MLB Player News

Isbel went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Athletics.

The homer was Isbel's first since April 29. The outfielder has seen a dip in playing time in May, in part because he's hitting .222 (8-for-36) over 11 contests this month. Overall, he has a .218/.262/.361 slash line with four homers, three stolen bases, 12 RBI, 15 runs scored, three doubles and a triple over 127 plate appearances. Isbel will likely continue to be out of the lineup versus most southpaws, with Garrett Hampson or Dairon Blanco options to pick up the short-side at-bats in center field.

Freeman went 4-for-4 with a walk, a double, three runs, three RBI and a stolen base in Saturday's 11-4 victory versus Minnesota.

Freeman batted out of the leadoff spot for the sixth straight contest and broke out with the first four-hit game of his career. Among those knocks was a run-scoring double and a two-run single. Freeman is still batting just .221 on the season, but he may be rounding into form, as he's gone 8-for-17 with a 4:1 BB:K during his current five-game hitting streak.

Zerpa extended his scoreless streak to 7.2 innings with a perfect inning in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Athletics.

Zerpa's scoreless streak spans nine appearances, and he's earned five holds while adding an 8:0 K:BB in that span. The southpaw came up through the minors as a starter, but he's found some success in the Royals' bullpen this year. He's up to seven holds through 20 appearances while pitching to a 1.47 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 20:3 K:BB over 18.1 innings this season. Zerpa has yet to get a look for saves, but he's been one of the Royals' most effective relievers over the first quarter-plus of the campaign.

McArthur allowed two hits and struck out two without walking a batter in a scoreless inning to earn the save in Saturday's 5-3 win over the Athletics.

McArthur allowed back-to-back singles to begin the ninth inning, but he retired the next three batters to secure his 11th save of the year. He's allowed multiple baserunners in four of his last six outings, but he's converted his last four save chances. McArthur is at a 4.35 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 23:3 K:BB through 20.2 innings this season.

Ramirez went 3-for-5 with a home run, a double and three total RBI in Saturday's 11-4 win over the Twins.

Ramirez set the tone early with a two-run homer in the first inning. He added a run-scoring double in the third and finished with his second three-hit effort over his past five contests. Ramirez has gone deep in back-to-back games and has a .340 average, six homers and 16 RBI over his past 13 contests.

Lugo (7-1) earned the win Saturday over the Athletics, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk while striking out 10 over 5.2 innings.

Lugo was able to limit the damage to a two-run home run by Seth Brown in the second inning. This was Lugo's second straight start with double-digit strikeouts, though he came up one out short of a fifth straight quality start. The right-hander is now at a 1.79 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 58:13 K:BB through 65.1 innings over 10 starts this season. He's projected to make his next start on the road against the Rays.

Ober (4-2) took the loss against Cleveland on Saturday, allowing five runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out four batters over four innings.

A first-inning, two-run home run by Jose Ramirez set the tone for Cleveland's offense, which ended up scoring in all but one of the four frames during which Ober toed the rubber. The right-handed hurler needed 91 pitches to get 12 outs and finished with his shortest outing since his disastrous eight-run, 1.1-inning loss in his first start of the campaign. Ober had rebounded impressively from that blowup prior to Saturday, posting a 2.16 ERA and 0.67 WHIP over his subsequent seven starts.

Allen (5-2) earned the win over Minnesota on Saturday, pitching six scoreless innings during which he allowed five hits and one walk while striking out seven batters.

Cleveland went up 2-0 in the first inning, and Allen never allowed Minnesota a sniff at the game, as he allowed just a handful of singles across six scoreless frames. It was the second straight start in which the left-hander tossed exactly six innings without giving up a run on the heels of an ugly seven-run, 2.1-inning defeat against Detroit on May 7. That outing is a big reason why his season ERA sits at 4.91 -- it's a much more palatable 3.86 minus the blowup.

Henderson went 1-for-3 with his MLB-leading 14th home run in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Mariners.

Not only was it flamethrowing reliever Andres Munoz whom Henderson took deep in the ninth inning, but he did so to the opposite field and over the 13-foot wall in left field in an impressive showing of power. It was the second game in a row with a homer for Henderson, who also drew a pair of walks Saturday.

Munoz allowed a run but hung on to notch his eighth save of the season in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Orioles.

Gunnar Henderson made things interesting with a two-out, solo home run, but Munoz quickly bounced back and sat down Adley Rutschman swinging to end it. Henderson's long ball represents the only run Munoz has allowed over his last 10 appearances, and he boasts a 15:1 K:BB over 12 innings during that span.