MLB Player News

Lopez will start Wednesday's game against the Cardinals in Atlanta.

Lopez will be making his second straight appearance as a starter, though Mark Bowman of MLB.com previously reported that Atlanta could once again have Hurston Waldrep piggyback the veteran right-hander. In his last appearance Friday in San Francisco, Lopez threw three innings of one-run ball before Waldrep followed with two scoreless frames in relief. Lopez tossed 57 pitches in that outing, but even if he gets piggybacked agin, he could still push up his pitch count a bit more Wednesday.

Assad worked in relief during Tuesday's 9-7 win over the Padres, striking out one over 2.2 innings while allowing four earned runs on five hits and two walks.

After a three-game run as a starter during which he went 3-0 with a 2.70 ERA and 0.96 WHIP over 16.2 innings, Assad was somewhat surprisingly deployed in relief Tuesday. In his second start back from the injured list, Matthew Boyd was lifted after covering the first five innings, with Assad entering behind him and being tasked with protecting a five-run lead. Assad's move to the bullpen doesn't sound like it will be a permanent one, with manager Craig Counsell telling Tony Andracki of Marquee Sports Network on Wednesday that the right-hander will make one more start before the All-Star break. However, with Jameson Taillon (hamstring) nearing a return from the injured list, Assad could be the odd man out of the rotation when the Cubs open their second-half schedule.

The Dodgers optioned Mills to Triple-A Oklahoma City following Tuesday's 9-3 win over the Athletics.

Mills struck out the side in the ninth inning to finish out Tuesday's victory in what was his lone appearance out of the Los Angeles bullpen during his latest stint in the big leagues. Per Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register, the Dodgers are expected to recall left-hander Charlie Barnes from Oklahoma City on Wednesday in a corresponding move, and he's likely to be used as a bulk reliever in the club's series finale in Sacramento.

The Dodgers are expected to recall Barnes from Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to Wednesday's game against the Athletics in Sacramento, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Los Angeles has a vacancy on the 26-man active roster after optioning Wyatt Mills to Triple-A following Tuesday's 9-3 win, so Barnes will slide into the open spot. After Shohei Ohtani had his next turn in the rotation pushed to Friday, the Dodgers are expected to opt for a bullpen game for the series finale in Sacramento, and Barnes will likely be a prominent part of the team's pitching plan. Barnes has produced a 3.67 ERA and 1.59 WHIP over six starts with Oklahoma City, and after covering 5.2 innings in his most recent outing last Thursday, he'll offer plenty of length out of the Los Angeles bullpen.

Lord will be the Nationals' opening pitcher in Wednesday's game versus the Red Sox, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

He'll take the ball first before eventually turning the game over to left-hander Andrew Alvarez. Lord has been a starting pitcher in the past and has been used primarily in long relief this season, so he's capable of logging multiple innings Wednesday, if needed.

Weaver worked a perfect eighth inning in Tuesday's win over the Blue Jays to record his 10th hold of the season. He didn't strike out a batter.

Two groundouts and a pop-up got the job done for Weaver as he extended his scoreless streak to 24 innings, with the last run against him coming April 30. Over that impressive stretch, the veteran right-hander has a 0.63 WHIP and 31:5 K:BB while collecting eight holds, but zero wins or saves.

Gordon (0-2) took the loss against Miami on Tuesday, allowing five runs on nine hits and no walks while striking out four batters over five innings.

Gordon was able to return to action and throw 74 pitches after missing nearly a month due to a hip impingement. However, the right-hander found the sledding very tough, as he was tagged for four extra-base hits, the most damaging of which was a three-run homer by Javier Sanoja. The rough outing pushed Gordon's season ERA up to an ugly 6.69 to go along with a 1.59 WHIP over 89.1 innings. He's clearly struggled to get batters out, but the Rockies don't have many other rotation options, especially with Tomoyuki Sugano currently dealing with a finger injury.

O'Brien earned the save Tuesday against Atlanta, allowing one hit in a scoreless ninth inning.

O'Brien entered the ninth with a two-run lead and worked around a Matt Olson double to lock down his 21st save of the season. The right-hander has now converted all seven of his save opportunities in June, though the results haven't always been clean, as he had allowed six runs over his previous nine innings entering Tuesday. His 21 saves are tied for the National League lead alongside Mason Miller and Jhoan Duran. O'Brien now owns a 3.82 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 34:11 K:BB across 35.1 innings this season.

Hill (shoulder) began throwing weighted balls Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

This marks Hill's first activity since landing on the injured list. He hopes to begin playing catch soon.

Pfaadt (1-1) allowed one run on three hits and a walk while striking out two over 5.1 innings to earn the win over the Giants on Tuesday.

Pfaadt had a good game, and he likely had some more left in the tank after throwing just 66 pitches (42 strikes). He had been stretching back out at Triple-A Reno after a stint in the Diamondbacks' bullpen following his shaky start to the season. The right-hander is now at a 5.40 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 33:18 K:BB through 43.1 innings over 14 appearances (four starts) in the majors this season. Pfaadt is tentatively scheduled for a road start in San Diego if he gets another turn through the rotation.