MLB Player News

Bud Black made the dumbest managerial call of the year today, having Bard intentionally walk Luis García to load the bases after Bard had already walked two, hit a batter and given up two runs. It wasn’t even to set up a double play, as there were two outs. Of course, the next batter, Ildemaro Vargas, walked — on four pitches, no less — to tie the game, getting Bard lifted. Matt Koch then came in and gave up a game-winning single. The loss is on Bard, who was at his worst today while filling in for Justin Lawrence. Fortunately, the couple of other times this season that Bard has lost the strike zone, it hasn’t had any carryover effect.

The 30-year-old right-hander has been shelved since May 2 due to right forearm inflammation. The Tigers’ bullpen has been in shambles lately, so a return to health from Vest would go a long way toward stabilizing things at the back end for the slumping Tigers.

He’ll take the place of the injured Matt Waldron in the Padres’ bullpen. Jacob has made just one appearance with the Padres this season, picking up a victory in relief with three strikeouts over two scoreless frames.

Waldron pitched in a bulk relief role on Tuesday and then was used out of the bullpen once again on Thursday by the Padres. It’s unclear exactly when the injury occurred or the severity of it. Alek Jacob was recalled from Triple-A El Paso to take his spot in the Padres’ bullpen.

The 30-year-old southpaw was claimed off of waivers from the Cubs last weekend. He’ll provide the Dodgers’ bullpen with a fresh arm that’s capable of working multiple innings in the wake of the Blake Snell (elbow) injury.

Ugh. Snell missed the first seven weeks of the season while recovering from shoulder fatigue and then returned to make just one poor start before being shelved again. Charlie Barnes was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Friday to take his place on the active roster. No word yet on how long Snell is expected to be sidelined before, but traditionally loose bodies in the elbow take 2-3 months of recovery time if they are surgically removed.

It’s nice to finally hear after 41 games of struggling that Story has been playing through an injury since the spring. Hopefully a couple of extra days off allows him the time to heal, which should improve his bleak performance at the dish.

He’s expected to repeat the process again in a couple of days and if all goes well from there, he could progress to facing live hitters. Bradley has been sidelined since May 6 due to pectoral inflammation. It sounds like he’s progressing nicely and shouldn’t require an extended stay on the injured list.

The Giants needed to clear a spot on their active roster for the return of Daniel Susac on Friday and it looks like Koss drew the short straw this time around. The 28-year-old infielder is just 1-for-14 (.071) in his limited action with the Giants this season.

Susac will return as expected after missing more than three weeks of action due to right elbow neuritis. The 25-year-old backstop has hit a blistering .478 (11-for-23) with zero homers and five RBI in his first 24 plate appearances with the Giants.

No word yet on the reason for the late scratch, but the Dodgers now plan to go with Will Klein as an opener in what will be a bullpen game. Snell has made just one start since returning from the injured list, giving up five runs (four earned) over three innings in a loss to the Braves on Saturday. Stay tuned, as the Dodgers should have an update on his status shortly.