MLB Player News

Pirates closer Mark Melancon arrived on the mound Sunday with a three-run lead.

Game over.

Arguably the best closer in the sport notched his league-high 39th save in 41 opportunities by shutting down the Giants with no problems in the ninth. He retired them in order and finished with a flourish on a strikeout of Marlon Byrd.

Melancon, who had struggled a bit in early August, has strung together five straight scoreless appearances.

Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen had been lights-out for most of the season, going into Sunday with a streak of 17 straight saves, but was victimized by a game-tying RBI single in the ninth inning of the team's eventual loss to the Astros. 

Jansen, who suffered just his second blown save of the season, allowed a leadoff single to Carlos Correa, who then stole second base. With two outs in the inning, Marwin Gonzalez singled to right to tie the game. 

Jansen has allowed 10 earned runs in 35 appearances this season, with four of them getting charged to his ledger over the past 10 games. 

Reds rookie starter Raisel Iglesias had electric stuff Sunday, striking out 13 batters, but it wasn't enough to prevent him from picking up a defeat in his team's 4-0 loss to the Diamondbacks. 

Iglesias fell just two strikeouts short of the franchise record and had the most by a Reds rookie pitcher since 1967, but it wasn't enough to prevent the Reds from dropping their ninth straight contest. 

Over his seven innings of work, Iglesias gave up just three hits and two runs (one earned), but fell to 3-5 on the season. He did lower his ERA to 3.93, however. 

Phillies closer Ken Giles closed out his team's tight win over the Marlins with a perfect inning Sunday, to pick up his 10th save of the season. 

Giles retired the side in order, with one strikeout, for his third straight 1-2-3 frame. He remains perfect on save opportunities this season and has lowered his ERA to 1.63. 

Reds closer Aroldis Chapman, who is nursing a shoulder injury, threw with good velocity in a pregame session on Saturday, per Cincinnati.com.

“He’s day-to-day,” manager Bryan Price said. “It’s impossible for me to say if he’s available (Saturday). We’re always kicking the tires. It’s one of those things that doesn’t necessitate a (disabled list move). It’s one of those things where we’re going to eventually say he’s ready for the game today.”

Rockies starter Chris Rusin got hammered by the Mets on Saturday. The young left-hander lasted just two-plus innings, as he allowed a whopping 11 runs on 12 hits, including an eight-run third inning, en route to the 14-9 loss. 

Rusin (4-6) saw his ERA jump from 3.99 to 4.97 with the disastrous outing. The Mets hit him early and often, and he just wasn't able to overcome the barrage of offense.

It was a step backwards for Rusin, who fired a complete-game shutout his last time out.

Phillies closer Ken Giles worked a perfect ninth inning to record his ninth save of the season in the 4-2 win over the Marlins on Saturday. The young right-hander struck out a batter and needed 17 pitches to retire the side in order. 

Giles has successfully converted all nine save opportunities since he became the primary closer for the Phillies at the end of July. He has allowed just one run over that stretch.

Brewers starter Jimmy Nelson took advantage of an offensive outburst by his teammates, as he picked up his 10th win of the season in the 10-3 victory over the Nationals on Friday. Nelson allowed two runs on five hits over 5 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out four.

Nelson (10-9, 3.60 ERA) allowed a run in the second to put the Brewers down 1-0. But they rallied back and took a 5-1 lead into the sixth. Nelson surrendered a solo home run to Bryce Harper, but that would be all the damage against him. Meanwhile, the Brewers would continue to tack on, en route to the blowout victory.

Nelson is 3-0 with a 1.82 ERA over his last six starts.

Diamondbacks starter Rubby De La Rosa fared well in his outing against the Reds on Friday. The young right-hander went seven innings, allowing two runs on seven hits. He walked one and struck out six, en route to the 6-3 victory.

De La Rosa (11-5, 4.32 ERA) blanked the Reds over the first five innings, while his offense put up five runs of support. He allowed a run in each of his final two frames, but overall he was sharp in this one.

He has been pitching very well lately, going 5-0 with a 2.54 ERA over his last seven starts.

Braves starter Shelby Miller lost his ninth straight decision, Tuesday against the Cubs. 

Miller hasn't won since May 17, a span of 17 winless starts. He allowed five runs, three earned. He has allowed three or more earned runs just three times over that span. 

Miller matched a season high with four walks.