MLB Player News

Joyce struck out two batters in a perfect inning to earn the save Tuesday in a 3-1 win over the Astros.

Joyce once again had no trouble closing out a victory, picking up his third save over the last week. Through six scoreless innings this season, he's allowed just one hit and one walk while striking out eight. The Angels haven't had Joyce pitch consecutive days yet, but it looks like he'll continue to see the majority of the save chances for the rest of the campaign.

Duran (1-0) earned the win over the Athletics on Tuesday, allowing one hit and no walks while striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.

Making his first appearance of the season, Duran worked a scoreless ninth inning before the Royals rallied for a walk-off victory. He was acquired from the Dodgers at the trade deadline and posted a 3.15 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 64:29 K:BB across 45.2 innings at Triple-A before making his team debut Tuesday.

Lynch did not factor into the decision in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Athletics, allowing one run on two hits and two walks with one strikeout over four innings.

Lynch allowed a run in the first inning but held the Athletics scoreless from there while throwing 27 of 45 pitches for strikes and generating just two whiffs. It was the 29-year-old's third straight start, and he completed four frames in an outing for the first time in more than two years. He owns a 2.83 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 41:16 K:BB across 54 innings this season and lines up for a home matchup with the Tigers this weekend.

Perkins did not factor into the decision in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Royals, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out four over 3.2 scoreless innings.

Perkins entered in the third inning and tossed 34 of 53 pitches for strikes with eight whiffs. It ended a nightmare stretch for the 26-year-old, who entered the contest having yielded 17 earned runs over his previous three August starts. He owns a 6.96 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and 98:33 K:BB across 85.1 innings this season and lines up for a home matchup with the Astros this weekend.

Harris (3-2) blew a save and took the loss against the Royals on Tuesday, allowing three runs (two earned) on three hits and one walk in two-thirds of an inning. He did not register a strikeout.

Harris was summoned to protect a two-run lead in the eighth inning and secure a four-out save, but he departed after allowing a game-tying single in the ninth. Elvis Alvarado replaced him and surrendered a walk-off single, with the run and loss charged to the 29-year-old Harris. It's been a rocky August for the southpaw, who's blown two of five save chances and yielded five earned runs through seven games this month. On the year, he owns 12 saves and 10 holds to go along with a 3.79 ERA, 1.57 WHIP and 72:35 K:BB across 54.2 innings.

Miller earned the save in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Mets, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning.

Miller was summoned to protect a three-run lead in the ninth inning and slammed the door on 16 pitches. The 27-year-old has yielded just one earned run over 12 second-half appearances, nailing down six of seven save chances in the process. For the year, he's 31-for-32 in save opportunities to go along with a microscopic 0.86 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 95:19 K:BB across 52.1 innings.

Montgomery earned the save in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Tigers, striking out two batters in a scoreless ninth inning.

Braxton Ashcraft took care of business through the first eight innings on just 80 pitches, but the Pirates turned to Montgomery to keep the team's lead safe. The first batter reached base safely on a throwing error, but Montgomery proceeded to strike out the next two hitters he faced before closing the game with a groundout. He's earned the save in three of his last five outings and has not yielded a run over his last eight appearances. Montgomery has a 3.47 ERA and 1.11 WHIP across 49.1 innings this season.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Tuesday that Diaz's placement on the 15-day injured list is due to neck inflammation, Jack Harris of the California Post reports.

Diaz will head back to Los Angeles to undergo further tests for his neck issue Wednesday, and the initial expectation is that the right-hander will return this season, per Jack Harris of the California Post. Diaz saw his fastball velocity bottom out at 93 mph during Monday's outing against the Rockies, when he allowed three runs on four hits in one inning. Tanner Scott figures to serve as the Dodgers' preferred closer for as long as Diaz is sidelined.

The Cubs are expected to activate Palencia (elbow) from the 60-day injured list in the coming days, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.

The Cubs haven't committed to an exact date for Palencia to return from the IL, but manager Craig Counsell told reporters Tuesday the 26-year-old right-hander will be activated "soon." A right flexor strain has sidelined Palencia since mid-June, but he won't have a defined role upon his return, per Bruce Levine of 670TheScore.com. It appears that, for now, the Cubs prefer keeping Jacob Webb as the main closer, with Palencia getting some work in high-leverage situations.

The Dodgers are placing Diaz on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with an apparent upper-body injury, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.

The right-hander was activated from the injured list in late July after missing more than three months following surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow, and he's now headed back to the shelf after surrendering 11 runs and blowing three of six save chances in nine appearances since returning. According to Jack Harris of the California Post, Diaz's fastball bottomed out at 93 mph in a low-leverage appearance Monday, when he gave up three runs on four hits in one frame. It's encouraging Diaz isn't believed to be dealing with an arm issue, but his return timeline will remain up in the air until more information is available on the injury.