MLB Player News

Manaea allowed two runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six batters through 7.1 innings during Sunday's loss to Atlanta. He didn't factor into the decision.

The young lefty has now held opponents to three runs or fewer in eight of his past nine starts and sports a solid 3.75 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 9.4 K/9 for the campaign. His 3.67 FIP is also right in line with his other statistics, so he projects to remain a strong fantasy asset moving forward. Manaea's game-to-game consistency is also encouraging. A road date at Safeco Field against the Mariners is up next.

Diaz pitched 1.1 scoreless innings with two strikeouts to notch his 13th save of the season during Sunday's win over the Angels.

The closer had surrendered three home runs and seven total runs (albeit only three earned) through his previous three outings, so Sunday's smooth appearance was a strong rebound. Diaz has the pitch arsenal to be dominant, but he also has been extremely inconsistent this season, and it's worth remembering that the 23-year-old righty skipped the Triple-A level entirely when he joined the Mariners last June.

Chavez (5-9) held the Mariners to two runs on four hits over five innings, walking two and striking out three in a 5-3 loss Sunday.

Chavez labored through in this one, needing 96 pitches (56 strikes) to complete five frames. The veteran hasn't been sharp lately, posting a 4.3 BB/9 and a 6.12 ERA over his previous five starts. The lack of control could be a sign that the 33-year-old is losing steam as we enter the dog days of summer. Chavez was already a marginal fantasy asset with an overall ERA of 4.97, but his recent rough patch makes him hard to trust in almost any format going forward.

Santiago gave up four earned runs over 3.1 innings with four hits, a walk and two strikeouts in Sunday's loss at Kansas City. Santiago didn't reach 90 mph on any of his pitches after reaching 94 mph in his last start, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Santiago has a 9.96 ERA since May 14 and has seven losses and a no-decision in his last eight outings. It didn't sound like after the game that manager Paul Molitor would keep him in the rotation.

Pomeranz (8-4) threw six innings of one-run ball in Sunday's win over the Blue Jays, allowing five hits and two walks with three strikeouts.

Pomeranz scattered baserunners throughout his start and never faced any real danger aside from a sacrifice fly from Steve Pearce in the second inning. He was staked to a large lead as his side put 15 runs on the board and cruised through six frames before calling it a day. Pomeranz has quietly been in great form of late, going at least five innings with two earned runs or fewer allowed in seven of his last eight starts. His recent success has seen his season ERA drop to 3.64 -- a figure he will look to continue improving upon Saturday against the Rays.

Johnson (shoulder) is expected to move his rehab assignment to Triple-A Pawtucket on Wednesday, Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal reports.

It will be the second rehab outing for Johnson after the lefty previously tossed two innings Friday for short-season Lowell. Johnson is expected to work deeper into Wednesday's outing as he prepares for a return from the 10-day disabled list shortly after the All-Star break.

Merritt was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Sunday, MLB.com reports.

Merritt likely would have been in line to start one game of the Indians' doubleheader with the Tigers originally scheduled for Friday, but that plan was scrapped after rain pushed the twin bill back to Saturday. The Indians still brought the lefty up from the minors as their 26th man to offer another arm out of the bullpen, but he ended up going unused in both games.

Leclerc (1-2) picked up a loss and a blown save by surrendering two runs on one hit and one walk with one strikeout in one inning Sunday against the White Sox.

He was asked to protect a one-run lead in the eighth inning after former closer Matt Bush pitched a perfect seventh, but Leclerc ended up surrendering a two-out, two-run homer to Yolmer Sanchez. His chances of filling the closer void in Texas took a nosedive with this performance.

Robertson improved to 4-2 with 1.2 scoreless innings Sunday against the Rangers. He allowed two hits and a walk with two strikeouts.

Robertson got the final two outs with the bases empty in the top of the eighth inning, then got the opportunity to close out the contest when a Yolmer Sanchez homer in the bottom of the frame turned a 5-4 deficit into a 6-5 lead. Texas was able to load the bases against him in the ninth, but Robertson nailed down the victory with a three-pitch strikeout of Carlos Gomez.

Povse was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma on Sunday, Bob Dutton of The Tacoma News Tribune reports.

The Mariners were in need of more position depth with Nelson Cruz (knee) sustaining an injury in Saturday's game, so Povse will head back to the minors to open up a spot on the active roster for outfielder Boog Powell. Povse made two appearances in relief during his first stint with the big club, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk over 2.2 innings.