MLB Player News

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.

Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen entered Sunday's game against the Cubs with a slim, one-run lead.

The right-hander needed 15 pitches as he struck out the side and secured a 1-0 win and his 17th save of the season. Jansen has not allowed a run over his last eight innings pitched. He lowered his ERA from 2.32 to 2.04 over that span.

Mets manager Terry Collins announced Saturday the Mets are reverting to a five-man rotation until Jonathon Niese (shoulder) returns from the disabled list. Collins made the decision to move pitcher Carlos Torres back to the bullpen after Torres tossed two scoreless innings and picked up the win Friday. 

The Mets will return to a six-man rotation once Niese is healthy, but for the time being the rotation will consist of Matt Harvey, Dillon Gee, Jeremy Hefner, Zack Wheeler and Jenrry Mejia. After Wheeler pitches Sunday against the Royals, the Mets will use Mejia, Harvey and Gee during a three-game series against the Rockies before Hefner opens a series at Arizona Friday.

Pirates closer Mark Melancon earned his sixth save in his team's 5-2 win over the Rockies Saturday. He surrendered no hits or walks but also failed to strike out a batter.

Melancon has six straight scoreless outings, giving him a 0.86 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 49:7 K:BB ratio in 52 1/3 innings.