MLB Player News

Diaz struck out the side to earn his 32nd save of the season Sunday against the Royals.

Diaz needed only 15 pitches to earn the save Sunday, his second in as many days. He is 32-for-35 in save opportunities this season and continues to lead the major leagues in saves by a wide margin, all while posting elite indicators: 14.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 0.88 WHIP.

Perez was optioned to Double-A Corpus Christi on Sunday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

One of the organization's top pitching prospects, Perez was recalled from Double-A on Friday to provide length out of the Houston bullpen on a temporary basis, but he went unused during his two-game stay with the big club. With the Astros bringing Yulieski Gurriel back from the paternity list Sunday, it was an easy decision to send Perez back to Double-A to create room on the 25-man roster. Perez should resume working in a starting role at Corpus Christi, where he has compiled a 2.20 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 71 strikeouts across 57.1 innings this season.

Johnson will start Tuesday's game against the Nationals, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Johnson went four innings as a fill-in starter for Steven Wright (knee) last Thursday, and manager Alex Cora feels the left-hander could get up to five innings Tuesday. This could be the last start for Johnson with Drew Pomeranz (biceps) nearing a return. He owns a 4.28 ERA and 7.9 K/9 in 40 innings for Boston on the season.

Diaz pitched a clean ninth inning to record the save Saturday against the Royals.

Diaz entered the game in the ninth inning with a two-run lead and had no trouble preserving it, needing just 11 pitches to retire the Royals in order. He now has 31 saves for the season, seven more than any other closer in the majors.

Gallegos was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre following Saturday's contest, Coley Harvey of ESPN.com repots.

Before his demotion, Gallegos chewed up two innings in the 11-0 loss to Boston. The Yankees might need to promote a catcher with Austin Romine (hamstring) injured, and the mop-up righty was a logical subtraction to free up a roster space. Though his ERA shot up from 0.00 to 3.86 as he gave up three runs Saturday, he's quietly impressed with 10 strikeouts and just one walk over his seven major-league innings. He might have a return ticket on the shuttle for the next time the team needs to fill a bullpen void.

Trivino needed only three pitches to induce Yonder Alonso to hit into a double play with the bases loaded Saturday, picking up his third save of the season in a 7-2 win over Cleveland.

After Santiago Casilla gave up a hit, a hit by pitch and a walk with one out to begin the ninth inning, Trivino got the call with Blake Treinen having pitched four of the last five days and made quick work of the save situation. Treinen is in no danger of losing his grip on the closer job, but A's manager Bob Melvin is clearly comfortable turning to Trivino when he needs to in a high-leverage spot. The right-hander now boasts a 1.56 ERA and 39:13 K:BB through 34.2 innings on the year.

Jimenez (3-1) struck out one and allowed one run on two hits -- including a walkoff home run -- in two-thirds of an inning against the Blue Jays on Saturday.

Jimenez got out of a jam in the eighth inning, preserving the tie with help from a Leonys Martin outfield assist to nail Devon Travis at home. Justin Smoak sent the Blue Jays home victorious on Jimenez's second pitch of the ninth inning, though, so Jimenez ultimately failed to get the job done. He's still been an effective reliever on the whole this season, pitching 39 innings with a 2.77 ERA. If Shane Greene continues to struggle or gets traded, Jimenez remains well-placed to take over the closing job despite Saturday's slip-up.

VerHagen will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Toledo on Saturday.

VerHagen, who has been on the disabled list since June 20 after sustaining a broken nose, appears likely to spend little more than the minimum 10 days on the DL. The 27-year-old should make a couple appearances with the Mud Hens and could return to the Tigers early next week.

Treinen picked up the save against the Indians on Friday, working around a hit and a walk and logging one strikeout in a scoreless ninth inning to close out a 3-1 victory for Oakland.

Treinen has been an absolute machine all season, and he kept his standout campaign rolling with his 21st save of the year, and his fourth in the past five days. His 0.89 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 49:12 K:BB through 40.2 innings are All-Star-caliber, and anyone who was able to nab Treinen late on draft day is currently reaping major benefits.

Covey (3-3) was torched for nine runs (eight earned) on eight hits and three walks over just 2.1 innings in a loss Friday to the Rangers.

Covey was rocked for four home runs, including two three-run blasts. He had given up just two over 44.1 innings before Friday's start, so this was a shocking collapse from a pitcher whose game plan relies on grounders and keeping the ball in the park. Covey has been dealing with hip soreness dating back to his previous start June 23, and after a performance like this, it's easy to wonder if that soreness was indicative of a larger problem. His next turn is scheduled for Wednesday against Cincinnati.