MLB Player News

Lovelady (2-0) retired the only batter he faced, earning the win over Cincinnati on Tuesday.

The southpaw got the final out in the top of the ninth inning, and he was the pitcher of record when Kansas City rallied to walk it off in the bottom half of the frame. Lovelady allowed three runs in two-thirds of an inning his previous appearance, so he's likely to remain in a low-leverage role going forward despite picking up wins in two of his four outings this year.

Lange (shoulder) reported to Triple-A Toledo to begin a rehab assignment Tuesday.

Lange landed on the injured list in mid-June with a strained right shoulder, but he's closing in on a return to the active roster. The 25-year-old should rejoin the Tigers after making a couple appearances with Toledo.

Nelson was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday.

The right-hander has been in the minors for the past month but will return to the majors with Darren O'Day (hamstring) landing on the injured list. Nelson has struggled in eight big-league appearances this season with a 9.75 ERA, 1.92 WHIP and 20:9 K:BB across 12 innings.

Borucki (forearm) was transferred to the 60-day injured list Tuesday.

The southpaw's move to the 60-day injured list is simply procedural to clear up a spot on the 40-man roster after right-hander Thomas Hatch (elbow) was reinstated from the 60-day IL and optioned to Triple-A Buffalo in a corresponding move. Borucki has been sidelined since May 14 due to a forearm strain, but he could begin a rehab assignment this week and will be eligible to be reinstated in mid-July.

Hatch (elbow) was reinstated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Buffalo on Tuesday.

Htch had been on the 60-day injured list since the start of the regular season due to right elbow inflammation, but he had been on a rehab assignment since May 20, and he built up to five innings during his most recent appearance. Across six rehab starts, the right-hander posted a 2.79 ERA and 1.26 WHIP in 19.1 innings. He'll remain at Triple-A Buffalo now that he's healthy, but he could be an option to join the Blue Jays at some point.

Abreu (calf) was reinstated from the 10-day injured list prior to Tuesday's game against the Athletics, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Abreu landed on the IL in late May with a calf injury. He began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Sugar Land on June 26 and wound up making four appearances, striking out six while allowing one run across four innings. He'll resume his big-league campaign with a 4.21 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 23:13 K:BB.

Francis and Trevor Richards were traded from the Brewers to the Blue Jays on Tuesday in exchange for Rowdy Tellez, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Francis spent the final month of the 2020 campaign at the Brewers' alternate training site in Appleton, and he was promoted to Triple-A Nashville in 2021. The right-hander made seven starts with the Triple-A club and posted a 3.49 ERA and 0.99 WHIP in 38.2 innings. He'll likely report to Triple-A Buffalo going forward but could be considered for a major-league roster spot at some point in the second half of 2021.

Richards and minor-leaguer Bowden Francis were traded to the Blue Jays from the Brewers on Tuesday in exchange for Rowdy Tellez, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Richards was traded to Milwaukee alongside Willy Adames on May 21, posting a 3.20 ERA and 25:9 K:BB in 19.2 innings with the Brewers. The righty primarily served as a bulk reliever, winning three games but also blowing two saves in his 15 appearances. Now, Richards joins a struggling bullpen that may find use for him in later, higher-leverage situations than the Brewers did.

Fairbanks (2-3) secured his second win in a victory over Cleveland on Monday, firing a perfect ninth inning during which he recorded a strikeout.

Fairbanks got 10 of his 13 pitches into the strike zone in an efficient final frame to close out a wild win for the Rays. The right-hander now has back-to-back scoreless outings after a rocky five-appearance stretch during which he pitched to a 15.43 ERA and 3.43 WHIP across 4.2 innings.

Lakins underwent successful surgery to fix a recurrent olecranon stress fracture in his right elbow Tuesday, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Lakins was placed on the 10-day injured list June 30 and was later transferred to the 60-day IL on July 3. The 27-year-old will likely miss the remainder of the season following the surgery, but manager Brandon Hyde said Tuesday that the right-hander could "possibly" be ready for spring training in 2022, Nathan Ruiz of The Baltimore Sun reports. Lakins posted a 5.79 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 24:17 K:BB across 24 appearances (one start) prior to suffering the injury.