MLB Player News

Bard pitched a scoreless ninth inning with one walk and three strikeouts to earn the save in a 7-4 win over the Giants on Friday.

Bard racked up three more punchouts in a dominant inning of work to pick up his 25th save of 2022. The 37-year-old right hander is in the midst of his best season since 2010 and has the fifth-most saves in the National League. Even though Bard did not pitch in the majors between 2014 and 2019, he has redefined his career this season with an xERA/xwOBA in the 92nd percentile of MLB pitchers.

Gonzalez (elbow) joined Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday to continue his rehab, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.

Gonzalez actually kicked off his rehab stint in the Arizona Complex League, striking out two batters in a scoreless inning Tuesday. The left-hander was subsequently sent to OKC, though he's yet to pitch for the Triple-A squad. Gonzalez last pitched in the majors last August, so he'll likely be given ample time to ramp up.

Hader (2-5) allowed three runs (two earned) on a hit and a walk without recording an out Friday, taking the loss versus the Nationals.

Hader entered with the game tied at 3-3 and made a mess of it. One run came home on his own error, and he followed that by coughing up a two-run home run to Alex Call before Luis Garcia was brought in to complete the inning. Hader's struggles from the end of his Milwaukee tenure have followed him to San Diego -- he's given up six runs (five earned) while posting a 4:5 K:BB through 3.1 innings across five appearances as a Padre. For the season, he has a 5.06 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 63:16 K:BB while going 29-for-32 in save chances through 37.1 innings across 42 appearances.

Finnegan struck out two in a perfect inning to earn the save in Friday's 6-3 win over the Padres.

Finnegan walked two batters in a scoreless inning for a save Thursday, but he was much sharper in Friday's outing. He's pitched four out of five days this week, striking out five and walking two while picking up three saves across four scoreless innings. The 30-year-old has a 3.26 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 51:17 K:BB with seven saves and 13 holds across 49.2 innings this year, though his recent workload may make him unavailable for a save chance if one arises Saturday.

Almonte (elbow) isn't expected to be activated until the second week of September, as his recovery is progressing more slowly than expected, Matthew Moreno of DodgerBlue.com reports.

Initial reports on Almonte suggested that he wasn't dealing with anything serious, and an MRI on his right elbow came back clean. However, it's somewhat concerning that he hasn't been able to work his way back into action as quickly as expected. Almonte last pitched Aug. 3, so the updated timeline indicates that he's slated to miss over a month of action. The right-hander has been a pleasant surprise when healthy, posting a 1.15 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 30:10 K:BB over 31.1 innings while notching seven holds and one save.

Phillips pitched a perfect inning to earn the save in Friday's 2-1 win over the Marlins.

Phillips has been effective all year, and he's strung together five perfect innings in his last five appearances. It's his third streak this year of at least five outings without allowing a baserunner. The right-hander owns a 1.31 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 56:12 K:BB through 48 innings this year, and he now has two saves to go with 15 holds, a 5-3 record and two blown saves in 48 appearances. Craig Kimbrel pitched Tuesday and Wednesday but didn't feature Thursday, so it's of at least mild intrigue that Phillips got this save opportunity, but it's likely just a move to give Kimbrel an extra day of rest. Prior to Friday, Phillips hadn't appeared since Tuesday.

Kuhnel (2-2) allowed two runs on two hits in Friday's loss to the Pirates. He was charged with a blown save and a loss while recording just one out.

Kuhnel served up an RBI double to Kevin Newman and was charged with another run while Ross Detwiler was on the mound. The 27-year-old righty had allowed just two runs over his previous 9.2 innings but saw his ERA jump to 5.73 after Friday's short outing. He's blown two of his three save chances on the year. Alexis Diaz, who has two saves this month, recorded one out during the seventh inning.

Wilson allowed three runs on five hits over seven innings in Friday's 5-4 win over the Reds. He struck out four and did not factor in the decision.

All three runs against Wilson came via the long ball. He gave up a two-run shot to Nick Senzel in the second inning followed by TJ Friedl's solo blast in the fifth. Wilson completed seven innings for the first time in his MLB career and lowered his season ERA to 5.74 through 78.1 frames. The 24-year-old is lined up to start in Philadelphia next week.

Bender (elbow), who was placed on the injured list Sunday, will require Tommy John surgery, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

The 27-year-old's initial diagnosis was a right elbow strain after he exited a game last weekend against Atlanta, and he's apparently dealing with damage to the UCL. Bender will miss the rest of the season and should also be expected to be sidelined for the full 2023 campaign. He recorded six saves and three holds with a 3.26 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 17:8 K:BB across 19.1 innings this year.

Nance was recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville on Friday, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

The right-hander was demoted to Jacksonville on Sunday, but he'll be able to rejoin the big-league club before spending the minimum 10 days in the minors since Garrett Cooper (concussion) was placed on the injured list. Nance has a 5.46 ERA, 1.64 WHIP and 41:14 K:BB across 28 innings for Miami this year.