MLB Player News

Wicks tossed 3.1 scoreless innings of relief to earn a hold in Sunday's 11-0 win over the Cardinals. He allowed three hits and struck out two.

The Cubs jumped out to a big lead early in the contest, so starter Matthew Boyd was pulled after only five innings and 87 pitches. That opened the door for Wicks, who was effective in the middle part of the game to record his first hold of the season. The lefty had just been recalled from Triple-A Iowa on Friday, and this was his first appearance in the majors since April 20. Wicks worked as a starter for the Cubs each of the last two years as well as this season in the minors, but it appears he may settle into a long relief role for the time being.

Smith (2-3) has returned from back spasms and picked up the loss in Sunday's game against Detroit. He allowed six runs (four earned) on five hits and an error over a third of an inning.

Smith came on to pitch the 10th inning after closer Emmanuel Clase's wild pitch in the ninth allowed the tying run to score. Smith, who had ceded just one regular-season home run during his MLB career, was taken deep twice in the final frame. Back spasms limited his availability over the final week of June.

Ashcraft walked one and struck out two over a scoreless inning in Sunday's 3-1 loss to the Phillies.

Ashcraft, fresh off the injured list Friday, had a pair of scoreless outings over the weekend. Both appearances were in the seventh inning, as Ashcraft maintains a late-game role out of the Cincinnati bullpen. He has a 3.96 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP with 41 strikeouts and 15 walks across 36.1 innings.

Jarvis allowed three hits and two walks while striking out two over four scoreless relief innings in Sunday's 4-0 loss to the Royals.

Jarvis was summoned from Triple-A Reno when the Diamondbacks placed Ryan Thompson (shoulder) on the 15-day injured list Sunday. The former was a starter for the Aces and should get similar long relief opportunities going forward while up with the club.

Birdsong (4-3) allowed one run on three hits and five walks while striking out six over five innings to earn the win Sunday over the Athletics.

Birdsong continues to have trouble with walks, but the Athletics weren't able to punish him for it. This ended a stretch of five starts without a win for the right-hander -- a span in which he had a 7.54 ERA over 22.2 innings. He's at a 4.11 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 68:33 K:BB across 65.2 innings through 20 appearances (nine starts) this season. Birdsong is tentatively projected to make his next start at home versus the Dodgers, who figure to be much more capable of capitalizing if his command is lacking.

Suarez struck out two in a perfect inning to earn the save in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Rangers.

Suarez's outing was drama-free, a welcome sight after he had allowed three runs over his last 2.1 innings, which resulted in one blown save. He's been a little shaky since mid-June, but it hasn't cost him his closer role despite the talent present in the Padres' bullpen. Suarez is 25-for-28 in save chances while adding a 3.82 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 40:12 K:BB across 37.2 innings this season.

Halvorsen walked a batter during a scoreless inning and earned a save against the White Sox on Sunday.

Halvorsen worked around a two-out walk to close the 6-4 win. He's now converted eight of his 11 save chances this season and has five saves in his last eight appearances. Halvorsen dropped his season ERA to 4.04 with a 32:16 K:BB across 35.2 innings. He's given up two earned runs over his last 10 innings and has recorded the only two saves on the roster since July 1.

Orze allowed an unearned run in one inning during Sunday's extra-inning win over the Twins. He walked one batter and earned a save.

Orze entered the 10th inning with a 7-4 lead and closed things out without much trouble aside from the automatic runner coming around to score. It was his first save since May 9, and he's converted each of his three chances this season. Orze owns a 2.79 ERA with a 35:13 K:BB across 38.2 innings on the campaign. Pete Fairbanks threw 1.2 innings and earned a win Sunday.

Fairbanks (4-2) allowed a hit over 1.2 scoreless innings and picked up a win during Sunday's extra-inning victory against Minnesota. He struck out one.

Fairbanks recorded the final two outs of the eighth inning after Mason Montgomery allowed a game-tying home run to Harrison Bader. Fairbanks then tossed a scoreless ninth to send the game to extras. It was his first win since May 10, and he hasn't earned a save since June 26. Fairbanks dropped his ERA to 2.34 with a 30:14 K:BB through 34.2 frames.

Clase allowed a run in one inning during Sunday's extra-inning loss against Detroit. He hit one batter and struck out one while being charged with a blown save.

Clase entered a 1-0 game in the ninth inning and started by hitting Spencer Torkelson. Torkelson was replaced by Zach McKinstry, who stole second and eventually scored the tying run on a wild pitch. Clase was charged with his first blown save since June 14 and is now 18 for 22 in save chances this season. He hasn't picked up a save since June 22 and is now sporting a 3.29 ERA with a 39:10 K:BB through 38.1 frames.