MLB Player News

The Astros reinstated Ort from the paternity list Saturday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

After spending the three-day maximum away from the team following the birth of his child, Ort will now return to the Astros' bullpen. In order to make room on the roster, Shawn Dubin was optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land.

The Astros optioned Martinez to Triple-A Sugar Land on Saturday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Martinez will be squeezed out of the Astros' bullpen in order to make room for Hector Neris, who signed with the team Thursday. With a 3.04 ERA and 1.21 WHIP through 50.1 innings, the 29-year-old Martinez remains a candidate to return to Houston's bullpen down the stretch.

The Athletics optioned Jimenez to Triple-A Las Vegas on Saturday.

Jimenez has given up six earned runs in two innings over his last two appearances, so the A's will now send him to Triple-A in order to get back on track. Hogan Harris was recalled from Las Vegas to fill the open spot on Oakland's pitching staff.

Snider (3-2) got the extra-inning win over the Giants on Friday, firing a scoreless 10th inning during which he issued an intentional walk and recorded two strikeouts.

Snider was called on to preserve a 5-5 tie in the 10th after Andres Munoz had struck out the side in the ninth, and the former responded with a crisp showing of his own. The right-hander lowered his season ERA to a stellar 0.98 with what was his 13th consecutive appearance without surrendering an earned run, and he now has four multi-strikeout tallies in his last nine trips to the mound.

The Twins designated Okert for assignment Saturday, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Okert will lose his spot in the Twins' bullpen after posting a 5.09 ERA and 1.50 WHIP across 35.1 innings on the season. Scott Blewett was promoted from Triple-A St. Paul to fill the open roster spot.

The Twins selected Blewett's contract from Triple-A St. Paul on Saturday, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Blewett elected free agency after being DFA'd by the Twins on Aug. 13 but eventually re-signed with the club on a minor-league deal last Saturday. The right-hander will now return to Minnesota's bullpen to replace Steven Okert, who was DFA'd in a corresponding move.

Weaver picked up a hold against the Rockies on Friday, walking one batter and striking out one in a scoreless inning of work.

After Carlos Rodon started and gave New York six scoreless frames, Weaver followed in the seventh and worked around a two-out walk to keep the shutout going. The hold was the righty reliever's team-leading 21st of the campaign after he entered the season without any holds over eight years that were mostly spent as a starter. Weaver has recorded five consecutive scoreless outings following a five-run implosion in a loss against Texas on Aug. 10.

Vest (3-4) tossed 1.1 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win in Friday's 5-2 victory over the White Sox. He allowed one hit.

Vest came on with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, then worked through the seventh inning as well to earn the win when the Tigers scored twice in the top half to break a 2-2 tie. The veteran righty is having another quality season with a 3.11 ERA across 55 innings of relief. Vest is getting high-leverage work, though Jason Foley is seeing the bulk of the save opportunities for the Tigers, including in Friday's contest.

Erceg gave up a hit and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Friday to record his seventh save of the season in a 7-4 win over the Phillies.

The 29-year-old has staked a strong claim to the closer job in Kansas City, securing four of the team's last five saves and posting a 0.00 ERA, 0.44 WHIP and 15:0 K:BB through 11.1 innings since being acquired by the Royals at the trade deadline. James McArthur has turned things around in August with a 1.08 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 8:1 K:BB in 8.1 frames, but looking more comfortable in a lower-leverage role isn't going to get him back in the ninth-inning mix unless Erceg stumbles.

Yates struck out one batter in a perfect inning to earn a save over Cleveland on Friday.

Yates retired Cleveland's 8-9-1 hitters in order to preserve the 5-3 win. He suffered his first blown save of the year Aug. 18 but has since picked up a win and two saves while dealing three perfect frames. Yates pushed his ERA down to 1.28 with a terrific 71:22 K:BB through 49.1 innings. He's converted 23 of his 24 save chances this season.