MLB Player News

Pfaadt came away with a no-decision in Friday's 9-8 win over the Pirates, giving up three runs on seven hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out three.

The right-hander ran up his pitch count and fell short of a quality start, exiting after 96 pitches (65 strikes), but Pfaadt still left the mound in line for his sixth win of the year before the Arizona bullpen made a mess of things. After a couple scoreless outings on either side of the All-Star break, Pfaadt has avoided taking a loss in seven straight trips to the mound, posting a 3.10 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 34:6 K:BB through 40.2 innings over that stretch. He'll try to get back in the win column in his next start, which lines up to come on the road next week in Cleveland.

Puk allowed one run on three hits over one-third of an inning in Friday's 9-8 win over the Pirates.

Puk entered to clean up a mess made by Kevin Ginkel in the sixth inning but couldn't prevent the Pirates from taking the lead. Both Puk and Ginkel were speculated as options to close out games after manager Torey Lovullo announced earlier in the day that Paul Sewald would no longer be the club's closer. Ryan Thompson eventually closed out the win after Arizona retook the lead, but Lovullo, who did not specifically name a replacement for Sewald, trusts all three of those relievers.

Ginkel allowed three runs on one hit, one walk and a hit batsman over two-thirds of an inning in Friday's 9-8 win over the Pirates.

Ginkel entered in the sixth inning with Arizona up 6-3 and by the time he and A.J. Puk finished the frame, the Diamondbacks were down 7-6. This came on the day that manager Torey Lovullo announced Paul Sewald would no longer be the team's closer, which led to speculation about both Ginkel and Puk as options to close games. Ryan Thompson eventually closed the win, but Lovullo never mentioned a specific player as Sewald's direct replacement. The manager has a number of arms he trusts, including Ginkel.

Miller (3-1) tossed 1.2 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win Friday against the Cardinals. He struck out one.

Chicago starter Javier Assad only lasted four innings in this one, which opened the door for Miller to pick up his third win in relief this year. The righty has emerged as a nice bullpen option for the Cubs, posting a 2.06 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 36 strikeouts across 39.1 innings. He's still likely behind both Hector Neris and Porter Hodge in the pecking order for saves, though with Mark Leiter traded to New York, Miller could at least see a bit more high-leverage work moving forward.

Thompson allowed one run on two hits in one inning Friday, recording the save in a 9-8 win over Pittsburgh.

Thompson was given the first save opportunity after manager Torey Lovullo announced earlier in the day that Paul Sewald was being removed from the closer job. It was the second straight save converted by Thompson, who closed out Wednesday's win when Sewald couldn't. Lovullo could also use Kevin Ginkel or A.J. Puk in save situations, but those two pitched earlier in the game Friday, combining to give up four runs in the sixth inning.

Busch went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 6-3 win over the Cardinals.

Busch and Christian Bethancourt led the way for the Cubs with two home runs and four total RBI. For Busch, he's now up to 14 long balls this season to go along with a .257 batting average and .795 OPS. He's been a bit cold lately with a .143 average over his last five games, though he's gone deep twice in that span to boost his OPS to .821. Busch should remain locked in at first base for Chicago moving forward.

Marte went 2-for-5 with two solo home runs in Friday's 9-8 win over the Pirates.

Marte homered as part of the Diamondbacks' five-run first inning and added what proved to be a needed insurance blast in the ninth. The two homers were part of a recent power surge from Marte, who is 16-for-36 with seven home runs and 17 RBI over the last 10 games. The second baseman is up to 26 homers for the season, six shy of the career-best 32 he hit in 2019.

Bethancourt went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run in Friday's 6-3 win over the Cardinals.

Bethancourt provided a key blast against new St. Louis starter Erick Fedde, which proved to be the difference in the game. It was just the third home run of the season for Bethancourt, who is batting .183 with a .547 OPS while playing for both the Marlins and now the Cubs. However, in four games since having his contract selected from Triple-A Iowa, the catcher has gone 4-for-11 with two extra-base hits and four RBI. Bethancourt will likely slow down at some point, and his fantasy appeal is limited by his timeshare with Miguel Amaya behind the plate.

Bell started at first base, batted fourth and went 2-for-5 with two solo home runs in Friday's 9-8 win over Pittsburgh.

Bell, who was making his debut for the Diamondbacks, homered in his first plate appearance as part of a five-run first inning. He later tied the game at 7-7 with a solo shot in the seventh. Bell was acquired Tuesday immediately after the Diamondbacks learned starting first baseman Christian Walker (oblique) would miss an estimated three weeks, but Bell's role after Walker returns is uncertain with Joc Pederson boasting a .921 OPS this season as the primary DH against right-handed pitching.

Fitzgerald went 3-for-5 with a home run, a double and two RBI in Friday's win over the Reds.

Fitzgerald knocked an RBI double in the second inning and added an insurance run with a solo blast in the seventh. He was stuck in a small 3-for-20 skid before Friday's big performance. Over the last 14 games, he's gone 19-for-52 (.365) with 13 extra-base knocks, including nine homers. The hot stretch has pushed Fitzgerald's season slash line to .313/.371/.633 through 140 plate appearances.