MLB Player News

Singer (8-7) took the loss against Boston on Monday, allowing four runs on 10 hits and one walk while striking out six batters over 5.2 innings.

Singer wasn't exactly hit hard in the outing -- nine of the 10 knocks against him were singles -- but he didn't retire the side in order in any of the frames in which he pitched. The right-hander still managed to depart with two outs in the sixth inning having given up just two runs, but reliever Angel Zerpa subsequently allowed both of the runners he inherited from Singer to score. As a result, Singer took his first loss of the second half. Coming into Monday, he had tallied three straight wins while tossing a seven-inning quality start in each of those victories.

Paxton (9-3) earned the win over Kansas City on Monday, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out four batters over six innings.

This was Paxton's second start since returning to Boston in a trade with the Dodgers in late July. The veteran left-hander struggled in his first outing with the Red Sox, but he was much better Monday, limiting the Royals to a pair of runs. Paxton departed after six frames with his first quality start since June 17 against Colorado. He has a shiny 9-3 record on the campaign, but his 4.42 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 69:49 K:BB over 93.2 innings aren't good indicators of sustained success.

Ford (concussion) took a full game's worth of plate appearances as the designated hitter in Double-A Arkansas' win over Midland on Sunday, going 1-for-4 with a run.

Ford was returning to action from the 7-day IL after being placed in concussion protocol due to taking a ball off his facemask July 25. The promising prospect should be able to resume catching duties at any point and sports a .247 average and .740 OPS across his first 83 games at the Double-A level this season.

Heaney did not factor into the decision in Monday's 4-3 win versus Houston, allowing one run on one hit and one walk over six innings. He struck out four.

The Texas southpaw collected his sixth quality start -- marking his first since June 30 at Baltimore -- with this 80-pitch effort. The only blemish on Heaney's evening came via a solo shot given up to Alex Bregman in the third inning. After struggling with a 6.28 ERA in 14.1 innings over his first three post-break starts, Heaney lowered his season ERA to 4.12 with this performance. The 33-year-old lines up to make his next start against the Yankees in New York this weekend.

Soderstrom (wrist) remains sidelined from baseball activity and is slated to wear a splint for several more days, MLB.com reports.

Soderstrom is slated to keep the splint until at least Saturday, and he won't be able to start baseball activities until he's shed it. Soderstrom will presumably need a fairly lengthy rehab assignment whenever he's deemed ready for that step, considering he went on the IL on July 11 and is seemingly still multiple weeks away from being cleared for game action.

Yates (4-1) picked up the extra-inning win Monday against the Astros, pitching two innings while allowing one unearned run and one walk. He struck out four.

The Texas closer entered during a 2-2 tie in the ninth inning and returned in the 10th to secure the win. Yates was charged with an unearned run when the automatic runner in extra innings scored after he plunked Jeremy Pena with the bases loaded. This marks the 23rd career win for the 37-year-old reliever, as he has pitched to a splendid 1.08 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 59:19 K:BB across 41.2 innings this season.

Smith went 1-for-5 with a two-run homer in Monday's 4-3 victory over Houston.

The Texas utility man won the game in the 10th inning with his 410-foot, two-run homer off lefty reliever Caleb Ferguson. This is Smith's first extra-base hit since taking over the leadoff spot from Marcus Semien on July 29. In seven games since then, the 26-year-old is batting .233 (7-for-30) with eight strikeouts and no walks. Overall, Smith is now slashing .278/.369/.442 with 12 homers, seven steals, 50 runs scored and 48 RBI across 408 plate appearances.

Brown did not factor into the decision in Monday's 4-3 loss to Texas, allowing one run on three hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out four.

The Houston right-hander earned his third quality start in four outings since the All-Star break with this 97-pitch performance. The only run he allowed came via a Leody Taveras sacrifice fly in the fifth inning. Since the break, Brown has been a reliable starter, pitching to a 2.28 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 25:8 K:BB across 23.2 innings. He looks to keep his string of solid performance rolling in his next appearance, currently scheduled to be in Boston this weekend.

Allen did not factor into the decision in Monday's 7-6 loss versus the Diamondbacks. He allowed two runs on five hits and two walks across five innings.

Allen was recalled to make his first start since July 6 after struggling to a 5.67 ERA in his first 18 starts, barely making it out of the first inning Monday. He gave up back-to-back home runs to the first two hitters he faced and then loaded the bases before barely escaping the opening frame. Allen went on to get through the next four innings unscathed. It's unclear if Allen will get another turn in the rotation, as Alex Cobb (hip) will return this weekend and Triston McKenzie may also get another look after having his best start in the minors his last time out.

Jax picked up the save in Monday's 3-0 win over the Cubs, pitching a scoreless inning with one strikeout. He allowed one hit.

Jax secured his first save since June 23, working around a Cody Bellinger single to wrap up the Twins' 63rd win of the season. Jhoan Duran worked the eighth inning, retiring the eight and nine hitters before allowing a double to Ian Happ and then striking out Michael Busch. Perhaps manager Rocco Baldelli will start using Jax in more save situations amid a tight AL Wild Card race as the 29-year-old has been better than Duran this season, pitching to a 2.01 ERA and 2.11 FIP -- versus Duran's 3.47 ERA and 3.91 FIP -- across 49.1 innings with an 11.9 K/9.