MLB Player News
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Dennis Santana RP | PIT
Pirates' Dennis Santana: Earns 16th save
Santana earned the save in Saturday's 3-1 win over Atlanta, allowing one hit and no walks with two strikeouts in a scoreless ninth inning.
Santana was called upon to protect a two-run lead in the ninth and did so on 19 pitches. The 29-year-old has bounced back from a blown save Wednesday with back-to-back scoreless outings and has now held opponents off the board in 10 of his past 11 appearances. For the season, he's 16-for-19 in save chances with a 2.18 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 60:17 K:BB across 70.1 innings.
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Mick Abel SP | MIN
Twins' Mick Abel: Dazzles in first win
Abel (1-2) earned the win Saturday against the Phillies, allowing three hits and one walk in six scoreless innings. He struck out nine.
Making just his second start since joining Minnesota, Abel delivered his finest outing with his new club against the team that traded him away this past July. The right-hander spun six shutout innings for the first time since his major-league debut back in mid-May, and he tied his season high in strikeouts. Given his prospect pedigree and sparkling season finale, the 2020 first-rounder should be under consideration for a back-end rotation spot for the rebuilding Twins in 2026 but will still likely need to prove himself during spring training. Abel will finish the campaign with a rough 6.23 ERA, 1.51 WHIP and 39:16 K:BB over 39 frames.
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Connor Phillips RP | CIN
Reds' Connor Phillips: Thriving in relief
Phillips (5-0) retired all four batters he faced Friday night against the Brewers, striking out three while picking up the win.
Since getting called back up from Triple-A Louisville, Phillips has posted a 1.45 ERA and 0.64 WHIP, striking out 26 while walking seven over 18.2 innings. Phillips has quietly been one of the success stories for the Reds, converting from starter to reliever while overcoming Thoracic Outlet Syndrome in the neck. Given Phillips's 33.0 percent strikeout rate and 98.3-mph average fastball, his role in the Reds' bullpen in 2026 could be elevated.
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Spencer Bivens RP | SF
Giants' Spencer Bivens: Collects second save of 2025
Bivens closed things out in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Rockies after striking out one batter across two-thirds of an inning to come away with the save.
Ryan Walker was brought in to close things out in the ninth inning, but he was pulled after yielding a solo homer to Jordan Beck before allowing two more baserunners. The Giants turned to Bivens, who proceeded to strike out Warming Bernabel before plunking Ryan Ritter to load the bases, but Bivens was able to secure the win after getting Ezequiel Tovar to pop out in foul territory. Biven sits at a 4.10 ERA and 1.35 WHIP across 79 innings this season.
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Jose Ferrer RP | WAS
Nationals' Jose Ferrer: Hangs on for 11th save
Ferrer earned the save in Saturday's 6-5 win over the White Sox, allowing a run on three hits while striking out three in the ninth inning.
While Ferrer managed to hang on for his 11th save, it certainly didn't come easy for the left-hander -- Ferrer's now given up at least one run in five of his last six appearances, allowing eight earned runs on 14 hits across seven innings in that span. Overall, the 25-year-old Ferrer sports a 4.48 ERA with a 1.27 WHIP and 71 strikeouts over 76.1 innings this season.
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Sammy Peralta RP | LAA
Angels' Sammy Peralta: Called up Saturday
Peralta was called up from Triple-A Salt Lake on Saturday.
Peralta will return to the major-league bullpen following a demotion Monday, replacing Luis Garcia (oblique) after he was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday. Peralta owns an inflated 8.38 ERA and 2.07 WHIP with seven strikeouts over 9.2 innings in four appearances with the Angels in September.
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Luis Garcia RP | LAA
Angels' Luis Garcia: Season over
Garcia (oblique) was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday, retroactive to Sept. 25.
Garcia is dealing with a left oblique strain, and he will now be forced to miss the team's final two contests of the 2025 campaign. Left-hander Sammy Peralta was recalled from Triple-A Salt Lake to replace Garcia in the major-league bullpen Saturday.
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Will Vest RP | DET
Tigers' Will Vest: Picks up 23rd save
Vest earned the save in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Red Sox, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning.
Vest's turned in three straight scoreless innings after giving up five earned runs over 1.2 frames in the two outings prior. The 30-year-old right-hander has converted 23 of 30 save chances overall this season while posting a 3.01 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 75:22 K:BB across 68.2 innings.
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Will Klein RP | LAD
Dodgers' Will Klein: Dispatched to ACL
The Dodgers optioned Klein to the Arizona Complex League on Saturday.
Klein pitched 4.2 shutout innings after being recalled from Triple-A on Sept. 19, but he'll lose his place in Los Angeles' bullpen to make room for the newly promoted Andrew Heaney. Klein has turned in a 2.35 ERA over 15.1 innings for the Dodgers this season, making him a candidate to contribute at some point during the team's postseason run.
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A.J. Blubaugh RP | HOU
Astros' AJ Blubaugh: Returning to starting role Saturday
Blubaugh is slated to start Saturday's game against the Angels in Anaheim, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
The rookie right-hander has handled a versatile role for the Astros down the stretch, as he'll be making his second start in September after having yet to yield a run while striking out 17 and scattering five hits and four walks across 14 innings. Though he'll be taking the hill Saturday on six days' rest, Blubaugh may not be stretched out enough to reach the five innings he would need to qualify for a win. Most likely, the Astros will plan for an abbreviated start for Blubaugh before turning to a slew of higher-leverage bullpen arms to close out the contest as Houston looks to remain alive in the AL wild-card race.