MLB Player News

Kennedy is back with the Rangers roughly one month after electing free agency after being designated for assignment by the organization. The 38-year-old righty made 11 relief appearances this season in the majors and will head to Triple-A Round Rock as extra relief depth.

Anthony Volpe then singled in Domínguez to make it 2-0. Domínguez also went 1-for-4 with a walk in game one. He’s not embarrassing himself in hitting .232/.270/.394 in 164 plate appearances, but he’s still not showing much in the way of upside at the plate, and it’s hard to say what the Yankees could realistically expect to get for him if they make him available at the deadline.

Working on a limit of about 60 pitches in his return from a bone bruise in his elbow, Fried got through five in 57, 37 of which were strikes, and averaged 96.2 mph with his fastball, which was 1.5 mph better than his season average. He left a scoreless game, so there was no win to be had. However, it was an awfully encouraging showing. He’ll get the White Sox next.

Warren would have started Tuesday’s game before it was rained out. Tonight, he was the closer instead, after David Bednar and Fernando Cruz pitched in game one, but he was replaced by the lefty Hill with two on and Ryan O’Hearn up. O’Hearn went on to ground out. Warren still figures to get a start this weekend against the Phillies. He might permanently lose his rotation spot later if Carlos Rodón comes back and everyone else remains healthy.

Chandler departed a scoreless game, so it’s his third straight no-decision and he remains stuck on three wins for the year. There still isn’t much in the way of consistency here, but he does have a 3.74 ERA in his last eight starts, largely because he’s allowed only two homers. It’s dropped his season ERA from 5.05 to 4.47. He’ll face the Diamondbacks next week.

Reynolds was one of the year’s biggest All-Star snubs, but if the start of his second half is any indication, it might not look so bad at season’s end. He’s 4-for-24 with no RBI and 13 strikeouts in six games since the break.

Lee had a monster game here in a big win for his Twins. He helped get a rally churning with a run-scoring single in the third inning and broke this game open with a three-run homer in the fourth. That long ball was especially painful for the Guardians since it came after an error let that inning get to Lee. Overall, he’s been solid in an everyday role this season with a .254 batting average, .746 OPS, 15 home runs, and 56 RBI. Those power numbers are already approaching his totals from last season in 41 fewer games.

By the end of the second inning, Ober had already faced 12 batters, thrown 53 pitches and allowed three runs. He let up one more in the fourth to close out this ineffective start. For a pitcher who doesn’t have much velocity to begin with, it was down even further in this one. His fastball averaged 87 mph – yes, averaged – and he didn’t crack 89 mph one time. It’s practically impossible to be effective in this day and age with that low of velocity and Ober showed why here. He left this start with an ugly 4.56 ERA, 60 strikeouts, and 22 walks through 80 innings on the season and is scheduled for a two-start week against the Royals and home and Mariners on the road next week.

Being activated somewhat surprisingly and not playing in a single rehab game after breaking his hamate bone about six weeks ago, Ramírez wasted no time making an impact in his return from the injured list. He singled in the first inning, tagged to second base on a fly ball, and then came around to score. He also legged out an infield single in the second that pushed another run across. It wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows though. Ramírez made a throwing error to start the eighth that opened the door for a big Twins rally and he grounded out with the bases loaded to end the bottom of that inning. Regardless, it’s great news for the Guardians and fantasy managers alike that Ramírez is back.

Cecconi was greeted rudely by Trevor Larnach who hit a lead-off home run off him. From there he didn’t pitch particularly well, but his defense didn’t do him many favors either. Kyle Manzardo made an error at first base in the second inning that didn’t lead to any runs. Then, shortstop Brayan Rocchio made a throwing error in the fourth that led to a big inning. Alan Roden reached base on the error, scored a few batters later on an infield single, and then Brooks Lee hit a three-run homer with two outs. Thus, four unearned runs on Cecconi’s line. Oddly enough, Roden was at the plate for both of those errors and another one later on! Nevertheless, Cecconi has had a poor season with a 4.60 ERA across 103 2/3 innings this season and could lose his spot in this rotation should the Guardians make an upgrade at starting pitcher before the trade deadline.

Mesa failed to go deep for the first time in three games, but he supplied plenty of fantasy goodness with a pair of run-scoring singles in addition to picking up his fourth stolen base of the season. The 24-year-old boasts strong plate skills and has been makes frequent hard contact, which is a recipe for sustained success. He’s making the most of his opportunity with Tampa Bay recently and is at least worthy of a speculative roster spot in deeper fantasy leagues heading into the final two months.