Report: Pirates activating Konnor Griffin from IL

Beeter got the call to record the final out of the eighth inning, inducing a harmless ground ball from Jose Altuve. He came back out to face the heart of Houston’s lineup and spun an impressive perfect frame. He struck out Yordan Alvarez, got Isaac Paredes to ground out and coaxed a game-ending fly ball form Christian Walker. The 27-year-old appears to be the clear choice for saves in Washington heading into the All-Star break.

Mikolas gave up nine hits, including a pair of homers. He struck out three and handed out a pair of free passes. He’s unlikely to take the ball again later this week as he’s facing a five-game suspension for his on-field actions during last week’s brawl with the Red Sox that will go into effect once the appeal process concludes. It’s possible he could start this weekend against the Yankees if his five-game ban is reduced on appeal. He’s obviously not a recommended fantasy option at this point.

Burrows was staked to an early five-run lead and wound up giving it all back with a couple calamitous frames. He gave up a whopping nine hits, including a three-run homer to CJ Abrams and a solo shot to Curtis Mead. He struck out three and issued two walks. The unexpected implosion raises his full-season ERA from 5.58 to 5.99 across 94 2/3 innings. He’ll close out a two-start week with a road matchup against the Rangers on Sunday to put a bow on the first half of the season.

Caballero came back to haunt his former team with his first multi-homer performance of the season. He kicked things off by clobbering a tie-breaking three-run blast to left field off Rays starter Griffin Jax before adding a solo shot off reliever Chris Roycroft in the eighth. The versatile 29-year-old set a new career high, reaching double-digit homers for the first time since 2023. He has a legitimate shot at reaching both the 20-homer and 40-steal thresholds, which seemed unfathomable from a projection standpoint coming into the year.

Rice provided a little extra insurance for New York with a ninth-inning dinger against Rays reliever Chris Roycroft. The power-hitting 27-year-old is one round-tripper away from matching last year’s total and is on pace to threaten the lofty 40-homer plateau. He’s cooled off considerably after a sizzling-hot start to the year, but he’s still providing plenty of over-the-fence pop.

Schlittler put together a sublime rebound performance after getting torched for a season-high six runs, including four home runs, by the Tigers in his previous start. A run-scoring single from Richie Palacios in the fifth inning represented the lone tally against him in this one. The 25-year-old burgeoning fantasy ace reached eight punchouts for the seventh time in 19 starts and holds a sparkling 2.01 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 131/21 K/BB ratio across 111 2/3 innings. He’ll wrap up a two-start week with a road tilt against the Nationals on Saturday to close out the first half.

Jax transitioned seamlessly into Tampa Bay’s rotation back in late April and hasn’t looked back. The 31-year-old recorded his first double-digit strikeout performance of the season, holding New York hitless into the fifth inning before coughing up a tie-breaking three-run homer to former Rays utility specialist José Caballero. He’s allowed three earned runs or fewer in six consecutive starts since June 7. He’ll close out the first half with a favorable home matchup against the Mariners on Saturday to wrap up a two-start week. Needless to say, he should be rostered in all fantasy formats at this juncture.

Snell continues making incremental progress back from an innovative NanoScope procedure to remove loose bodies from his elbow back in late May. The 33-year-old figures to be ready for a rehab assignment later this month and appears on track to return to the Dodgers rotation mix sometime in August.

Kelly was cut loose by the Athletics after passing through waivers unclaimed. The 33-year-old was designated for assignment last week. He was hit hard in five relief outings earlier this year after making a career-high 42 appearances last season.