MLB Player News

Heim went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Saturday's 3-2 win over the Athletics.

Heim poked his 12th homer of the season in the second inning, giving the the Rangers an early lead. He's lost playing time over the second half to Carson Kelly, largely due to a .186 average. Second-half fades are not new for Heim, who has a career line of .188/.254/.336 following the break.

Witt went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's loss to Houston.

Witt hit a solo shot in the eighth inning for the final run of the contest. It was his 29th long ball of the season, moving him to within one homer of reaching 30 for the second consecutive campaign. In 28 games during August, Witt batted .310 (35-for-113) with 10 home runs, 20 RBI, 25 runs and three stolen bases.

Ragans (10-9) took the loss against Houston on Saturday, allowing five runs on four hits and two walks while striking out 10 batters over five-plus innings.

Ragans left his previous start Monday against Cleveland due to calf/hamstring cramping, but he didn't seem to be impacted at all by the issue Saturday. While the left-hander gave up five runs for the first time since late June, only one of the hits against him (a triple) went for extra bases. In fact, at one point early in the contest Ragans struck out eight straight batters, and he didn't allow his first hit until the fourth frame. Ragans' undoing was the sixth inning, when he struggled with his control -- in addition to allowing three hits, he also walked a batter, hit a batter and threw a wild pitch, and he didn't notch any outs before he was pulled. Aside from that frame, Ragans was dominant, and he notched his third double-digit strikeout performance of the season while tallying an impressive 22 whiffs.

Pressly earned a save against the Royals on Saturday, allowing one hit and striking out one batter over one scoreless inning.

Primary closer Josh Hader pitched both Thursday and Friday, so he was unavailable for Saturday's contest. As a result, Houston manager Joe Espada turned to Pressly -- who racked up 90 saves as the team's closer from 2021 to 2023 -- to slam the door shut in the ninth inning against Kansas City. The right-hander allowed a two-out single but had little trouble closing things out. Pressly may get an occasional save chance when Hader is held out, but his primary role moving forward will likely be to serve as one of the Astros' top setup men.

Kikuchi (7-9) earned the win over Kansas City on Saturday, allowing one run on five hits and no walks while striking out 12 batters over seven innings.

Kikuchi racked up 20 swinging strikes on his way to a season-high 12 punchouts, falling just one K shy of his career-high mark. The southpaw kept the Royals off the board for six frames before allowing a run on a pair of singles and a fielder's choice in the seventh, but he was able to get through that frame with no additional damage to complete seven innings for the first time since July 9. The Astros' trade for Kikuchi at the deadline didn't generate much buzz, but the hurler has been excellent since joining Houston, posting a 2.57 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 47:10 K:BB over six starts covering 35 frames.

Horwitz went 3-for-5 with a home run, a walk, two total runs and three total RBI against the Twins in Saturday's 15-0 victory.

Horwitz was a key part of a massive 23-hit performance by Toronto's offense. He started at third base and hit a two-run homer in the first inning along with a run-scoring single in the third. Prior to Saturday, Horwitz had just one RBI over his previous nine games.

Lukes went 4-for-6 with a double, two runs and two RBI in a 15-0 rout of the Twins on Saturday.

Lukes was one of four Blue Jays with at least three hits in the offensive outburst, and he was part of a massive 11-for-16, seven-RBI performance by the bottom third of Toronto's order. This was just the second major-league game of the season for the 30-year-old, who was recalled from Triple-A Buffalo on Friday. Lukes earned the promotion by slashing .333/.403/.469 with seven home runs, 31 RBI and four steals over 54 games with Buffalo.

Wagner went 5-for-6 a home run, a double, three runs and two RBI in Saturday's 15-0 mauling of Minnesota.

Among Wagner's knocks were a solo shot to right field in the sixth inning and a run-scoring double in the ninth. The five hits set a Toronto franchise record for a rookie and marked Wagner's fifth multi-hit effort through 16 career games. The 26-year-old is slashing an outstanding .357/.379/.571 with two home runs, eight RBI and eight runs through 16 big-league contests.

Matthews (1-2) took the loss against Toronto on Saturday, allowing nine runs on 10 hits and no walks while striking out five batters over two innings.

Matthews came into the contest with an impressive 3.00 ERA and 1.00 WHIP through three big-league starts, but those numbers rose astronomically as a result of Saturday's disastrous outing. The rookie right-hander gave up seven runs in the first inning and two more in the second, and three of the 10 hits against him left the yard. Matthews was mercifully relieved when the third inning came around, and he departed having thrown a whopping 69 pitches in two frames -- more than Toronto starter Jose Berrios tossed across six scoreless innings. If there's any bright side, it's that Matthews managed 12 whiffs and five punchouts in the short start, but that's not much consolation for fantasy managers who roster Matthews and had their ratios for the week blown up as a result of his poor start.

Morel went 2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored Saturday against the Padres.

Morel led off for the first time as a Ray, stepping into the role in the absence of Yandy Diaz (knee). Morel played a key role in rallies in the second and fourth innings, giving him at least one hit in seven of his last 10 starts. In that span, he's gone 10-for-39 with a 38 percent strikeout rate, though he's still managed three RBI and six runs scored.