MLB Player News

Alexander (0-1) was the pitcher of record in Saturday's 8-1 loss to the Mariners after surrendering four runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out nine over 4.1 innings.

Though his ERA and WHIP climbed significantly during the outing, Alexander's underlying numbers painted a rosier picture for his performance. Among the 22 batters he faced, Alexander generated 10 swinging strikes and 10 groundballs, but he was largely undone by the Mariners running up a .727 BABIP. Since serving up two home runs in his MLB debut July 3, Alexander has kept the ball in the yard over his subsequent two starts, which offers encouragement for his prospects moving forward.

Graterol threw a scoreless inning for Minnesota's Gulf Coast League team in a rehab outing Sunday. He reached 101 on the radar guy, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Graterol was placed on the 7-day injured list at Double-A Pensacola with a shoulder impingement in May. The good news is that this outing shows he's not dealing with a more serious injury.

Hendriks was charged with his third blown save in Sunday's win over the Rangers, allowing an earned run on two hits and a walk over two-thirds of an inning. He also recorded a strikeout.

Hendriks got the call early Sunday, inheriting a one-on, one-out scenario in the eighth and the Athletics clinging to a two-run lead. The normally reliable closer proceeded to surrender run-scoring hits to Nomar Mazara and Willie Calhoun, as well as an RBI groundout to Asdrubal Cabrera. Two of Hendriks' three blown saves for the season have come in his last three appearances, and with former closer Blake Treinen, who earned the win Sunday, having generated five straight scoreless appearances, it remains to be seen whether manager Bob Melvin will begin to afford the latter more ninth-inning work moving forward.

Treinen (4-3) earned the win over the Rangers on Sunday, firing a scoreless ninth inning during which he allowed no hits and one walk while recording two strikeouts.

Closer Liam Hendriks was charged with his third blown save of the season in the eighth when he squandered a 4-2 lead, so Treinen got the ninth-inning call with the Athletics trailing by one. The veteran was rewarded for preventing the deficit from growing any larger when Oakland mounted a comeback in the home half of the frame, which made him the pitcher of record and afforded him his second victory over the last four appearances. Hendriks still appears to be manager Bob Melvin's go-to closing option, but the Athletics' skipper certainly took note of Treinen's six swinging strikes and improved command, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports. "Mentally, that was huge for him," Melvin said. "You could see the sinker, the velocity played up as the inning went along. He found his cutter again. Threw some good sliders inside and outside. We've been looking for a springboard for him and hopefully that was it today."

Woods Richardson, whom the Blue Jays acquired from the Mets on Sunday, will report to High-A Dunedin with his new organization.

The 2018 second-round pick will move on to the Florida State League after posting a 4.25 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 97:17 K:BB across 78.1 innings with the Mets' Low-A affiliate in Columbia. While Woods Richardson was viewed as more of a secondary piece in the Marcus Stroman deal that also netted the Blue Jays a more advanced pitching prospect in Anthony Kay, the 18-year-old right-hander still boasts an intriguing profile. Woods Richardson features a fastball that typically sits in the 91-to-94 mile-per-hour range in addition to an above-average curveball and changeup.

Payano yielded three runs on six hits and four walks over 5.1 innings Sunday, striking out four batters during his no-decision in the loss to Oakland.

Payano had allowed just one run -- a solo shot by Marcus Semien in the third inning -- through five innings Sunday. He then put two runners on to start the sixth and was charged with another two runs after Jesse Chavez allowed a two-run double. The rookie right-hander now owns a 3.18 ERA over his first 11.1 innings of big-league work. Assuming he stays in the rotation for another turn, he should face Detroit at home next Sunday.

Leclerc (1-3) allowed two runs on two hits and three walks while recording just one out Sunday, blowing the save and taking a loss to Oakland.

Leclerc hadn't seen a save opportunity since blowing his last chance on April 30, and Sunday's performance certainly shouldn't get him back on track for more. One of the three walks was intentional, but the last walk to Khris Davis came with the bases jammed to end the contest. Leclerc's ERA ballooned to 4.34 with a 72:25 K:BB over 47.2 innings. It should be noted that Leclerc was pitching for a third consecutive day. With Shawn Kelley (biceps) on the injured list and Chris Martin (back) day-to-day, Leclerc may be the only option for save chances over the next few days.

VerHagen is listed as the Tigers' starting pitcher for Tuesday's game against the White Sox.

After making his first 10 appearances of the season with the Tigers as a reliever, VerHagen returned to the big club in a starting role Thursday following his promotion from Triple-A Toledo. VerHagen didn't find much success while taking the loss against the Mariners, giving up seven runs (six earned) on six hits and four walks while striking out four. The Tigers are lacking in appealing and/or healthy rotation members at the moment, so despite his lackluster results, VerHagen will be given a shot at redemption Tuesday. He's probably only worth tracking in AL-only leagues at this point until he begins providing more useful numbers.

Martin wasn't available to pitch Sunday against the Athletics due to back stiffness, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

The Rangers held a one-run lead heading into the ninth inning of Sunday's series finale, but with Martin unable to go, Jose Leclerc got the call. He would blow the save and take the loss. Texas has a scheduled off day Monday, so Martin will get an extra day to rest before the Rangers determine his status for Tuesday's clash.

Stanek (hip) tossed a successful bullpen session Sunday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Rays haven't officially outlined the next steps for Stanek, but he's expected to throw another bullpen session within a few days. If that goes well, he would likely make one minor-league rehab appearance before rejoining the Rays for their home series against the Marlins next weekend. Stanek has been on the shelf since July 19 with a sore right hip.