MLB Player News

The Padres optioned Knehr to Triple-A El Paso on Thursday.

Knehr returned to the minors one day after he was called up to make a spot start in the second half of a doubleheader with Atlanta. He has yet to be officially credited with any statistics from that start; he gave up three runs on one hit and two walks over 1.2 innings, departing with a 5-2 lead before the game was suspended in the bottom of the fifth due to inclement weather while the Padres held a one-run advantage. Atlanta and San Diego are expected to make up the contest during their series in late September, so Knehr's statistics won't appear on his season-long ledger until the suspended game is completed.

Clarke (shoulder) threw a 25-pitch simulated inning Saturday.

Clarke's been on the injured list since the middle of June with a strained right teres muscle. The right-hander is expected to next pitch in a "B" game at Salt River Fields, the site of the organization's training complex.

Rainey (lower leg) retired two of the five batters he faced in his first rehab outing with Triple-A Rochester on Sunday. He was charged with an earned run on one hit and two walks during the 24-pitch outing.

Pitching in a game for the first time since June 27, Rainey struggled to find the zone, as he pumped in only 11 pitches for strikes. The outing wasn't all bad for Rainey, who recorded both of his outs via strikeout. if Rainey shows improved control in his next outing with Rochester, it could be enough for the Nationals to activate him from the 10-day injured list.

The Padres are targeting early August for Lamet's (forearm) return from the 10-day injured list, and he's most likely to work out of the bullpen as a multi-inning reliever upon being activated, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports. "At the end of the day, the rotation is some place I want to get back to, but I'm here to help the team. I'm here to help the team win," Lamet said, regarding a potential move to the bullpen. "So, if that's what my role is right now and that's what I need to do to help, of course I'm going to do it."

Though Lamet avoided offseason surgery to address the elbow/forearm injury that cropped up last September, he's incurred multiple setbacks in 2021 and has had his workloads monitored carefully when available, as he's covered more than four innings in only one of his nine starts to date. Lamet looks to be making good progress in his recovery from forearm inflammation, but the Padres don't seem inclined to have him ramp up for starting duty. Since Lamet would most likely be excluded from the three- or four-man rotation the Padres expect to roll out in the postseason, manager Jayce Tingler is incentivized to have the right-hander get acclimated to working out of the bullpen over the final few weeks of the regular season. Even if Lamet takes well to the role and quickly becomes a key part of the bridge to closer Mark Melancon, the 29-year-old's fantasy value would still take a hit if he does in fact transition from starting to relief duty.

Diaz struck out three batters and walked one in a scoreless ninth inning Sunday, securing a save over the Blue Jays.

Diaz issued a one-out walk to Vladimir Guerrero but still locked down his 21st save of the season. He converted two saves in the weekend series against Toronto after blowing his previous three chances. The 27-year-old now owns a 4.08 ERA with a 58:17 K:BB while going 21-for-25 in save opportunities this season.

Atlanta plans to call up Wilson from Triple-A Gwinnett to start the second game of Monday's doubleheader with the Mets, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Wilson will presumably be designated as Atlanta's 27th man for the twin bill, just as he was for last Wednesday's doubleheader with the Padres. He also started the second game of that doubleheader, working four innings in the outing while giving up five runs on eight hits and no walks. The depleted Atlanta pitching staff could surely use another capable arm, but Wilson still looks like he'll be the odd man out of the rotation when the team will be able to scale down to five starters following Monday's twin bill. He's submitted a 6.46 ERA and 1.70 WHIP across his seven starts in the majors in 2021.

Kelly tweaked his hamstring in the ninth inning of Sunday's win over the Rockies, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Kenley Jansen had pitched on three of the last four days, so Kelly entered Sunday's game in the ninth inning for the save opportunity. The right-hander allowed one hit and no walks while striking out one in a scoreless inning to earn the fourth save of his career and his first since 2019. However, manager Dave Roberts revealed after the game that Kelly suffered a hamstring injury while fielding a grounder, and he'll be evaluated Monday.

Sims (elbow) will make his first rehab appearance for Triple-A Louisville on Tuesday, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Sims is ready to begin the final phase of his recovery process from the right elbow sprain that has kept him on the shelf for the past month. He'll likely need to make at least two appearances at Louisville before rejoining the Reds, but once activated, Sims should factor into the late-inning mix for the big club. Before the injury cropped up, Sims registered seven saves in nine chances on the season, but he'll likely be behind Heath Hembree in the bullpen pecking order upon returning.

Curtiss struck out two batters in a perfect inning as the opener in Sunday's win over the Padres.

Curtiss needed just 10 pitches to set down the top of San Diego's lineup in order. He lowered his season ERA to 2.56 with a 40:9 K:BB through 38.2 innings. The 28-year-old righty will move back to the bullpen but could be used as an opener again at some point soon with Trevor Rogers (back) on the injured list.

Kimbrel retired a single batter to secure the save in Sunday's win over the Diamondbacks.

Chicago started the ninth inning with Dillon Maples, but he allowed a run and put another two runners on base with two outs, so the Cubs turned to Kimbrel to end the threat. The veteran reliever now has 23 saves this season in 25 chances, and he has an elite 0.50 ERA. After down years in 2019 and 2020, Kimbrel has reclaimed his spot as a top fantasy option.