MLB Player News

Puk (biceps) threw a bullpen session Saturday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Puk has been on the injured list since April 8, and the team will evaluate the southpaw Sunday to see how he responds to his most recent throwing session. The left-hander has made encouraging progress in his recovery so far, but it's not yet clear when he could return to game action.

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

Richards has made five major-league appearances to begin the season and posted a 4.91 ERA and 1.09 WHIP in 11 innings. However, he'll now be removed from the big-league roster as part of a shuffle to make room for Rich Hill (illness) and Cody Reed (thumb), who were activated from the injured list Saturday.

Alcala threw two scoreless innings with a strikeout in Friday's win over Kansas City to lower his ERA to 3.60.

Alcala has a strong 11:1 K:BB ratio in 10 innings, albeit with three home runs allowed, but hasn't been used in many high-leverage spots. With Alex Colome falling out of favor to finish games, it's possible Alcala could enter the mix in the near future as the Twins are not usually committed to a single closer.

King was recalled by the Yankees on Saturday.

King continues to be shuffled between the Yankees' alternate training site and the major-league roster. He'll rejoin the big-league bullpen after Darren O'Day (shoulder) was placed on the 10-day IL in a corresponding move.

Texas manager Chris Woodward said Yang will be evaluated for the rotation, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports.

Yang made his second straight bullpen-saving appearance of the week Friday, shutting down the Red Sox for 4.1 innings after the Rangers fell behind 6-1. He made his Rangers debut Monday when starter Jordan Lyles was chased after 2.2 innings, and Friday he took over for Kohei Arihara, who allowed four home runs in 2.2 innings. Of those two starters, Arihara prompts the most concern. The Rangers already suspected he was tipping pitches, but the new worry that emerged Friday was diminished velocity.

Valdez allowed two hits in the ninth inning to record the three-out save in the win over the Athletics on Friday.

Valdez bounced back to record his sixth save Friday after blowing the save Thursday against the Yankees. He is 6-for-8 in save opportunities and has a pair of wins. The 36-year-old remains the best arm in the Orioles bullpen with a 1.42 ERA in 12.2 innings.

Shaw struck out one in a perfect seventh inning to earn a hold in Friday's 5-3 win over the White Sox.

Shaw was the first reliever up after Shane Bieber lasted six innings in the start. The 33-year-old Shaw needed just eight pitches to earn his third hold of the season in 10 outings. He's been solid so far with a 0.90 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 11:6 K:BB across 10 innings.

Karinchak pitched a perfect eighth inning with two strikeouts to earn a hold in Friday's 5-3 win over the White Sox.

Karinchak was one of three relievers -- along with Bryan Shaw and Emmanuel Clase -- to log a scoreless inning for Cleveland following Shane Bieber's six-inning start. The 25-year-old Karinchak has allowed only two hits and two walks with 22 strikeouts across 10.2 innings this season. He has two saves, one blown save and four holds in 12 outings. Clase is still manager Terry Francona's preferred closer option, as he's converted five saves.

Yarbrough (1-3) took the loss Friday as the Rays fell 9-2 to the Astros, giving up five runs on nine hits and a walk over six innings. He struck out five.

The lefty lasted 103 pitches (71 strikes) but wasn't particularly effective, allowing runs to cross the plate in the first, third and fourth innings. Yarbrough now has a 4.86 ERA and 26:6 K:BB through 33.1 innings, and with higher-upside arms like Shane McClanahan and Luis Patino now pushing for work, Yarbrough isn't guaranteed to hang onto his rotation/bulk relief spot if he doesn't turn things around.

Clase yielded a hit during a scoreless ninth inning to earn a save over the White Sox.

After giving up a leadoff single to Luis Robert, Clase forced three groundouts to secure the 5-3 win for Cleveland. The flamethrowing right-hander is now 5-for-6 in save chances with a perfect 0.00 ERA through 11.1 innings this season.