MLB Player News

Stanek (1-1) started Thursday's loss to the Athletics and allowed two earned runs on a hit and a walk over 1.1 innings.

Stanek became the latest Rays reliever to be called on for a "bullpen day" start, but he quickly ran into trouble in the second after a 1-2-3 opening frame. The hard-throwing right-hander gave up an inning-opening double to the returning Khris Davis and walked Chad Pinder two batters later. That led to his exit after 25 pitches, but the two runs Stephen Piscotty subsequently plated with a two-bagger off Ryan Yarbrough went on Stanek's ledger. Moving forward, the 26-year-old is still likely to be deployed as a reliever in the majority of his appearances, although he could certainly be called on for the occasional spot start given manager Kevin Cash's eccentric methods of deploying his pitching staff.

Giles allowed one hit and one walk while striking out two to record his 10th save of the season Thursday against the Red Sox.

Giles got the save opportunity Thursday after Chris Devenski blew a chance Tuesday, and he is now 10-for-10 in save opportunities this season. That is a bit deceiving, as he has allowed three and four earned runs in separate appearances in the month of May. While he isn't the only option to close games in Houston, he does lead the team in saves with no other member of the bullpen recording more than two this season.

Pomeranz (1-3) allowed four earned runs on six hits and two walks while striking out five across five innings to take the loss Thursday against the Astros.

While the bar hasn't been set very high, this was a relatively good outing for Pomeranz and the deepest he has pitched into the game in his past five starts. The big blow came on a two-run home run by Carlos Correa in the first inning, with the other two runs coming largely on a series of balls in play that did not leave the infield. While he did not struggle to this degree last season, Pomeranz did start sluggishly before posting a 3.01 ERA in the second half of the season. That said, there is hope that he can improve as the season wears on and this start was a small step in that direction. His next start comes Wednesday against the Tigers.

Graterol will miss his next scheduled start for Low-A Cedar Rapids due to a right wrist injury, Jeff Johnson of the Cedar Rapids Gazette reports.

Graterol's wrist was swollen and wrapped in ice after Thursday's game, according to the report which didn't specify how he suffered the injury. Graterol is having a strong season with a 1.78 ERA and an impressive 12.9 K/9 to this point.

Treinen recorded the final out in Thursday's win over the Rays to collect his 13th save this season.

Treinen entered the contest with two outs in the final inning with two men on base and his team holding a four-run lead. He needed just one pitch to get Johnny Field to pop out to the shortstop and end the game. The closer has now tossed seven consecutive scoreless appearances and holds a strong 0.99 ERA on the year.

Mengden (6-4) picked up the win Thursday against the Rays. He allowed three runs on six hits and two walks with five strikeouts over eight innings.

Mengden was brilliant through the first eight frames of Thursday's game, blanking the Rays on just three hits. He took the mound again in the ninth inning but was chased from the contest after allowing consecutive hits to the first three batters who all eventually came around to score. The surging right-hander has now tossed seven or more innings in his past three starts and has earned a winning decision in his last four outings. His string of dominance won't last forever, but fantasy owners should be confident in rolling him out there until he shows signs of slowing. He'll take on the Rangers on Wednesday in his next scheduled start.

Duffey was recalled from Triple-A Rochester on Thursday, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Duffey has appeared in three games for the Twins this season, accruing a disastrous 13.50 ERA and 2.25 WHIP with four strikeouts across 5.1 innings. He figures to offer assistance out of the Minnesota bullpen during his latest stint in the major leagues.

Ramirez was sent to Triple-A Nashville on Thursday.

Ramirez made one appearance for the Athletics during his latest big-league stint, tossing two scoreless innings while yielding one hit and one walk. Khris Davis was reinstated from the disabled list Thursday, which prompted Ramirez's demotion.

Moore allowed five runs (four earned) on eight hits and two walks with six strikeouts through 5.1 innings in a no-decision Wednesday against Seattle.

Moore's control got the best of him in the fourth inning, as he walked two batters, threw a wild pitch and suffered a passed ball in a three-run frame that derailed his bid at a quality start. Moore was nasty at times, as he induced 12 swinging strikes in 108 pitches, and the fact that he was able to bounce back with a scoreless fifth shows the knee injury that sent him to the disabled list briefly isn't much of a concern. Unfortunately, Moore hasn't been able to put it all together for a full start often enough in 2018, as he owns a brutal 7.85 ERA. He'll try to push that in the right direction next time out Tuesday against Oakland.

Manaea (5-6) allowed four runs on four hits and a walk with three strikeouts over five innings in a loss Wednesday to the Rays.

Manaea was primarily the victim of one bad pitch that turned into a three-run home run off the bat of Rob Refsnyder in the third inning. Other than that, Manaea was solid, as he induced 11 swinging strikes in 95 pitches and walked one batter (or less) for the eighth time in 12 starts. Unfortunately, home runs continue to be Manaea's big problem, as Refsnyder's blast was the 10th home run Manaea has allowed. Despite the resulting 1.2 HR/9, Manaea has a solid 3.60 ERA, so it's easy to be optimistic about what he is capable of if he can find a way to keep the ball in the yard. Manaea's next start will come Tuesday against Texas.