MLB Player News

Garcia has posted a 4.68 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 47:11 K:BB through 32.2 innings with one win and 11 holds in 41 appearances.

The 28-year-old southpaw's ratios on the season aren't impressive, but they disguise the improvements he's made of late. Garcia has been scored upon only once in his last 12 trips to the mound, delivering a 0.97 WHIP and 19:3 K:BB through 10.1 innings during that stretch. He's the only left-hander in the Nationals' bullpen at the moment, but Garcia is emerging as a reliable high-leverage option for manager Dave Martinez, which should lead to more holds in the second half.

Ottavino has posted a 4.89 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 47:13 K:BB through 35 innings with one win, one save and 13 holds in 36 appearances.

The Mets' bullpen issues early in the season caused manager Carlos Mendoza to lean heavily on Ottavino, but the workload appears to have caught up with the 38-year-old righty. While his 30.7 percent strikeout rate is among the better marks in his career, Ottavino's 42.4 percent groundball rate is his lowest since he was pitching for the Rockies in 2017. He's also recorded only one of his 13 holds over the last month, as younger relief arms like Dedniel Nunez and Reed Garrett (elbow) have moved into high-leverage roles. If the Mets add further bullpen reinforcements ahead of the trade deadline, Ottavino's usage as a setup man for Edwin Diaz could decline even further.

Cronin has posted a 3.72 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 49:17 K:BB through 46 innings with one win, two holds and zero saves over 33 appearances.

Claimed off waivers over the winter, Cronin gave the Marlins some quality innings early in the season in a low-leverage role. The league may have figured the right-hander out however -- over his last 12 appearances, he carries a rough 8.27 ERA and 1.84 WHIP. Cronin's biggest strength is a 54.5 percent groundball rate, but he's still been somewhat fortunate to have allowed zero homers so far in 2024. If that luck runs out, further regression could be coming for his ERA. Even if Miami ships out high-leverage relievers like Tanner Scott by the trade deadline, Cronin seems unlikely to take over a prominent role.

Bummer has posted a 3.62 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 37:11 K:BB through 32.1 innings with two wins, zero saves and zero holds through 33 appearances.

Acquired from the White Sox in the offseason to bolster Atlanta's relief corps, Bummer hasn't been able to claim a high-leverage role in a much deeper bullpen than he was part of in Chicago. The southpaw has been effective at keeping the ball in the park, serving up only one homer despite a 54.9 percent groundball rate that's his lowest mark since he was a rookie in 2017. Barring a rash of injuries ahead of him in the pecking order, Bummer will likely continue working in middle relief in the second half, limiting his fantasy value even in formats that use holds as well as saves.

Helsley was replaced Monday on the National League All-Star Game roster with Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan.

Per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Helsley said that he wasn't likely to pitch in Tuesday's All-Star Game and instead wished to get rest over the All-Star break. The 29-year-old closer confirmed he was healthy and is merely monitoring his workload, having already appeared in 41 games and thrown 42 innings this season. Helsley's career high in appearances is 54, and he hasn't pitched more than 64.2 innings in any individual season.

Finnegan was named to the National League All-Star team Monday.

Finnegan wasn't initially named an All-Star, but he'll be available to make his first appearance in the Midsummer Classic after being added as a replacement on the roster for Ryan Helsley. The 32-year-old has the third-most saves in baseball (25) and has recorded a 2.45 ERA across 40.1 innings.

The Rockies designated Rogers for assignment Monday.

One day after getting optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque, Rogers now finds himself off the Rockies' 40-man roster after Colorado claimed lefty Antoine Kelly off waivers from Texas in a corresponding move. Before his demotion, Rogers had made five appearances at the big-league level this season, giving up seven earned runs on 12 hits and two walks over 9.1 innings. Rogers will likely stick around with the Rockies as bullpen depth at Albuquerque if he clears waivers.

Stratton (tricep) will begin a rehab assignment Monday in the rookie-level Florida Complex League.

The right-hander has been on the shelf since June 14 with a tricep strain but has now reached the final stage of his throwing progression. He'll likely need at least a couple of tune-up outings in the minors before being activated from the 15-day injured list, potentially as soon as Friday, when the Pirates open their second-half schedule. Stratton turned in a 4.26 ERA and 1.11 WHIP while gathering two wins, one save and four holds over 31.2 innings before landing on the IL.

Iglesias picked up the save in Sunday's 6-3 win over the Padres, tossing a clean ninth inning while striking out a batter in the process.

Iglesias was able to preserve a three-run lead for Atlanta and help the team go into the break on a positive note. He began with a strikeout against Kyle Higashioka before retiring David Peralta and Jurickson Profar on a pair of lineouts. Iglesias hasn't allowed a run in each of his last eight appearances and last blew a save back on May 3. The 34-year-old isn't striking out as many batters as he has throughout his career but is still posting superb numbers. Iglesias is now up to 22 saves and will take a 2.02 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 31:7 K:BB (35.2 innings) into the second half of the season.

Small (oblique) threw a 20-pitch live batting practice session Friday, MLB.com reports.

Small had been vying for a spot in the Giants' Opening Day bullpen during spring training before sustaining a Grade 2 right oblique strain late in camp that resulted in him opening the season on the injured list. He was shut down for about two months before he was finally cleared to start playing catch, and he's been gradually increasing the volume and intensity of his throwing sessions. Now that he's resumed facing hitters, Small could be on the cusp of heading out on what will likely be an extended minor-league rehab assignment. The 27-year-old lefty still has a minor-league option remaining, so the Giants could send him to Triple-A Sacramento upon activating him from the 60-day IL if there isn't a spot for him in the big-league bullpen.