MLB Player News

Romano gave up a hit and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday to record his fifth save of the season in a 3-1 win over the Marlins.

The right-hander didn't pick up his first save in June until Tuesday, but he's now converted chances on back-to-back days. As a result, Romano will likely be unavailable Thursday to begin a home series against the O's, but he appears to have a firm grasp of the closer role for Toronto.

Diaz walked one and struck out two over 1.2 scoreless innings to record his 16th save of the season in Wednesday's 7-3 win over Atlanta.

He entered the game in the eighth inning to protect a 6-3 lead with runners on first and second and one out, but Diaz had little trouble converting his second five-out save of the year. The right-hander has reeled off seven straight conversions, posting a 1.08 ERA, 0.72 WHIP and 12:2 K:BB through 8.1 innings over that stretch.

Martin will start Friday's series opener against the Padres in San Diego, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo confirmed the assignment for Martin, who has not gotten off to a good start with the team. The 25-year-old right-hander has an 8.62 ERA and 2.04 WHIP over four outings (two starts). Martin believes he's trying to be too fine with his pitches, particularly with two strikes. "I think I'm picking the zone a little bit too much," he said. "I would say that at some point I try to be too perfect with two strikes and that's when I'm losing guys." Opposing batters are hitting .281/.395/.563 off Martin with two strikes, while the league average in those situations is .161/.237/.259.

Chapman (5-2) blew the save but took the win against the Royals on Wednesday, pitching one inning and allowing two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out two.

The flame-throwing closer couldn't protect a one-run ninth-inning lead, as he walked in the game-tying run after loading the bases and subsequently allowed the go-ahead run to score on a single. He avoided a loss and earned his fifth win, however, as a result of the Yankees responding with two runs in the bottom of the ninth. While Chapman ultimately came out on top, the rough outing continued a recent subpar seven-game stretch during which he has taken two blown saves while posting a 11.81 ERA and 3.19 WHIP across 5.1 frames.

King did not factor in the decision against Kansas City on Wednesday, pitching 4.2 innings and allowing two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out five.

The right-hander fell behind early, surrendering a two-run homer to Ryan O'Hearn in the first inning. King bounced back over the following three frames, but he was pulled after loading the bases on a pair of walks (one intentional) and a hit-by-pitch in the fifth. He has completed five innings only once in five starts since joining the starting rotation May 30, compiling a 5.75 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 16:10 K:BB over 20.1 innings during that span. His next appearance is tentatively scheduled for Monday at home against the Angels.

Treinen (1-3) took the loss in a 5-3 defeat at the hands of San Diego, allowing two runs on two hits with a strikeout in one inning Wednesday.

Treinen took over for starter Trevor Bauer in the seventh and retired three straight Padres but encountered trouble when he came back out for the eighth and allowed two hits before being removed. Victor Gonzalez entered and allowed both inherited runners to score, which gave Treinen the loss. The earned runs snapped a five-inning scoreless stretch for Treinen that included five strikeouts with only two baserunners allowed. The veteran righty carries a 3.41 ERA and 1.21 WHIP for the season.

Melancon secured the save in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Dodgers, allowing a hit and walk in the ninth.

After San Diego took a two-run lead in the bottom of the eighth, Melancon was called on to close out the game for the fourth time in five days. It wasn't the best performance as Los Angeles had runners on first and second with one out, but Melancon got Albert Pujols to line into a double play to close out the victory. The 36-year-old righty added save number 23 to his league-leading total, though a 3.67 FIP compared to a 1.91 ERA suggests Melancon may not be able to sustain this level of performance.

Rodriguez pitched a scoreless ninth in Wednesday's 5-3 win against the Athletics, allowing one hit and recording his first save.

With regular closer Ian Kennedy unavailable due to an illness, manager Chris Woodward turned to Rodriguez to nail down a tight win. Though he has the fifth most appearances among Rangers' relievers, a high 5.91 ERA suggests Rodriguez's use in the ninth was merely a necessity rather than a potential shift in role.

Leone (1-0) allowed an unearned run on two hits and struck out one in one inning in Wednesday's extra-innings win over the Angels.

Leone yielded a game-tying RBI single to Juan Lagares in the bottom of the 12th inning. The right-hander became the pitcher of record when San Francisco's offense exploded for seven runs in the 13th. The win was Leone's first of the year in 11 appearances, and he's collected three holds. He's added a 1.54 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 14:3 K:BB across 11.2 innings. Leone could see some high-leverage work, but Jake McGee and Tyler Rogers have handled virtually all of the save chances this year.

Martin (2-2) got the win against Oakland on Wednesday, throwing 1.2 perfect innings without a strikeout in a 5-3 Rangers triumph.

Martin entered in the seventh with two on and one out after the Athletics had just taken the lead and induced outs from Matt Olson and Ramon Laureano to neutralize the threat. He stayed in after Texas took the lead in the bottom of the inning and retired the side on a mere seven pitches. Since a blow-up outing June 6, Martin has allowed only one run in 8.1 innings across seven appearances.