MLB Player News

Perez is scheduled to make his first start for the Padres on Saturday versus the Rockies at Petco Park.

Acquired Tuesday from the Pirates in exchange for left-hander Ronaldys Jimenez, Perez will bolster the back end of the San Diego rotation. He may not be in line for a long-term stay in the unit, however, as Joe Musgrove (elbow) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment this weekend and could be ready to return from the 60-day injured list around mid-August to take over Perez's starting role. Perez had functioned as little more than an innings eater for Pittsburgh prior to the trade, turning in a 5.20 ERA, 1.65 WHIP and 8.3 K-BB% over 16 starts.

Flaherty is slated to make his first start with the Dodgers in Oakland on Saturday, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

Before being traded to Los Angeles on Tuesday, Flaherty was scheduled to make his next start with the Tigers on Thursday. He'll instead get a couple extra days of rest and take the mound in the middle game of Los Angeles' weekend set in Oakland. Flaherty will look to extend a fantastic two-month stretch during which he's posted a 1.77 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 52:10 K:BB over 45.2 innings while going 6-1 across eight starts.

Edwards went 1-for-3 with three RBI in Wednesday's win over the Rays.

A sacrifice fly in the third inning and a two-run single in the seventh accounted for half of the Marlins' offense in a 6-2 victory over the team that traded Edwards to Miami in 2022. The 24-year-old shortstop is establishing himself as one of the key players in the Marlins' latest rebuild, slashing a stunning .395/.461/.500 through 24 games in July with a homer, nine steals, 12 RBI and 14 runs.

Stowers went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts in Wednesday's win over the Rays.

Making his first start for the Marlins after being acquired from the Orioles in the Trevor Rogers trade, Stowers was dropped into the third spot in the batting order and may have felt the pressure of debuting with his new team. The 26-year-old was slashing .240/.322/.555 for Triple-A Norfolk in 58 games this season with 18 homers prior to the trade, and Miami will give him every chance to display that power in the majors.

Faucher struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Wednesday during a 6-2 win over the Rays.

It wasn't a save situation, but Faucher was still the pitcher manager Skip Schumaker called upon to protect Miami's first ninth-inning lead since Tanner Scott was traded to the Padres. Andrew Nardi, who was viewed as the most likely candidate to take over closing duties, pitched the sixth inning with a two-run lead, while Anthony Bender worked the eighth after the lead was extended to four runs. Faucher has pitched well enough to be in the high-leverage mix -- over his last 15 appearances, the right-hander has posted a 1.93 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 16:6 K:BB in 14 innings.

Nardi collected his 12th hold of the season in Wednesday's win over the Rays, walking one and striking out three in a scoreless sixth inning.

The southpaw was considered the favorite to take over closing duties for the Marlins after Tanner Scott was traded to the Padres, but instead manager Skip Schumaker called on Nardi in the sixth inning Wednesday to protect a 4-2 lead. Miami wound up adding to its lead in the seventh, eliminating a potential save chance, but it still wasn't encouraging usage for any fantasy GMs hoping Nardi will pick up saves down the stretch. Anthony Bender, another potential closing option, was called on in the eighth inning after the lead was extended to 6-2 while Calvin Faucher worked the ninth, leaving the bullpen picture for the Marlins very murky.

Burger went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in Wednesday's 6-2 win over Tampa Bay.

Burger put the Marlins ahead for good in the third inning Wednesday, cranking a 423-foot, two-run shot off a Taj Bradley two-strike pitch to put Miami ahead 4-2. The 28-year-old Burger has been heating up at the plate -- he's homered in back-to-back games while going 7-for-20 with three long balls in his last five contests. Overall, Burger is slashing .235/.282/.416 through 351 plate appearances this year with 15 homers, 42 RBI and 38 runs scored.

The Giants will call up Encarnacion from Triple-A Sacramento on Friday, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

Encarnacion, 26, began the season in the Mexican League before signing a minor-league contract with the Giants in May. Since joining Sacramento, he's hit a blistering .352/.438/.616 with 10 home runs in just 33 games. Encarnacion was once a prospect of some repute with the Marlins, reaching the majors for a 23-game cup of coffee in 2022, but he produced a .548 OPS and struck out at a 39.5 percent rate. Miami didn't re-sign him after he struck out 200 times last season with Triple-A Jacksonville, but he's resurrected his career. Encarnacion has been playing more first base lately with Triple-A Sacramento, and the Giants' initial plan seems to be using him as a short-side platoon player at that position.

Rosario went 0-for-1 with a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's win over the Brewers.

He got the start in left field, batting sixth against right-hander Freddy Peralta, but Rosario was replaced by Adam Duvall in the seventh inning with lefty Jared Koenig on the mound. Trade deadline acquisition Jorge Soler is expected to start in right field going forward, but Duvall and Rosario seem headed for a platoon in left, with the latter on the strong side of that arrangement. Manager Brian Snitker likely won't hesitate to play the hot hand if one of the two significantly out-produces the other, however. Rosario is batting just .189 (7-for-37) over his last 12 games, but he does have three home runs and eight RBI over that stretch.

Merrifield went 1-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and a stolen base in Wednesday's 6-2 win over the Brewers.

Making his first start as Atlanta's new second baseman and batting ninth, Merrifield made a solid contribution to a 6-2 victory that included his 13th steal of the year. The veteran utility player appears fully recovered from the finger injury he suffered immediately after signing with the team July 22, and until Ozzie Albies (wrist) is ready to return, Merrifield has little competition for playing time at the keystone. His .578 OPS on the season is a career low, but he could turn things around down the stretch as Atlanta tries to catch the Phillies -- the team that cut him loose in mid-July -- in the NL East standings.