MLB Player News

Harvey picked up the save Wednesday against the Mariners, striking out two over one scoreless inning.

Harvey entered the game with a three-run lead in the bottom of the ninth and immediately took care of business, striking out Teoscar Hernandez to open the frame before getting Cal Raleigh to go down swinging to close things out. The right-hander did basically all of his work with his four-seamer and has now converted each of his last three save opportunities. He also has not allowed a run over his last five appearances.

Littell will serve as an opener Thursday against the Diamondbacks, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Littell will take the mound first for Tampa Bay, with Yonny Chirinos slated to cover bulk relief innings. It will be the first opener assignment this season for Littell, who holds a 6.57 ERA and 11:5 K:BB over 12.1 innings covering 10 appearances between the Red Sox and Rays.

Winn will make his first major-league start for the Giants on Thursday in Toronto, Evan Webeck of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Winn's first three appearances in the big leagues have been in relief, although they've all lasted at least three innings. Nine of the 25-year-old's 12 outings at Triple-A Sacramento this season have come as a starter. That said, while this isn't an opener situation, Winn does figure to have a fairly limited workload Thursday consdering he threw just 44 pitches in his last appearance over the weekend.

Murphy allowed two runs on two hits and two walks while striking out one over two innings in Wednesday's 6-2 loss to the Marlins.

Murphy pitched the eighth and ninth innings of what was a bullpen game for the Red Sox. The former starter has showed promise as a bulk reliever since transitioning to the bullpen in the minors at the beginning of the month. The Red Sox are rolling with three healthy starters and expect James Paxton (knee) to start Friday. Beyond that, the fifth spot in the rotation may be what was on display Wednesday, a combination of long relievers that features Murphy and Nick Pivetta. Both Tanner Houck (face) and Chris Sale (shoulder) are on the injured list.

Pivetta (4-5) allowed two runs on one hit and two walks while striking out seven over 3.1 relief innings Wednesday, taking the loss as Boston fell 6-2 to Miami.

The Red Sox scheduled a bullpen game with Kaleb Ort throwing the first two innings followed by Pivetta, who retired 10 of the first 11 batters faced before back-to-back walks in the sixth inning. At that point, rain fell and the game was delayed. When play resumed, Josh Winckowski and poor infield defense -- a common theme for Boston in 2023 -- conspired to let both of Pivetta's runners score. A former member of the starting rotation, the right-hander has thrived in a long-relief role, posting a 2.16 ERA with 18 strikeouts and seven walks over 16.2 innings (11 appearances).

Lawrence picked up a save against the Dodgers on Wednesday, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out three batters over 1.1 innings.

Lawrence entered in the eighth inning with two outs, two on and Colorado clinging to a two-run lead. He allowed a Freddie Freeman RBI single and walked Will Smith to load the bases but got J.D. Martinez to strike out to end the threat. Lawrence then returned for the ninth and had a much smoother frame, retiring the side in order to secure a save. He appears to be settling in as Colorado's closer with three saves over the past six days.

Cox (0-1) took the loss against Cleveland on Wednesday, allowing four runs on four hits and four walks while striking out two batters over 3.2 innings.

Cox was magnificent in his first six major-league appearances (all out of the bullpen), posting 12.1 scoreless innings with a 13:4 K:BB. The scoreless streak continued for two frames in his first start Wednesday, but Jose Ramirez put an end to it with a grand slam in the third. Cox retired five of the next seven batters before being pulled with two outs in the fourth. Control was a problem for him in the outing, as he threw just 39 of 68 pitches for a strike and walked four. The last-place Royals could keep in the rotation to see if he's able to improve upon his poor first start, though his minor-league numbers don't inspire confidence that he's ready to be a reliable big-league arm.

Barria (2-3) allowed five runs on seven hits and two walks over three innings. He took the loss versus the White Sox on Wednesday and failed to strike out a batter.

Barria had made just one appearance since his June 13 start versus the Rangers -- he tossed three scoreless innings of relief versus the Royals on June 18. His return to the rotation didn't go well, as he yielded three home runs, which accounted for four of the five runs on his line Wednesday. The right-hander now has a 2.92 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 40:16 K:BB through 49.1 innings over 17 appearances (five starts) on the season. Barria is clearly the Angels' sixth starter, which puts him at risk of getting skipped in the rotation when there are numerous off days available to keep the rest of the starters on turn. That's not the case for the next week, and he's tentatively projected for a road start versus the Padres his next time out.

McGough (0-6) took the loss and a blown save Wednesday versus the Rays, allowing three runs on four hits with one strikeout in one inning.

McGough gave up three straight singles and a two-out double, allowing the Rays to rally for a 3-2 lead. Over his previous 15 appearances, McGough had allowed just one unearned run over 19 innings with a 27:6 K:BB, so this looks to simply be a bump in the road. The right-hander's up to four blown saves this year, but he also has six saves and 12 holds with a 3.00 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 50:14 K:BB over 42 innings. He's mostly been an effective late-inning option, providing stability in Arizona's bullpen, which ranks 21st in the majors with a 4.14 ERA from relievers.

An exam on Stewart's injured right elbow confirmed he has tendinitis, the Associated Press reports. "Everything I think came out just as we thought it would," manager Rocco Baldelli told the Minneapolis Star Tribune on Wednesday.

Stewart was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday with right elbow soreness. While it sounds like he's avoided a worse-case scenario, there's still not a timetable for his return. Still, it sounds like he has a chance to return in mid-July.