MLB Player News

Leiter was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Saturday.

The Phillies needed to clear a spot on the roster for starter Ben Lively, and Leiter was the casualty. He will continue to offer organizational bullpen depth at the Triple-A level.

Pivetta will be recalled to start Monday's game in Atlanta, Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

He was bumped from his scheduled start Saturday for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, which will allow him to come up and take Vince Velasquez's spot in the Phillies' rotation. Pivetta has been borderline unhittable at Triple-A, boasting a 1.41 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 37:2 K:BB in 32 innings. However, he struggled to duplicate that success in a four-start run in the majors earlier this season, posting a 5.12 ERA, 1.81 WHIP and 21:9 K:BB in 19.1 innings. His Triple-A numbers are a little misleading, as he lacks high-end stuff and gets by mostly on excellent command and pitchability. However, with Velasquez (elbow) out indefinitely, Pivetta could be given a fairly long leash this time around.

Maurer walked one and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Friday to notch his ninth save of the season in an 8-5 win over the Rockies.

He's rewarded the Padres' faith in him by converting four straight save opportunities, but Maurer's 2:1 K:BB in those four innings isn't exactly the mark of a dominant closer. He should continue to have fantasy value as long as remains in the ninth-inning role despite his 5.48 ERA, but his job security is poor.

Blach (4-2) fired a complete game shutout on seven hits while striking out four Friday against the Phillies.

Blach gave the Giants bullpen a night off while enjoying 10 runs of support on the way to an easy victory. After a brutal outing in early May, he's now fired five straight quality starts. In addition, he's reeled off victories in each of his last four outings, and with a 3.24 ERA, he's become an excellent fantasy option. He'll make his next start Wednesday against the Brewers.

Hoffman was scratched from Friday's start with Triple-A Albuquerque, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

It's unclear as to the reason for the scratch, but Hoffman may be on his way back to the big leagues after lowering his ERA to 3.68 over eight starts at Triple-A this season. The 24-year-old could represent a better rotation option for the Rockies than Tyler Anderson and his 5.85 ERA, though that decision will likely be made sometime this weekend. Hoffman posted a solid 2.98 ERA and 15:2 K:BB in two starts for Colorado earlier this season.

Rusin allowed a run on two hits and a walk in an inning of work Thursday against the Mariners. He also struck out one.

This marked the second consecutive appearance in which the left-hander allowed a run, although he was one of the most consistent relievers for Colorado prior to this rough patch. Before the past two outings, Rusin had a string of seven straight scoreless outings. He also holds career bests in both his strikeout rate (7.8 K/9) and his walk rate (1.9 BB/9), allowing him to gain a sizable role in the Rockies' relief corps. His strikeout rate still isn't good enough to warrant a ton of fantasy interest, but his consistency and ability to make a spot start every now and then could keep Rusin relevant in deeper formats.

Rodney recorded his 14th save of the season in Thursday's 4-3 win over the Marlins, tossing a perfect ninth inning and notching two strikeouts.

One day after Rodney blew his third save of the season in a 14-inning win over the Pirates, manager Torey Lovullo didn't hesitate to go back to the 40-year-old to close out the contest. Rodney showed he was up to the task, finding the strike zone in nine of his 14 pitches to ensure there wouldn't be extra innings in the series opener. While Rodney maintains an ugly 6.10 ERA and 1.45 WHIP for the season, he's been much better since the beginning of May, yielding no earned runs and converting 8-of-9 save chances in 11 appearances. He looks to have some decent job security at the back end of the Arizona bullpen.

Bracho was recalled from Triple-A Reno on Thursday, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

Bracho was added to offer another arm out of the bullpen after the Diamondbacks deployed five relievers during Wednesday's 14-inning win over the Pirates. The 24-year-old compiled an impressive 1.62 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 16.2 innings with Triple-A Reno, but he's yet to find his groove with the big club; posting a career 6.18 ERA and 1.50 WHIP through 39.1 big-league innings.

Stewart (shoulder) will start for Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Stewart is set to make his first rehab appearance for Oklahoma City after getting roughed up at High-A on Saturday; he allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits and a walk while recording just one out for Rancho Cucamonga. Given he's been sidelined for an extended period of time, Stewart will likely need multiple rehab appearances before he is ready to return.

Hudson has allowed 23 hits and nine walks in 22 innings this season with an ERA of 6.04.

After starting the season as the primary setup man for manager Clint Hurdle, Hudson has watched his stock drop throughout the season as he struggles to adjust to his first season away from Arizona since 2010. Even excluding his disaster of a game in Miami when he gave up five runs and only recorded one out, his ERA is still quite high by reliever standards at 4.09. The game against Miami certainly inflated his stats, but underneath that blunder sits a pitcher who has had trouble holding his own in Pittsburgh's bullpen.