MLB Player News

Atlanta recalled Ritchie from Triple-A Gwinnett to start Sunday against the Nationals, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

The 23-year-old rookie will fill the rotation spot of Reynaldo Lopez, who landed on the injured list due to a knee issue. It'll be the eighth start and 14th MLB appearance of the campaign for Ritchie, who has a 4.50 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 49:33 K:BB across his first 54 big-league innings.

Williamson (shoulder/finger) allowed one earned run on two walks and no walks while striking out three over two innings in a rehab start for Double-A Chattanooga on Saturday. The left-hander also hit a batter.

Williamson, who was placed on the injured list April 30 due to left shoulder fatigue, kicked off a rehab assignment Saturday. After battling some control issues in the first inning, Williamson settled in during the second frame before leaving the contest after tossing 39 pitches. The southpaw will look to build on that workload during his next rehab outing, which is expected to come Thursday with Triple-A Louisville, per Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.

Atlanta placed Lopez (knee) on the 15-day injured list Sunday.

Atlanta is labeling Lopez's injury as left knee inflammation, though Mark Bowman of MLB.com relays that the club is still awaiting the results of the right-hander's MRI before providing a timeline for his return. Right-hander JR Ritchie was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett in a corresponding move and will step in as Atlanta's new fifth starter beginning with Sunday's game against the Nationals. Since moving back into the rotation in late June after a two-month stint in the bullpen, Lopez went 1-2 with a 3.86 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 27:8 K:BB in 28 innings over six starts.

Martinez (elbow) will begin a rehab assignment at Single-A Visalia on Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Martinez participated in a camp game Friday and reportedly hit 100 mph on his four-seamer. The recent upheaval in the Diamondbacks' bullpen -- Paul Sewald was removed as closer -- indicates Martinez could reclaim the job once he's healthy. That may not happen until September, however.

Sewald allowed five runs on five hits and failed to retire a batter in Saturday's 12-8 win over the Guardians.

Sewald was making his first appearance since being dropped from the closer's role earlier in the week, and it didn't go well. It appeared that manager Torey Lovullo was giving the demoted closer an opportunity to build confidence -- Arizona was leading 10-2 when Sewald entered to begin the eighth inning -- but he allowed five straight hits and was on the hook for three runners on base when he was removed from the game.

Basabe went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and four total RBI in a loss to the Padres on Saturday.

Basabe was ultra productive out of the No. 9 slot in the order in his first start of the season. The 25-year-old put San Francisco on the board with a solo homer in the third inning, then came up huge in a clutch spot in the eighth when he laced a two-out, two-RBI double off All-Star closer Mason Miller to tie the score 5-5. Basabe had all of one homer over 96 MLB plate appearances coming into Saturday, so his display of power was quite unexpected. His ability to play multiple infield positions could come in handy for San Francisco, but Basabe isn't expected to start on a regular basis.

Fermin went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and an additional RBI in a 6-5 win against the Giants on Saturday.

Fermin turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead with a two-run blast in the fourth inning. He added another RBI with a single in the sixth. The backstop homered in three straight games in early June, but since then he had gone 20 straight contests without a long ball before Saturday, batting a meager .191 with zero RBI during that span. Fermin has been splitting time with Luis Campusano behind the plate -- each player has started four of San Diego's past eight games.

Mahle allowed five runs on five hits and two walks while striking out nine batters over 5.2 innings in a no-decision versus San Diego on Saturday.

On the plus side, Mahle induced 13 whiffs and struck out a season-high nine batters. However, the five earned runs were the most he's allowed across his past eight starts. Mahle didn't give up a ton of traffic, but five of the eight batters who reached against him came around to score. The right-hander pitched pretty well in July with a 2.82 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 16:6 K:BB over 22.1 innings spanning four starts, so this was a small step back for him. Mahle will look to get back on track the next time he takes the mound, which is projected to be at home against Detroit.

Miller (4-1) blew a save but earned the win over the Giants on Saturday, allowing one hit and walking one batter while striking out three over 1.2 innings.

Miller was summoned with one out and the bases loaded in the eighth inning to try to protect a two-run lead. He struck out the first batter he faced but then gave up a two-run, game-tying double to Osleivis Basabe. Miller retired the final batter he faced in the frame and also pitched a scoreless ninth, and he emerged with the win after San Diego walked it off in the bottom of the frame. Though he wasn't charged with any runs, Miller was tagged with his first blown save of the campaign in his 29th opportunity. He nonetheless lowered his ERA to a sparkling 0.76 and now has a jaw-dropping 88:16 K:BB across 47.1 innings spanning 45 appearances.

Buehler allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out one batter over 4.1 innings in a no-decision against San Francisco on Saturday.

All of the scoring against Buehler came in the third inning, when the Giants racked up three runs on five hits and a walk. The right-hander was pulled with just one out in the fifth frame after putting two runners on base. Buehler has gone 10 straight outings without completing six innings and has posted a 5.98 ERA over that stretch. He's at a poor 5.18 ERA on the campaign through 22 appearances spanning 104.1 innings but seems to be locked into the rotation since San Diego doesn't have a wealth of starting pitching depth.