MLB Player News

Diaz went 5-for-5 with a double and a run scored in Wednesday's 9-4 win over the Mariners.

The veteran infielder set a new career high with five hits, continuing a scorching run at the plate, as the 34-year-old has gone 28-for-70 (.400) since Aug 11. Wednesday's career-best effort also helped boost Diaz's season slash line to .294/.353/.479 with 22 home runs, 76 RBI and 68 runs scored across 569 plate appearances, as he closes in on career high totals in both homers and RBI.

Horton didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against Atlanta, allowing no hits and one walk in five shutout innings. He struck out six.

Despite being pulled with just 75 pitches, Horton was brilliant while submitting his eighth scoreless start since the beginning of June. The Cubs have been cautious about the rookie right-hander's workload this year, as Horton has reached the 90-pitch threshold just four times over 19 outings, but he's delivered a masterful 0.77 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 44:14 K:BB over his last 47 innings since the All-Star break. Horton has a very promising 2.78 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 87:32 K:BB through 103.2 innings overall, and he's slated for a rematch with Atlanta next week.

Kirby (8-7) was handed the loss against the Rays on Wednesday, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on 10 hits with one strikeout across two innings.

Kirby endured the roughest outing of his career, failing to work into the third frame for the first time in his 108 MLB starts. The appearance went down as the shortest of his four-year tenure and matched the second-highest run total he's ever allowed in a game. Kirby was peppered for 10 hits by the 17 batters he faced, consisting of eight singles and two doubles. It was an uncharacteristic barrage of hard contact for the typically steady starter, who will try to put this outing behind him as he heads into his next scheduled turn against St. Louis. Kirby has a 4.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 104:26 K:BB across 104.2 innings this season.

Houser (8-4) earned the win over the Mariners on Wednesday, allowing four runs on four hits and one walk while striking out eight over seven innings.

Houser cruised through the first five frames and allowed just one baserunner, but things fell apart in the sixth inning, when he surrendered all four of his runs. Despite the stumble, Houser still logged a season-high eight strikeouts and was good enough to take home the win. Since being acquired by the Rays, however, he's allowed four or more runs in four of six starts, posting a 4.91 ERA and 27:10 K:BB across 33 innings during that stretch. The 32-year-old will look to replicate the strong early innings from Wednesday's outing in his next scheduled start against his former team, the White Sox.

Kayfus went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a sacrifice fly and a run scored in Wednesday's 8-1 win over the Red Sox.

Kayfus recorded doubles in the second and sixth innings before adding a sac fly in the eighth to bring home Cleveland's final run. The performance was a welcome turnaround for the 23-year-old, who entered the contest batting just .100 with two RBI and 10 strikeouts over his previous 10 games. On the season, Kayfus is now slashing .203/.264/.380 with 10 RBI and 11 runs scored across 88 plate appearances.

Cantillo (4-3) earned the win over the Red Sox on Wednesday, allowing one run on five hits and two walks while striking out seven over six innings.

Cantillo was impressive against a tough Boston lineup, completing six innings for the first time this season. The southpaw's lone blemish came in the fourth inning when Boston scratched across a run on three singles, but he quickly rebounded to retire seven of the final eight batters he faced. Wednesday's performance continued a strong stretch in which Cantillo has now allowed exactly one run in three straight outings. Across his nine starts this year, the 25-year-old has posted a 3.68 ERA and 51:24 K:BB over 44 innings.

Collins went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run in a 6-3 win over the Phillies on Wednesday.

It was the ninth homer of the year and the third game with at least three hits for Collins. The switch hitter had a .635 OPS as of May 31, but he's made a huge impact for the Brewers since the start of June. Collins is slashing .296/.391/.487 with 25 extra-base hits, 47 RBI, 40 runs scored and nine stolen bases over his last 273 plate appearances to push his OPS up to .804 for the campaign.

Woodford walked one and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday to record his third save of the season in a 2-0 win over the Rangers.

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo continues to mix and match at the back of his bullpen, as Andrew Saalfrank worked the eighth inning against the heart of the Texas order before Woodford handled the ninth. The 28-year-old right-hander still has two of the Diamondbacks' last three saves, with Taylor Rashi getting the other and all three of Woodford's saves have come since Aug. 23. His ratios don't make a compelling case for consistent high-leverage usage however, and over 20 innings since the beginning of August, Woodford's posted a 4.95 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 11:6 K:BB.

Koenig secured the save in a 6-3 win over the Phillies on Wednesday, throwing a clean ninth inning with one strikeout.

Koenig got the call to earn his first save of the season Wednesday. With the possibility of having to face superstar lefties Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper in the frame, the southpaw likely received the nod over righty Abner Uribe for matchup-related reasons. Closer Trevor Megill (elbow) is targeting a return by mid-September, so Koenig will likely revert back to a setup role before long. Koenig has a decent 3.32 ERA and 1.26 WHIP over 57 innings while recording 25 holds this year.

Ellard will serve as the White Sox's opening pitcher for Thursday's game against the Twins, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Ellard will work as an opener for the second time in four days after coughing up one unearned run in 1.2 innings in Monday's 6-5 win over Minnesota. Jonathan Cannon is expected to pitch in bulk relief after Ellard exits the game.