MLB Player News

Simpson will serve as the Nationals' opening pitcher in a bullpen game Wednesday against the Phillies, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Washington will lean on its bullpen to get through Wednesday's series finale in an effort to buy some extra rest for Cade Cavalli, who has already pitched 164.2 innings this season. Simpson will take the mound to begin the game, despite coughing up three runs without recording an out in his last appearance. He'll likely remain in the game for a few frames before turning things over to another reliever.

Torkelson went 2-for-4 with a walk, a double, a three-run home run and two additional runs scored in Tuesday's 10-1 win over the Blue Jays. He also stole a base.

Torkelson struck out in his other two at-bats, which is par for the course for the slugger, but he still managed to do plenty of damage with his bat while recording his first stolen base this year for good measure. The Detroit first baseman extended his hitting streak to four games, and he's driven in at least one run in all of those contests. Torkelson also has two home runs during his brief hot streak, which has pushed him up to 24 long balls for the season. He still strikes out a lot and is a bit all-or-nothing as a hitter, but Torkelson's power potential is undeniable.

Tolman earned the save in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Phillies after tossing a scoreless ninth inning.

Tolman didn't record a strikeout, but he also didn't issue a hit nor a walk, needing only 13 pitches (eight strikes) to close out the win for Washington. He has logged three saves (in four chances) over his last six outings, and Tolman and Jack Sinclair both appear to be in the mix for save opportunities over the last couple of weeks of the regular season.

Abrams didn't play in Tuesday's game against the Phillies due to neck tightness, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Abrams has recorded multiple hits in each of his last three games, but neck issues prevented him from contributing to Washington's 6-3 win over the Phillies on Tuesday. The Nationals haven't indicated that the 25-year-old will need to spend time on the injured list due to the neck issue, but Nasim Nunez could be in line to make additional starts at shortstop if Abrams' injury continues to bother him.

Lile went 1-for-1 with a three-run home run during the Nationals' 6-3 win over the Phillies on Tuesday.

Lile pinch hit for Dylan Crews in the seventh inning, and the former answered the call by taking Jonathan Bowlan deep to center field for a 407-foot, three-run homer to give the Nationals the lead for good. Lile is up to 21 home runs on the season (fourth-most on the Nationals), along with a .740 OPS and 85 RBI across 615 plate appearances.

Culpepper was removed from Tuesday's game against the Yankees with left hamstring tightness, Aaron Gleeman of AaronGleeman.com reports.

Culpepper seemed to be grabbing at his leg after grounding into a double play in the sixth inning, and the Twins took him out of the game at the start of the seventh. The severity of his injury is unclear, but Ryan Kreidler could benefit from extra starts if Culpepper is unable to play.

Kent did not factor into the decision Tuesday against the Phillies, allowing three runs on four hits and three walks while striking out four across five innings.

Kent gave up one run in each of the first, third and fifth innings of Tuesday's start, with the last being on a Kyle Schwarber solo home run. Kent has seven major-league starts under his belt since making his big-league debut Aug. 12, and he's given up at least three earned runs in six of those outings. He figures to see at least two more turns in the rotation before the regular season concludes, with his next appearance lined up for this weekend on the road against the Cardinals.

Schwarber went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and an additional run scored during the Phillies' 6-3 loss to the Nationals on Tuesday.

Schwarber gave the Phillies a 3-2 lead in the fifth inning after taking Jackson Kent deep to right field for a solo homer. It was Schwarber's fifth home run in his last 10 games and major-league-leading 45th of the season, and he's close to recording 50 homers in back-to-back seasons. He also ranks 10th in the majors in RBI (95) and 11th in OPS (.875).

Sanchez (17-6) took the loss against the Nationals on Tuesday, allowing five runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out five across 6.1 innings.

Sanchez was looking to bounce back from his last outing this past Wednesday against the Astros, when he gave up six runs but still came away with the win. However, he gave up two runs in the first inning before yielding a solo homer to Andres Chaparro in the fifth to tie the game up at 3-3. Sanchez was still in line for the quality start after getting through six innings, but he was brought back out for the seventh and was tagged for two more runs after Jonathan Bowlan gave up a three-run homer to Daylen Lile. Sanchez has allowed at least three runs in four of his last five outings, and he now sits at a 2.93 ERA and 1.22 WHIP over 193.2 innings. He's tentatively slated to face the Mets on the road this weekend in what figures to be Sanchez's penultimate start of the regular season.

Edwards isn't in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Edwards has gone 3-for-8 with an RBI and a run scored in two games since returning from the injured list, and the Marlins will now give him a chance to rest Tuesday while Javier Sanoja starts at the keystone and Graham Pauley mans third base.