansen to give the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead. George Springer later added a home run of his own after hitting a solo shot against Jax in the fifth. Jax would end up finishing the frame before calling it a day at 83 pitches. He was finding the strike zone a lot, as he threw 61 strikes and didn't walk anybody but was hurt by a few big mistakes. The 26-year-old hasn't won a game since Aug. 10 and sports an ugly 6.78 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 62:27 K:BB over 77 innings this season. He's projected to take the hill one more time in Kansas City next weekend.
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Jordan Romano RP | COL
Blue Jays' Jordan Romano: Locks down 21st save
Romano struck out three batters during a perfect four-out save in Sunday's 5-2 win over the Twins.
Romano entered in the eighth with two men on and two outs and got Miguel Sano to go down swinging to end the inning. He came back out for the ninth and recorded two more punchouts, including a game-ending strikeout against Luis Arraez to shut the door on the Twins. Romano has emerged as one of the top-tier closes in major league baseball this season, as he's 21-for-22 in save chances and owns a sparkling 2.24 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 81:24 K:BB over 60.1 innings.