MLB Player News

Vodnik picked up the save in Saturday's 10-7 win over the Diamondbacks. He struck out one over a perfect inning.

The right-hander has now converted saves in four straight outings, giving Vodnik six on the year and solidifying him as the go-to option in the ninth for the Rockies while Seth Halvorsen (elbow) is sidelined. Vodnik has been scored upon only once in six August appearances, posting a 2.84 ERA. 0.95 WHIP and 7:2 K:BB over 6.1 innings.

Kittredge (3-3) tossed a scoreless inning of relief to earn the win in Saturday's 3-1 victory over the Pirates. He allowed a hit and struck out two.

Starter Shota Imanaga departed after seven strong innings and the score tied 1-1, leaving the top of the eighth to Kittredge. After the righty got through the frame, the Cubs scored twice in the bottom of the inning, giving Kittredge his first win with the team since coming over in a trade on July 30. He had one rough outing with Chicago on Aug. 5, allowing four runs while only retiring one batter, but Kittredge has otherwise recorded six scoreless appearances for the Cubs. The veteran should continue to occupy a high-leverage role.

La Sorsa (0-1) took the loss against the Brewers on Saturday after giving up a three-run home run in the 11th inning.

La Sorsa was brought up from Triple-A Louisville on Friday and tossed a scoreless inning during that contest. He was brought in for the 11th inning Saturday and tasked with keeping things tied at 3-3, but the game was blown wide open after his changeup to Andruw Monasterio was taken deep to left field. La Sorsa has yielded four home runs despite appearing in just six MLB games this season, which has inflated his ratios to a 10.80 ERA and 2.25 WHIP over 6.2 innings.

Mears earned the save in the Brewer's 6-5 extra-innings win over the Reds on Saturday despite giving up two runs (one earned) while striking out one batter in the 11th.

With closer Trevor Megill being deployed in the 10th inning, the Brewers called upon Mears to protect the Brewers' three-run lead in the 11th. Mears gave up an unearned run on an Elly De La Cruz sacrifice fly before yielding a solo homer to Noelvi Marte one batter later, but Mears managed to secure the save by getting Matt McLain to fly out to center field. Mears has given up four runs (three earned) over his last two outings and has a 5.59 ERA and 1.14 WHIP over 9.2 innings since the All-Star break.

Stratton picked up a save against the Guardians on Saturday, allowing three hits and striking out three batters over three scoreless innings.

Two days after he was recalled from Triple-A, Stratton was given the ball in the seventh frame after Atlanta rolled to a 10-1 lead. Rather than deploy multiple relievers the rest of the way, manager Brian Snitker let Stratton finish the contest, which he did in fine form, allowing just three baserunners (all on singles). The save was the right-hander's second of his career. There probably won't be many (if any) more opportunities for Stratton to build upon that number this year, as he's not a high-leverage part of Atlanta's bullpen.

Wentz (4-3) earned the victory over Cleveland on Saturday, allowing one run on three hits and two walks while striking out five batters over six innings.

The only run the Guardians scored off Wentz came on a third-inning Brayan Rocchio homer. The left-handed hurler was otherwise outstanding, recording his second quality start of the campaign and his second straight victory. Wentz has done well since moving into Atlanta's rotation July 19, registering a 2.87 ERA with a 25:11 K:BB over 31.2 innings spanning six starts. As such, he seems like a lock to remain in a starting role even when Chris Sale (ribcage) comes off the IL, which is likely to happen before the end of August.

Diaz earned the save in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Mariners, allowing one run on two hits and no walks with two strikeouts over two innings.

Diaz was tasked with a two-inning save and converted despite giving up a solo homer in the ninth. The 31-year-old has surrendered long balls in two of his past three outings, but those are the only earned runs he's allowed over his last 22 appearances dating back to June 6. On the year, he's 24-for-26 in save chances with a 1.69 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 70:17 K:BB across 48 innings.

Ferrer gave up a hit and struck out two in two scoreless innings Saturday to record his second save of the season in a 2-0 win over the Phillies.

Cade Cavalli brought right-handed heat for seven innings Saturday, so the Nationals turned to the southpaw Ferrer for the final two frames to wrap up an impressive combined shutout. The 25-year-old has been scored upon only once in his last 10 appearances, posting a 1.50 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 11:2 K:BB over 12 innings during that stretch while collecting two wins, two saves and three holds. Given his usage Saturday, and the fact that Ferrer has pitched on three of the last four days, expect Cole Henry to get the call Sunday should Washington have a late lead to protect.

Keller gave up a hit and struck out the side in a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to record his first save of the season in a 3-1 win over the Pirates.

With Daniel Palencia having pitched the day before, Keller got the call for a save situation and carved up the heart of Pittsburgh's order after allowing a leadoff single. The 30-year-old righty is seeing his stuff play up to a significant degree in shorter stints -- he topped out at 98 mph with his four-seamer Saturday, after spending most of his career as a starter sitting in the 92-94 mph range -- and while Palencia's closer job isn't in any jeopardy, Keller appears to be emerging as the Cubs' top right-handed setup man. In 11 appearances since the All-Star break, Keller hasn't allowed a run with a 15:2 K:BB over 12.1 innings, collecting four holds along with Saturday's save.

The Diamondbacks plan to call up Crismatt from Triple-A Reno to start Sunday's game against the Rockies, Jose M. Romero of The Arizona Republic reports.

Crismatt has worked almost exclusively as a reliever during his time in the majors, but he was a full-time starter with Triple-A Lehigh Valley in the Phillies system until he was released in early August. Over 19 starts with Lehigh Valley, he posted a 4.04 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 68:25 K:BB across 100.1 innings while averaging over five frames per outing. He covered just two innings in his first start with Reno on Wednesday, so he should be relatively fresh Sunday, despite pitching on three days' rest. Arizona is in need of a fifth starter after Anthony DeSclafani landed on the injured list Wednesday due to an injured thumb.