MLB Player News

Jimenez recorded his second save of the season in Sunday's 3-1 win over the White Sox, tossing a scoreless inning of relief with three strikeouts.

Regular Detroit closer Shane Greene had appeared in four straight games coming into Sunday, so he got the day off while Jimenez got a crack at a save opportunity. The 23-year-old dazzled, striking out all three Chicago hitters he faced on 14 pitches to lower his season ERA to 2.04. The veteran Greene remains a potential trade candidate, and such a move would seemingly thrust Jimenez into the closer's role on a regular basis.

Mengden allowed four earned runs on six hits and three walks while striking out two across 5.2 innings Sunday against the Angels. He did not factor into the decision.

After a solid start to the season, Mengden continued his recent struggles with his inability to limit walks and home runs betraying him once again. He allowed two home runs -- both solo shots to Albert Pujols and Chris Young, respectively -- and two of the three batters he walked eventually came around to score. Sunday's start marked his third straight effort in which he has allowed both multiple walks and home runs, making him a difficult option to trust in most shallow formats.

Giles struck out one in a scoreless eighth inning to earn his first hold of the season in Sunday's 7-4 win over the Royals.

Hector Rondon followed up in the ninth inning to pick up the save, but that manager A.J. Hinch used Giles in the eighth should not be viewed as the manager lacking confidence in him. One could argue he used Giles in the higher-leverage spot, a sign of the Hinch's confidence. Giles pitched the eighth inning against the heart of the Kansas City order while Rondon mopped up against the Royals' lower third. Such an arrangement still might cost Giles a few save chances depending on the alignment of hitters due up in the late innings.

Stanek will get the start Monday against the Astros, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Stanek has a tough task ahead, as he's slated to pitch at least the first inning of Monday's series opener against Houston, which has won 11 straight. He's been solid both out of the bullpen and as an opener, accruing a 2.55 ERA and 1.02 WHIP with a 22:9 K:BB over 17.2 innings this season.

The Royals optioned Barlow to Triple-A Omaha on Sunday.

Barlow will cede his spot on the active roster to Wily Peralta, whose contract was selected from Omaha in a corresponding move. The 25-year-old righty made three appearances out of the bullpen during his latest stint with Kansas City, giving up four earned runs over 7.1 innings.

Farmer (3-3) was the winning pitcher Saturday against the White Sox, working around a hit and two walks to toss a scoreless inning of relief.

Farmer made the seventh inning interesting, walking two batters with two outs to load the bases before getting the dangerous Jose Abreu to ground out. The 27-year-old now has a 5.51 ERA and a 1.81 WHIP, though, and has simply been allowing too many baserunners to be a consistent option for the Tigers.

Pruitt fired 3.1 scoreless innings in which he allowed one hit and recorded two strikeouts during a loss to the Yankees on Saturday.

That's two consecutive positive outings for Pruitt after he'd been hammered for eight earned runs over the first two appearances of June. The 28-year-old right-hander has been all over the place with his performances this season, as he's allowed multiple earned runs on five occasions and generated scoreless efforts in another four instances. However, despite his inconsistency, Pruitt remains a viable option for manager Kevin Cash, considering that his versatility dovetails with the Rays skipper's propensity for using his relievers for multi-inning stints this season, especially on "bullpen days."

Devenski struck out two in a clean ninth inning in Saturday's 10-2 win over the Royals.

This was Devenski's fourth consecutive appearance without allowing a walk or a hit and sixth without permitting a run. He's lowered his ERA to 1.63 while striking out 34 over 27.2 innings. Houston's bats have heated up during a 10-game winning streak so Devenski hasn't been needed for too much high-leverage work of late, which is why we saw him mopping up Saturday's blowout win.

Treinen locked down his 15th save of the season Saturday against the Angels despite allowing one run on one hit and two walks in one inning of work. He struck out one.

Despite the earned run -- which snapped a 10-game scoreless streak for the reliever -- Treinen was still able to convert his 12th consecutive save chance. His 15 saves are now tied for fifth in the American League, while the 29-year-old also sports a 1.13 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 37:10 K:BB through 32 innings on the year.

Manaea (6-6) earned the win Saturday against the Angels, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk across six innings. He struck out four.

Manaea was perfect through four innings before hitting a speed bump in the fifth frame, allowing back-to-back singles before serving up a three-run homer to Chris Young to put the Angels up 3-1. The southpaw quickly righted the ship and didn't allow another run before exiting, and the A's were able to score four runs in the sixth inning to give Manaea his first win since May 14 -- a six-start stretch. He's now produced two straight quality starts and owns a solid 3.38 ERA across three June starts after struggling in May (7.18 ERA over six starts). Manaea will look to keep things rolling in his next outing, which will come on the road against the White Sox.