MLB Player News

Garcia saved Sunday's 3-2 win against the Twins, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning.

With the recent news that Taylor Rogers would get "a little bit of a break" from closing duties per manager Bob Melvin, Garcia received first crack at the job and delivered a seamless ninth inning in a one-run game to register his first save of the season. Teammate Nick Martinez recently saved Tuesday's victory over Detroit and is second on the team to Rogers with four saves, though he pitched the 10th after Rogers appeared in the ninth inning. The 35-year-old Garcia has compiled a solid 1.93 ERA through nine July appearances with as many strikeouts (10) as baserunners allowed.

Manaea (6-5) earned the win during Sunday's 3-2 victory over Minnesota, allowing two runs on four hits and three walks with seven strikeouts in six innings.

Manaea navigated the first four frames unscathed but ran into trouble thereafter, surrendering solo home runs in the fifth and sixth innings while stranding the bases loaded in the fifth. The 30-year-old fired 56 of 83 pitches for strikes with an impressive 13 of the swinging variety while the seven strikeouts match his best total across his last nine turns. Manaea now possesses a 4.25 ERA and 1.27 WHIP with 111 strikeouts in 110 innings across 19 starts. He's currently scheduled to take the mound again next weekend against the Dodgers.

Nelson will start a bullpen game for the Phillies against Atlanta on Tuesday, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Nelson served as an opener July 7 against the Nationals and struck out two in two scoreless innings. The right-hander should be able to pitch longer than usual since he hasn't made an appearance since July 26, but he shouldn't be expected to handle a significant workload since the Phillies are planning for a bullpen game. Nelson posted a 1.59 ERA, 15:5 K:BB and 1.24 WHIP in 11.1 innings over eight appearances in July.

Abbott is scheduled to start Tuesday against the Mets, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

The 26-year-old was recalled by Washington on Saturday and will join the rotation with Erick Fedde (shoulder) recently placed on the injured list. Abbott's two big-league appearances this year have come out of the bullpen, but he's started six games for Triple-A Rochester and has a 5.08 ERA, 1.67 WHIP and 34:17 K:BB over 28.1 innings.

Reed was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Reed was called up by Los Angeles on Wednesday and allowed one run over 2.2 innings during his brief time in the majors. It's the fifth demotion for the 29-year-old this year, so if he returns to the big leagues the Dodgers won't be able to send him back down without exposing him to waivers.

Cabrera (3-2) allowed two runs on a hit and a walk while striking out one in one inning, taking the loss and a blown save versus the Nationals on Saturday.

Jordan Hicks pitched a clean sixth inning but hit the first batter he faced in the seventh. Cabrera entered the contest and walked Juan Soto before giving up a three-run home run to Josh Bell, and the Cardinals couldn't catch up again later in the game. Through six appearances in July, Cabrera's been charged with four runs, though those have been accumulated between two outings. He has a 2.95 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 32:16 K:BB with a save, a blown save and 10 holds in 36.2 innings. Despite the unsteady performances since returning from the COVID-19 injured list, the southpaw remains in a high-leverage role.

Rogers (2-3) struck out three in two perfect innings to earn the win Saturday over the Cubs.

Starter Jakob Junis didn't qualify for the win by going only four innings, with Rogers providing solid multi-inning relief. For much of July, Rogers' role has evolved into that of a middle reliever. He's allowed six runs on 10 hits and seven walks with seven strikeouts over 12.1 innings. He's posted a 4.56 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 29:16 K:BB in 47.1 innings overall while collecting 11 holds and a blown save through 45 outings.

Leone allowed a run on one hit over one inning, but he earned the save in Saturday's 5-4 win over the Cubs.

Yunior Marte got into trouble in the ninth inning, putting two on with no outs. Leone entered the game and allowed a single to load the bases. The Cubs were able to rally for three runs, with one charged to Leone on a Seiya Suzuki groundout, but the comeback effort fell just short. This was Leone's third save of the season, and he's added 11 holds and three blown saves in 40 appearances. The right-hander has a 3.96 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 38:14 K:BB through 36.1 innings. He'll likely be unavailable Sunday since he's pitched three days in a row.

Junis allowed five hits and a walk with four strikeouts in four scoreless innings, taking a no-decision Saturday versus the Cubs.

Junis stretched out to 74 pitches, but he wasn't very efficient with them in throwing only 45 strikes in this outing. He was at least able to keep runs off the board for the first time in three appearances since returning from a hamstring injury. The 29-year-old owns a 2.78 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 48:12 K:BB through 58.1 innings in 12 outings (nine starts) this year. Junis is projected for a tough home start versus the Dodgers next week.

Hudson didn't factor into the decision during Saturday's 7-6 loss to Washington, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with one strikeout in 4.1 innings.

Making his first start since July 14 due to a neck injury, Hudson kept the damage to a minimum, surrendering a Victor Robles solo home run in the third inning and putting one runner on in the fifth who came around to score after Hudson departed. The 27-year-old has averaged an improved two walks per game during four July starts, though he still ranks last by a wide margin among 62 qualified starters with a 1.23 K/BB. Hudson carries a 4.10 ERA and 1.36 WHIP into his next start, scheduled to come midweek against the Cubs.