MLB Player News

Pruitt (elbow) pitched three innings Friday in his sixth rehab outing and is expected to be activated immediately following the All-Star break, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

The righty's 30-day rehab assignment expires July 15, so it's safe to assume he'll be with the Astros and active to start Friday's series in Chicago. After a rocky start to the rehab, Pruitt has pitched six scoreless innings over his last three games and has struck out three without issuing a walk, signaling that he's ready to rejoin the big-league bullpen. He'll be getting his first MLB action since 2019, when he posted a 4.40 ERA in 47 innings with the Rays.

Kittredge (6-1) picked up the win in Friday's 7-1 victory over the Blue Jays, striking out two over two perfect innings of relief.

The right-hander replaced Shane McClanahan to begin the fifth inning with the Rays ahead 3-1, and Kittredge was credited with his first win since May 22 after an impressive performance. He's been scored upon only once in his last 11 appearances, and Kittredge sports a 1.47 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 43:10 K:BB through 43 innings on the season with two saves and four holds in addition to his vultured wins.

Robles allowed one hit over 1.2 scoreless innings, striking out two and earning a save over the Tigers on Friday.

Robles worked around a two-out single in the ninth inning to finish off his ninth save of the season. He's picked up a save in each of his last two outings after he was crushed for a combined eight runs in his previous four appearances. He's converted nine of his 11 save chances this season with a 4.19 ERA.

Lopez (2-12) allowed two runs on eight hits and one walk with four strikeouts in four innings Friday, taking the loss in a 12-1 defeat against the White Sox.

The righty now has a stunning nine losses in his last 10 decisions. Lopez did fairly well in limiting the White Sox to a pair of runs, but he required 87 pitches to complete the four frames before turning things over to the Orioles' bullpen, which proceeded to give up 10 runs. He's lasted six innings on just three occasions this season, so his likelihood of tallying a quality start and earning a win are similarly low in a given outing. Lopez also strikes out less than a batter per inning -- combined with the other factors, that makes him an entirely unappealing fantasy option after the All-Star break.

Brentz (2-2) allowed a walkoff solo home run and recorded his only out via strikeout while taking the loss Friday versus Cleveland.

Brentz was called upon to get the last out of the eighth inning, and he fanned Franmil Reyes. In the ninth, Bobby Bradley took the southpaw deep for Cleveland's second straight walkoff win over Kansas City. Brentz has hit a rough patch, allowing eight runs (seven earned) in his last nine innings. He still has a solid 2.95 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 45:26 K:BB across 39.2 innings, but he may see more lower-leverage assignments until he works through his recent struggles.

Clase allowed a run on two hits and struck out one in one inning, taking a blown save in Friday's 2-1 win over Kansas City.

After seven shutout innings from starter Triston McKenzie, Kansas City got a solo home run from Jorge Soler off Clase in the eighth. It's been a shaky end to the first half for Clase, who has given up seven runs (four earned) in his last five innings while taking two blown saves and two losses. The homer he allowed Friday was the first he's given up all year. The hard-throwing righty has a 1.72 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 41:14 K:BB across 36.2 innings, but further inconsistency could lead to James Karinchak getting more of the save chances.

Karinchak (6-2) allowed a hit and struck out two in a scoreless inning Friday, earning the win over Kansas City.

The right-hander kept Kansas City off the board in the top of the ninth inning, and Bobby Bradley walked it off for Cleveland to earn Karinchak his second win in as many days. The 25-year-old has a 2.52 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 68:22 K:BB through 39.1 innings this season. Emmanuel Clase took a blown save in the eighth inning Friday -- Karinchak seems to have a slight edge for closing duties lately, although it's expected the pair of relievers will continue to share the role.

Junis was placed on the 7-day injured list with Triple-A Omaha on Friday due to an undisclosed injury, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.

Junis was optioned to Omaha on June 6 after struggling to a 5.19 ERA and 1.44 WHIP across 15 innings for the Royals. Things haven't gotten better for the right-hander following his demotion, as he's allowed 11 earned runs on 19 hits across 10.1 Triple-A innings. It's unclear what the 28-year-old is dealing with, but he won't pitch for at least the next seven days.

Trivino, who secured his sixth hold in a win over the Astros on Thursday, hasn't allowed an earned run in 23 of his last 24 appearances.

The hard-throwing right-hander has two wins, eight saves and three holds during that 24-inning span, a dominant stretch of relief that has endeared him to fantasy managers in all formats. Trivino coaxed his ERA back under 2.00 (1.96) with Thursday's scoreless frame against Houston, and it's worth noting his success has come despite a significant drop in strikeout rate to 22.4 percent from 2020's 28.0 percent figure.

Hall (elbow) is expected to begin a throwing program in two weeks, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.

The young lefty has been on the injured list at Double-A Bowie since June 16 with left elbow soreness, and it appears he's still not ready to return to game action. Hall will need some time to build his arm back up, so he's unlikely to be back before mid-August.