MLB Player News

Barria left Thursday's game against Houston with an apparent right side injury, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Barria looked to be in pain after throwing a pitch in the fifth inning, and he exited with a trainer after being examined on the mound. He surrendered three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out four over 4.1 innings.

Leclerc recorded the final out of the game with a strikeout to earn the save Thursday against the Red Sox.

Leclerc came into the game with two outs in the ninth inning and struck out the only batter he faced to earn his 14th save of the season. While not particularly dominant, Leclerc hasn't blown a save since Aug. 20 and has allowed four earned runs in his last 11.1 innings. His ratios remain inflated for the season -- he has a 4.09 ERA and 1.32 WHIP -- but he has punched out 96 batters across 66 frames.

Smeltzer (2-2) allowed three earned runs on 10 hits and no walks while striking out four across five innings to earn the win Thursday against the Tigers.

Smeltzer began the game with two scoreless frames but was touched up for three earned runs combined between the third and fourth innings. He also worked out of a jam in the fifth frame, stranding runners at first and second base, which allowed him to earn his second of the season. This was just a spot start for Smeltzer, who will end his rookie season with a 3.86 ERA and 1.27 WHIP across 49 big-league innings.

Johnson will work as the primary pitcher Thursday against the Rangers, Guerin Austin of NESN reports.

Travis Lakins will open Thursday's series finale before giving way to Johnson. The southpaw, who hasn't pitched more than two innings all month, owns a 3.18 ERA, 1.59 WHIP and 5:5 K:BB in seven appearances (5.2 innings) in September.

Smeltzer is starting Thursday's game against the Tigers, Phil Miller of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

The Twins have an open spot in the rotation, and Smeltzer will get the final start of the season in that spot. He only logged one inning in his last appearance, but had been throwing multiple innings in every recent appearance before that. A starter by trade, Smeltzer may be allowed to go deep enough into this game to get the win if he is efficient with his pitches. It's worth noting that the Twins are resting most of their top hitters after clinching the division Wednesday.

Lakins will serve as the opener Thursday against the Rangers.

He has logged eight innings in six appearances this month, so he probably won't pitch more than an inning or two before handing the ball over to the bullpen. Mike Shawaryn is a candidate to be the first man out of the bullpen, but he's not a true primary pitcher -- this figures to be a bullpen game.

Colome struck out the only batter he faced Wednesday to record his 30th save of the season in an 8-3 win over Cleveland.

Jace Fry created the save situation for Colome by loading the bases with two outs in the ninth inning. The right-hander has now reached 30 saves for the third time in the last four seasons.

Robles (5-1) gave up two runs on three hits and no walks while striking out two through one inning, blowing a save chance and taking the loss against the Athletics on Wednesday.

With a one-run lead in the ninth inning, Robles allowed a two-run home run to give him a blown save and the loss. The 29-year-old hadn't blown a save since Aug. 21 and had a 1.17 ERA since June 1 coming into this appearance. Robles has a 2.48 ERA with 75 strikeouts through 72.2 innings.

Hendriks struck out two in a hitless and scoreless ninth inning to record his 24th save in a 3-2 win over the Angels on Wednesday.

After the Athletics grabbed the lead in the top of the ninth, Hendriks quickly retired the Angels to nail down the save. With the two strikeouts, the 30-year-old has a 4-3 record with a 1.62 ERA and 121 strikeouts through 83.1 innings.

Giles struck out the side while allowing zero baserunners to earn his 22nd save of the season against the Orioles on Wednesday.

Impressively, Giles struck out the side on just 10 pitches, finishing one ball shy of an immaculate inning. Even if Giles gets a save in each of Toronto's final three games, he will finish shy of his save total last season, but that's hardly his fault. He is 22-for-23 in save opportunities with a 2-3 record, 1.90 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 82 strikeouts in 52 innings this season.