MLB Player News

Pirates closer Mark Melancon tallied his seventh save in his team's 4-2 win over the Marlins Wednesday, allowing one hit while striking out one and walking none in a scoreless ninth inning.

Melancon has only been scored upon in five of his 54 appearances but hasn't allowed multiple earned runs in any of those five games. He owns a 0.84 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 50:7 K:BB ratio in 53 1/3 innings.

Cardinals pitcher Shelby Miller did not break any bones after taking a batted ball off his pitching elbow in the first inning of Wednesday's game against the Dodgers, CBSSports.com senior baseball writer Danny Knobler reports.

The team is naming Miller's injury a right elbow contusion after X-rays came back negative. Miller is 11-7 with a 2.89 ERA.

Cardinals starting pitcher Shelby Miller was forced to leave Wednesday's start against the Dodgers after just two pitches, as he took a line drive from Carl Crawford off the back of his pitching arm.

The extent of the injury is not yet known, but Miller was removed from the game immediately. An update on his status is expected during or after the game. 

Reds closer Aroldis Chapman picked up his 27th save Wednesday against the Athletics. 

Chapman pitched a perfect inning with a one run lead. He struck out one batter. Chapman has a 2.98 ERA in 50 games. 

Cardinals starting pitcher Joe Kelly (3-3) turned in a decent outing as he collected his third win of the season Tuesday night against the Dodgers. The right-hander yielded one run on six hits and two walks while striking out one over 5 1/3 innings of a 5-1 win.

Kelly has allowed only two earned runs combined over his last four starts (23 innings). He is scheduled to make his next start Sunday at home against the Cubs. He is 1-0 with a 1.42 ERA in two appearances (one start) against the Cubs this season.

Reds closer Aroldis Chapman entered Tuesday's game against the Athletics in the ninth inning with a three-run lead.

The right-hander allowed a solo home run to Derek Norris for his only blemish of the night as he collected his 26th save. He allowed one run on one hit and no walks while striking out three over one inning pitched in a 3-1 win. He owns a 3.05 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP in 44 1/3 innings pitched.

Braves closer Craig Kimbrel set down the Nationals with ease Tuesday, locking up a 2-1 win and his 35th save of the season. The right-hander struck out the side and only needed 18 pitches to secure the win.

Kimbrel has 35-plus saves in each of his last three seasons. He is 11 saves away from matching a career-high mark set in 2011. He owns a 1.22 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP in 44 1/3 innings pitched this season.

Mets manager Terry Collins said Tuesday he will mix and match at closer while Bobby Parnell (neck) is on the 15-day disabled list. David Aardsma will be in the mix for save chances, and Collins hinted left-handed reliever Scott Rice could be used in certain matchups.

Collins also mentioned LaTroy Hawkins, Gonzalez Germen and Carlos Torres as right-handed closer options.

Thanks to back-to-back scoreless starts covering 12 1/3 innings and an upcoming two-start week, Joe Kelly is currently the most added player in CBSSports.com leagues. However, as I mentioned in my weekly Pitching Forecaster, Kelly is only safe to use in NL-only leagues, and already too many mixed league owners are entrusting the Cardinals' righty this week.

Though Kelly throws hard, he doesn't get all that many strikeouts, and he doesn't compensate for it with superb control or strong ground ball tendencies. Edwin Jackson and Martin Perez, like Kelly, are two-start pitchers who are available in more than half of our leagues, and both are better bets to produce for owners this week. Kelly might be on a nice roll, but sooner or later, his mediocre command will catch up with him.

Braves closer Craig Kimbrel collected his 34th save of the season Sunday night against the Phillies.

Kimbrel worked his way around a base hit as he struck out one and pitched a scoreless ninth inning to preserve a 4-1 victory. He has converted 34 of 37 save chances, including 23 straight. He owns a 1.25 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP in 43 1/3 innings pitched.