MLB Player News

Alvarado worked around a walk with two strikeouts in a scoreless inning of work to earn his fifth save of the season Monday against the Royals.

Alvarado was summoned to protect a one-run lead, and although he walked the tying run aboard with one out, he was able to preserve the victory. He needed 20 pitches to retire the side, throwing 12 for strikes while striking out a pair. Alvarado blew his last save opportunity, but he's still in the mix when the matchup calls for his skill set.

Gonsalves, who gave up four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out three in 1.1 innings Monday against the White Sox, will get at least one more turn in the rotation, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

The game was delayed due to rain, and Gonsalves warmed up before the delay, so his routine for his big-league debut was a little off. That said, as a 24-year-old righty without high-end stuff and with significant command/control issues in the minors this year (65 walks in 120.2 innings), Gonsalves will make for a very risky option, even when his pregame routine goes off without a hitch. His next start figures to come Saturday against the A's.

Hand gave up one hit and struck out one over two-thirds of an inning Monday against the Red Sox. He picked up his fifth hold of the season.

Hand came in for matchup purposes after Adam Cimber struck out Ian Kinsler for the first out of the eighth inning. Cody Allen was clearly being reserved for the save situation, with the Indians taking a 5-3 lead to the ninth inning. Allen gave up one run, but secured his 25th save. Hand should still get the occassional save opportunity when matchups and usage patterns call for it, but Allen is the best bet for saves in Cleveland's bullpen.

Gonsalves (0-1) gave up four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out three in 1.1 innings Monday against the White Sox. He took the loss.

Expectations should have been very low for Gonsalves' big-league debut, as he lacks high-end stuff and has really struggled with his command/control this year in the minors (65 walks in 120.2 innings). He was already on the 40-man roster and the Twins want to use the final five-plus weeks to give some valuable experience to some of their younger pitchers. It is unclear if he will be sent back down to Triple-A until September or stay up for another turn in the rotation.

Giles pitched a perfect ninth inning to pick up his 16th save Monday against the Orioles.

He did not allow a baserunner or record a strikeout, using an efficient 10 pitches to get the final three outs. Giles has successfully picked up the save in each of his last four appearances, giving up just one run on a solo home run while striking out four over that four-inning stretch. He has a firm hold on the closer role in Toronto.

Adams signed a minor-league contract with the Twins on Monday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

The 32-year-old had been pitching for the the Sugar Land Skeeters of the independent Atlantic League. He's thrown 58.2 big-league innings in his career, struggling to a 6.29 ERA. He'll be assigned to Double-A Chattanooga.

Yarbrough is expected to cover the bulk of the innings out of the Tampa Bay bullpen once opener Hunter Wood exits Monday's game against the Royals, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Rays used both of their other two multi-inning relievers -- Yonny Chirinos and Jalen Beeks -- over the weekend, leaving Yarbrough as the only long man available out of the bullpen on at least four days' rest. With that in mind, Yarbrough should be in store for a sizable workload, as has been the case in his last handful of appearances. Yarbrough has covered at least four innings in five of his last six outings, factoring into the decision four times and going 3-1.

The Twins recalled Gonsalves from Triple-A Rochester ahead of his scheduled start Monday against the White Sox.

Minnesota had relayed Sunday that Gonsalves would join the big club and slot into the rotation, but the team waited a day to make the transaction official. The lefty has posted a 2.96 ERA and 95 strikeouts over 100.1 innings at Rochester this season, but a 4.9 BB/9 tempers some enthusiasm for his prospects as he prepares for his first MLB start. Regardless of how he performs Monday, Gonsalves should be in line for additional starts with Ervin Santana (finger) potentially done for the season and neither Aaron Slegers (shoulder) nor Adalberto Mejia (elbow) looking especially close to returning from the disabled list.

Devenski (hamstring) will require a third rehab outing later this week at Double-A Corpus Christi or Triple-A Fresno, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Devenski made two rehab appearances last week with two days of rest in between. He last pitched Friday, running his pitch count to 20 and striking out three in one inning. The Astros may want to see the right-hander pitch on consecutive days, which would mean at least two more outings.

Barria allowed one earned run on seven hits and one walk while striking out five across five innings Sunday against the Rangers. He did not factor into the decision.

Despite allowing eight baserunners, Barria limited the damage by allowing only one extra-base hit. He generated an impressive 14 swinging strikes and induced 10 of his 15 outs via either a groundball or strikeout. Limiting home runs has been key for Barria, and in his four August starts, he has allowed only one home run across 20.2 innings, which has resulted in him surrendering only five earned runs.