MLB Player News

Saupold has a 2.53 ERA and 0.98 WHIP in 21.1 innings over 13 appearances this season.

Primarily being used in long relief, the Australian pitcher has only allowed runs to score in two appearances this season, albeit three runs each time. Saupold is holding batters to a .241 average against him and is handing out walks at a rate of 2.1 per nine innings.

Castro was optioned to Double-A Bowie on Saturday, Rich Dubroff of PressBoxonline.com reports.

Castro has struggled out of the bullpen since his recall last week, allowing seven runs (five earned) over eight innings in his last six appearances. He will attempt to sort things out with the team's Double-A affiliate, while Stefan Crichton will replace him on the 25-man roster and in the bullpen.

Boshers has an ERA of 2.77 with a WHIP of 1.31 in 13 innings since being brought to the majors at the end of May.

It's been an impressive month for the left-handed reliever, who is being used as a long reliever in games that starters don't pitch very deep. Now in his third season, the biggest change for Boshers from his first two years has been his ability to strand runners. Overall, he has stranded 82.4 percent of batters who get on base in 2017 compared to the marks of 64.1 and 61.9 he had the prior two campaigns.

Hendriks notched his seventh hold of the season in Friday's 3-0 win over the White Sox, firing a scoreless sixth inning and recording two strikeouts.

The veteran right-hander was the first of several relievers to help preserve the slim lead following starter Jharel Cotton's exit after five frames with a blister. Hendriks' strong outing was also a welcome sight from an individual standpoint, as he'd surrendered six earned runs over his previous seven trips to the mound. The 28-year-old's June hasn't been for the faint of heart, as he's offset a 5.56 ERA, a blown save and a loss with three holds, two victories and 19 strikeouts over 11.1 innings.

Smith (elbow), who was shut down due to shoulder inflammation, will be reevaluated Monday, Tim Britton of the Providence Journal reports.

Smith was inching closer to a rehabilitation assignment when the Red Sox announced they were shutting him down for a bit. They suggested the shoulder soreness wasn't a serious situation. However, to hear the comments of manager John Farrell and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski, one gets a different impression. Dombrowski said Smith "still has a chance to come back and help us this year," while Farrell has "not closed the book" on Smith contributing this season. Those are the kinds of statements they made about Tyler Thornburg right before he underwent season-ending shoulder surgery.

Fulmer (6-6) allowed just one run on two hits and four walks while striking out eight over seven innings but still took the loss Friday against the Padres.

Make it two consecutive quality starts for Fulmer, a good bounce back after he allowed five runs in consecutive starts May 27 and June 2, both against the White Sox. Eight strikeouts marks Fulmer's highest total since he struck out nine over eight innings on May 5 against the Athletics. Even though it was a loss, Fulmer showed electric stuff, which is a good sign that he's back on the rise.

Junis (2-1) pitched 6.1 innings Friday, allowing two runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four Blue Jays in a no-decision.

It was an admirable performance by the youngster, who picked up his second quality start in his last three outings. Junis dealt strikes on 62 percent of his pitches Friday while inducing more groundouts (eight) than flyouts (six) for the first time in any of his big-league starts this year. Although the 24-year-old's ERA (4.97) and WHIP (1.62) won't draw the attention of many, Junis has shown flashes of what makes him an appealing option in dynasty formats. The right-hander is slated to make his next start Thursday at Detroit.

Pruitt pitched three shutout innings Friday, allowing three hits while striking out one to earn his first save against the Orioles.

Despite protecting a nine-run lead, he qualified for a save based on the rule that awards one to a pitcher recording three effective innings to close out a victory. Although the save was nice, his 6.25 ERA makes him a player with little fantasy appeal.

Flynn (back) is set to come off the 60-day disabled list Sunday, at which point the Royals may choose to place him back on the 40-man roster, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Hunter Dozier recently went down at Triple-A Omaha with a possible season-ending wrist injury, and the Royals may opt to replace him on the 40-man with Flynn. The latter has been on a rehab assignment with Omaha for nearly a month with mixed results, but Flynn performed admirably (2.60 ERA) over 36 games for the Royals last year.

Strahm will likely move to the bullpen once Danny Duffy (oblique) and Nate Karns (forearm) come off the disabled list, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.

Unless Kansas City shakes up its roster, there won't be room in a five-man rotation for Strahm when everyone is healthy. That said, Duffy is scheduled for a rehab assignment Saturday, but Karns' return date (which is expected sometime in July) remains cloudy, meaning Strahm should have a few more starts before he's bumped from the group. The 25-year-old could provide rotation depth from Triple-A, but continuing to face big-league hitters will provide the lefty with more valuable experience as the team looks toward the future.