MLB Player News
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Gus Varland RP | ARI
Gus Varland: Heads to open market
The White Sox released Varland (undisclosed) on Saturday.
The White Sox designated Varland for assignment Thursday, and he'll now hit the open market after clearing waivers. A 28-year-old righty who has spent parts of the last three seasons at the Triple-A level, Varland hasn't pitched since June 28 due to an undisclosed injury. He has a 4.82 ERA and 1.74 WHIP in 46.2 career innings in the majors.
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Trevor Megill RP | MIL
Brewers' Trevor Megill: Notches 28th save
Megill earned the save in Saturday's 7-4 win over the Mets, allowing one walk and striking out two in a scoreless ninth inning.
Megill was called upon to protect a three-run lead in the ninth inning and struck out the last two batters he faced to secure his second save in as many days. The 31-year-old has now converted 10 straight save chances dating back to July 4, allowing just one earned run over 12 appearances during that stretch. For the year, he's tied for third in the majors with 28 saves to go along with a 2.20 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 49:15 K:BB across 41 innings.
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Matt Strahm RP | PHI
Phillies' Matt Strahm: Settling back into setup role
Strahm picked up a hold in Saturday's 3-2 win over Texas, allowing one run on one hit and no walks in the eighth inning. He struck out one.
After spending a brief time in a committee at closer with Orion Kerkering amid Jordan Romano's struggles, Strahm has fallen back down the pecking order in Philadelphia's bullpen since Jhoan Duran was added to the mix. With Jose Alvarado also set to be reinstated from his 80-game suspension later in August, Strahm will likely soon have even more competition for high-leverage work. Strahm hasn't seen a save opportunity since July 13 in San Diego, though he does sport a 2.13 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 17:6 K:BB over his last 13 outings (12.2 innings).
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Jack Perkins RP | ATH
Athletics' Jack Perkins: Earns first win Saturday
Perkins (1-2) earned the win against the Orioles on Saturday, allowing one run on three hits and one walk with five strikeouts over six innings.
Perkins allowed a three-run homer in the first inning but rebounded with five scoreless frames to earn his first career win. The 25-year-old also logged his first major-league quality start, bouncing back after surrendering four runs over three innings in his rotation debut Sunday. He'll carry a 4.08 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 28:11 K:BB across 28.2 innings into a home matchup with the Angels next weekend.
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Carlos Estevez RP | KC
Royals' Carlos Estevez: Fans two for 29th save
Estevez collected the save in Saturday's 2-0 win over the Twins, striking out two batters in a perfect ninth inning.
Estevez was able to protect the Royals' two-run lead in the ninth and finished by striking out Austin Martin. It was Estevez's first save since July 29 against Atlanta, and his 29 saves on the year (in 35 chances) are second most in the majors behind Robert Suarez (32). Estevez has a 2.54 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 42:17 K:BB across 39.2 innings this season.
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Cade Smith RP | CLE
Guardians' Cade Smith: Logs fifth save
Smith recorded the save in Saturday's 3-1 win over the White Sox, striking out two batters in a perfect ninth inning.
Smith was brought out for the ninth to protect the Guardians' two-run lead. He made his save look effortless, tossing just 10 pitches (eight strikes) before finishing things out by getting Lenyn Sosa to strike out swinging. Smith has logged two saves over his last three outings and has a 2.75 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 73:18 K:BB across 52.1 innings this season.
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Joey Cantillo RP | CLE
Guardians' Joey Cantillo: One out away from quality start
Cantillo (3-2) earned the win against the White Sox on Saturday, allowing one run on four hits and two walks while striking out three across 5.2 innings.
His three punchouts were his lowest since joining the Guardians rotation, but it was a strong outing from Cantillo, with his lone blemish coming in the second inning on a Michael Taylor solo homer. It was the second game in a row in which Cantillo pitched into the sixth inning, and in his seven games as a starter he has a 4.36 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 39:18 K:BB across 33 innings. He's slated to make his next start against Atlanta at home next weekend.
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Emilio Pagan RP | CIN
Reds' Emilio Pagan: Notches 25th save
Pagan earned the save in Saturday' 2-1 win over the Pirates, allowing one walk in a scoreless ninth inning. He did not record a strikeout.
Pagan was summoned to protect a one-run lead in the ninth and worked around a leadoff walk to close it out. The 34-year-old has converted eight straight save chances since June 22, holding opponents scoreless in 14 of 18 appearances during that span. For the season, he's 25-for-28 in save opportunities with a 2.92 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 57:17 K:BB across 49.1 innings.
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Luis Morales SP | ATH
Athletics' Luis Morales: Set for first big-league start
Morales will start Sunday's game against the Orioles.
Morales most recently logged two innings in his big-league debut Aug. 1, and prior to that, he had been logging between one and three innings per outing at Triple-A Las Vegas. With that in mind, Morales' first big-league start will likely be a short one. Morales has big-time stuff, with his fastball having touched triple digits in the past, but his control has been much better since he started pitching in shorter stints after giving up six runs in 2.1 innings in a June 21 start. After that, he had a 2.00 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 20:6 K:BB in 18 innings over nine appearances before getting the call to the majors. Osvaldo Bido could be an option to log multiple innings after Morales exits Sunday.
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Robert Stephenson RP | LAA
Angels' Robert Stephenson: Nearing rehab stint
Stephenson threw a bullpen session Friday and "came through it fine," per interim manager Ray Montgomery, and the veteran reliever may next begin a minor-league rehab assignment, according to MLB.com.
Stephenson has had an injury-plagued campaign and has gotten into only two games so far for the Angels. His current injury is a stretched nerve in his right biceps and he's on the 60-day IL, so he isn't eligible to be activated until the final week of August. The positive news is that Stephenson has been able to deploy his full arsenal during recent bullpen sessions, and while he could be asked to toss more bullpens before he's deemed ready for game action, a minor-league rehab stint appears to be in the works in the near future.