MLB Player News
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Aroldis Chapman RP | BOS
Red Sox's Aroldis Chapman: Agrees to contract extension
Chapman and the Red Sox agreed Saturday to a one-year, $13.3 million contract extension with a vesting option for 2027, Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reports.
Chapman has re-emerged as one of the most dominant closers in baseball this season, posting a 1.04 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and 74:14 K:BB over 52 innings spanning 57 outings while racking up 26 saves in 28 chances. The 37-year-old joined Boston on a one-year contract last December and will now be with the club for at least one additional campaign. Romero relays that the option for 2027 is a vesting option based on innings pitched that will become a mutual option if it doesn't get triggered.
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Nick Kurtz 1B | ATH
Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Gets promising results from MRI
Kurtz's MRI on his oblique revealed that he does not have a strain, and manager Mark Kotsay said he's hopeful the first baseman will be back playing "sooner than later," Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
This should provide a big sigh of relief for both the A's and fantasy managers who roster Kurtz, as an oblique strain would have likely resulted in a stint on the IL. Instead, Kurtz should be considered day-to-day, though he's not in the lineup Saturday versus Texas. Tyler Soderstrom will likely hold down the fort at first base until Kurtz is ready to return to action.
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Dustin May SP | BOS
Red Sox's Dustin May: Fades late in Saturday's loss
May (7-11) took the loss Saturday, coughing up seven runs (six earned) on eight hits and four walks over 5.1 innings as the Red Sox fell 10-3 to the Pirates. He struck out five.
Boston held an early 2-1 lead as May gave up only an unearned run through four innings, but the wheels began to come off for the right-hander in the fifth after a leadoff single by Isiah Kiner-Falefa. May has been tagged for at least four runs in four of his last eight starts, stumbling to a 6.13 ERA, 1.64 WHIP and 38:18 K:BB over 39.2 innings during that stretch. He'll look to bounce back in his next outing, which is scheduled to come on the road next weekend in Arizona.
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Joshua Lowe RF | TB
Rays' Josh Lowe: Carries offense in win
Lowe went 2-for-3 with two home runs and four RBI in Saturday's 4-1 win over the Nationals.
The 27-year-old outfielder gave the Rays all the offense they would need when he took Jake Irvin deep in the first inning for a three-run blast, but Lowe added a bit of insurance with a solo shot off the right-hander in the fourth. The performance snapped a 22-game homer drought for Lowe, and through 85 contests on the season he's up to nine long balls and 16 steals to go along with a .236/.301/.387 slash line.
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Bryan Baker RP | TB
Rays' Bryan Baker: Picks up first Tampa save
Baker struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his third save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Nationals.
Pete Fairbanks threw 22 pitches the night before and was presumably unavailable, but Griffin Jax handled the eighth inning after Mason Englert gave up Washington's only run, while Baker took care of the ninth. It was Baker's first save since being acquired by the Rays in early July, and after some initial struggles with his new team, he's posted a 1.50 ERA, 0.42 WHIP and 15:1 K:BB over 12 August innings.
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Alejandro Osuna LF | TEX
Rangers' Alejandro Osuna: On bench against righty
Osuna isn't in the starting lineup for Saturday's matchup against the Athletics.
The lefty-hitting Osuna had been in the lineup for each of Texas' previous two games against a right-handed starter, but he's beginning on the bench Saturday despite the A's sending righty Mason Barnett to the mound. The Rangers' starting outfield Saturday consists of Wyatt Langford, Michael Helman and Adolis Garcia from left to right.
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Ryan Pepiot SP | TB
Rays' Ryan Pepiot: Blanks Nats in 10th win
Pepiot (10-10) picked up the win Saturday, allowing one hit and three walks over five scoreless innings in a 4-1 victory over the Nationals. He struck out six.
The Rays staked Pepiot to a 3-0 lead in the first inning and he never looked back, racking up 15 swinging strikes among his 93 pitches (53 total strikes). The right-hander has won four of his last five starts, lasting at least five innings in each and posting a 3.25 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 27:10 K:BB over 27.2 innings. Pepiot lines up to make his next outing at home next week against the Guardians.
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Myles Straw CF | TOR
Blue Jays' Myles Straw: Shines in Saturday's loss
Straw went 3-for-3 with a double in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Brewers.
Getting a start in center field with Daulton Varsho (hand) sidelined, Straw not only had a perfect day at the plate, he make an impact on defense as well, robbing a home run from Jackson Chourio in the first inning in a game that was tied 1-1 until the ninth inning. Straw has been used mainly as a late-inning defensive replacement of late, but he's come through when called upon, batting .333 (14-for-42) in August with two doubles, two homers, three steals, seven RBI and 10 runs in 23 games.
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Jeff Hoffman RP | TOR
Blue Jays' Jeff Hoffman: Hurt by long ball again
Hoffman (8-6) took the loss Saturday, coughing up three runs on three hits and a walk in two-thirds of an inning as the Blue Jays were downed 4-1 by the Brewers.
Called in for the top of the ninth inning in a 1-1 tie, Hoffman instead served up back-to-back homers to Jackson Chourio and Christian Yelich before Isaac Collins added an RBI double. The long ball remains Hoffman's bugaboo this season -- he's been taken deep 14 times in 56.1 innings, leaving him with a 5.11 ERA, and he's given up two homers twice in his last three appearances.
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Kevin Gausman SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Kevin Gausman: Fans eight in no-decision
Gausman didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Brewers, allowing one run on four hits over seven innings. He struck out eight without walking a batter.
The veteran righty rose to the challenge of facing the team with the best record in the league, firing 66 strikes among his 96 pitches in his 13th quality start of the season, but the Blue Jays couldn't give him much run support in a game that got decided in the ninth inning. Over eight outings since the All-Star break, Gausman has produced a 2.82 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 53:9 K:BB in 51 innings. He'll look to keep rolling in his next trip to the mound, which is scheduled to come on the road next weekend in Yankee Stadium.