MLB Player News

Rodriguez allowed a hit to the first batter he faced before retiring the final five hitters Thursday, recording 1.2 scoreless innings in a 7-5 win over the Tigers. He struck out two and walked none.

Rodriguez was called up earlier in the day when the Rangers placed Chris Martin (groin) on the disabled list. Rodriguez was effective while in the minors, posting a 2.08 ERA in stops at Double-A Frisco and Triple-A Round Rock. His previous stint in the majors, however, was not as successful. The right-hander was rocked for a 6.23 ERA in 16 games with the Rangers last season.

Barria allowed two earned runs on five hits and three walks while striking out one across 5.1 innings to take the loss Thursday against the Mariners.

Barria turned in a strong effort despite recording only one strikeout, instead relying on nine groundball outs. That hasn't been his typical formula -- he has just a 39.8 percent groundball rate this season -- but it was effective as he didn't surrender a home run to the Mariners. That was an important change from his recent starts, as entering Thursday's game he had allowed six home runs in his last 19.1 innings, causing his ERA to jump from 2.48 to 3.40.

Diaz struck out the side to record his 34th save of the season Thursday against the Angels.

Diaz has shown no signs of slowing down on his league-leading saves pace, with Thursday already marking his third save in July. Despite the relatively heavy workload, he has remained dominant, allowing only two earned runs and seven baserunners with 17 strikeouts in his last 10 innings.

Rodney fired a perfect ninth inning to earn his 18th save Thursday, striking out two in the 5-2 win over the Orioles.

Rodney had blown his last two save opportunities, walking two batters and allowing four hits over those two innings. He's now 18-for-23 in save chances this season with a 3.07 ERA and a firm grasp on the closer role in Minnesota. Rodney could be moved to a contender at the trade deadline, which would almost certainly relegate him to a non-closer role for the final two-plus months of the season.

Rodriguez was recalled by the Rangers on Thursday.

Rodriguez has posted an impressive 1.93 ERA and 0.99 WHIP with a 17:3 K:BB across 18.2 innings with Triple-A Round Rock after missing the first two months of the season with elbow inflammation. He hasn't appeared in any games for the Rangers in 2018, but that will likely change once he joins the club in Detroit.

Martin was put on the 10-day disabled list due a left groin strain prior to Thursday's game.

Martin was recalled from the minors before tossing an inning against the Astros on Wednesday. It appears as though he suffered this injury during that one-inning outing, which marks the second time he's landed on the DL in as many months. He previously spent 10 days on the shelf with a hamstring injury. He will be eligible to return July 15. In a corresponding move, Ricardo Rodriguez was called up from Triple-A Round Rock.

Stanek will serve as the opening pitcher for the Rays in Friday's series opener against the Mets, Juan Toribio of The Athletic Tampa Bay reports.

Stanek hasn't worked more than two innings as an opener or reliever this season, so that will likely be his restriction Friday. The hard-throwing right-hander has allowed just one run since the beginning of June while posting a 0.85 WHIP and 22 strikeouts in 17.2 innings. Due to the heavy workloads that many of the Rays' other long-relief options have assumed lately, the newly recalled Andrew Kittredge looks like the top candidate to cover the bulk of the innings behind Stanek.

Trivino (7-1) fired a scoreless two-thirds of an inning in a win over the Padres on Wednesday, issuing two walks and hitting a batter.

Trivino made life a bit difficult on himself with some control issues, but he ultimately did enough to position himself for a possible victory. That came to fruition in the home half of the frame when Stephen Piscotty laced a go-ahead double, giving the right-hander his fourth victory in the last eight appearances. Trivino also has three saves and nine holds, so he's been considerably more valuable in all fantasy formats than the average middle reliever or setup man typically is.

Andriese opened Wednesday's "bullpen day" loss to the Marlins, firing two scoreless innings in which he allowed a hit and two walks while recording three strikeouts.

The right-hander fired 36 pitches overall and then gave way to callup Ryan Weber, who saved a weary Rays bullpen some innings by tossing five frames. Andriese is one of manager Kevin Cash's most flexible options out of the bullpen, given that he has extensive starting experience and has also seen his fair share of relief work during his career. After a rocky June (6.39 ERA over 12.2 innings), he's gotten July off to a strong start, posting four scoreless innings overall across a pair of appearances.

Giles struck out two over a scoreless 10th inning to pick up his 12th save of the season in Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Rangers.

This was the first save opportunity since June 12 for Giles, who's watched Hector Rondon lock down the three previous chances, including Tuesday's win in which he expended 35 pitches. It was very likely that Rondon was not available following his labored outing Tuesday.