MLB Player News

The Pirates reinstated Underwood (illness) from the COVID-19-related injured list Sunday, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.

Underwood will be available out of the Pittsburgh bullpen for Sunday's series finale with Milwaukee after he was able to regain his conditioning following a two-appearance rehab assignment at Double-A Altoona. Before testing positive for COVID-19 on June 13 and landing on the IL, Underwood gathered three holds and posted a 4.24 ERA and 1.29 WHIP across 17 innings out of the big-league bullpen.

The Cubs recalled Rucker from Triple-A Iowa on Sunday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

He'll be joining the big club as a replacement for Alec Mills (back), who was placed on the 15-day injured list just seven pitches into his start in Saturday's win over the Red Sox. Since Mark Leiter came on in long relief and covered 5.1 innings out of the bullpen, he likely won't be available for at least a few days, so Rucker should provide a fresh arm in the interim. Over his previous 12 outings this season with the Cubs spanning 19.2 innings, Rucker posted a 5.49 ERA and 1.47 WHIP.

Dominguez (4-2) took the loss Saturday against the Cardinals, allowing a run on one hit while striking out two and walking none across 1.1 innings.

Dominguez gave up the game-winning run in the top of the ninth inning on a solo shot from Nolan Arenado. Since Corey Knebel lost the closing job, Dominguez has shared the closer role with Brad Hand. Dominguez still has a solid 1.80 ERA and has converted two of his three save chances on the season.

Helsley (4-1) earned the win Saturday against Philadelphia, allowing no runs and no hits while striking out five and walking one in two innings of relief.

Helsley snagged the win after a ninth-inning walk-off home run from Nolan Arenado. He threw 23 of 37 pitches for strikes in a dominant two innings of relief. Helsley is clearly a high-leverage reliever for St. Louis, though the team seems to be splitting save chances between him and Giovanny Gallegos. Helsley holds a 0.83 ERA across 32.2 innings this season.

Scott picked up the save in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Nationals, allowing one hit in one scoreless inning.

Four Marlins pitchers have earned saves this season, but Scott leads them with nine after picking up a save against the Nationals. The lefty seems to have a firm grasp on the closer role at this point. His ERA spiked to 5.04 after a poor performance June 15, but Scott has not allowed a run in six appearances since then, and his ERA now sits at 4.06.

Castano (1-1) earned the win against the Nationals on Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits while striking out three and walking two over five innings.

Castano threw 51 of 82 pitches for strikes, and though he allowed three runs, only one was earned because of throwing errors in the second inning. Castano appeared in three games this season as a reliever, but he has started in his last four appearances. He will take a 2.42 ERA into his next outing.

Bukauskas (shoulder) had his rehab assignment moved to Triple-A Reno on Saturday, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Bukauskas made two appearances at the rookie-level Arizona Complex League, striking out three over two scoreless innings, before shifting north to Reno. He pitched for the Aces on Saturday, allowing one hit in a scoreless frame.

Hjelle will be recalled from Triple-A Sacramento prior to Sunday's game against the White Sox, Evan Webeck of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Hjelle will return to provide length behind starter John Brebbia, who has not pitched more than two innings in an appearance this season. The 6-foot-11 Hjelle pitched five scoreless innings for Sacramento his last time out June 26, allowing two hits while striking out six.

Robertson allowed a hit and a walk while striking out two over 1.1 scoreless innings to earn the save in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Red Sox.

Robertson had to navigate baserunners for the first time in three appearances. Jarren Duran hit a double and stole third in the ninth inning and Xander Bogaerts drew a walk, but Robertson finished the save by getting Alex Verdugo to line out. In his last seven outings, Robertson has converted four of five save chances and picked up a win while allowing just one run. He's posted a 1.72 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 41:14 K:BB with 11 saves in 14 chances across 31.1 innings this year.

Leiter (2-2) earned the win in Saturday's victory over the Red Sox. He allowed a run on three hits and a walk with five strikeouts over 5.1 innings.

Starter Alec Mills (back) exited the contest after just seven pitches and one out, with Leiter stepping in for his longest appearance of the year. The right-hander has started three of his 11 outings in the majors this year, and he'd be a candidate to join the rotation if Mills can't make his next scheduled start, though Marcus Stroman (shoulder) could be good to go by next weekend if he only needs one rehab start. Leiter has pitched to mixed results with a 4.85 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 31:13 K:BB through 29.2 innings overall.