MLB Player News

Verdugo had been 5-for-10 with two walks in three starts batting ninth this month, but he had no such luck tonight. The Yankees haven’t committed to calling up Jasson Domínguez on Sept. 1, but all signs point to him coming up before long. Verdugo will likely be a fourth outfielder after it happens.

Abel has turned in consecutive scoreless outings after giving up nine runs in 7 1/3 innings over his first two starts. He allowed nine hard-hit balls tonight, but seven of those were grounders and they produced a total of three singles. He also walked none after coming into the game with 10 bases on balls in 13 1/3 innings. Abel doesn’t seem trustworthy just yet, but the upside is obviously there. He’s 1-2 with a 3.98 ERA, and he’s slated to take on the Mets next.

Not good, but at least it’s not Garrett Crochet bad. Gray gave up nine hits, including a couple of solo homers, and struck out just one batter. He did generate 10 whiffs tonight, but they just weren’t strike threes. The last time he struck out one or no batters was on Apr. 1, 2023, but that was a good outing in which, while pitching for the Twins, he shut out the Royals for five innings. Gray will likely make his next start Monday against the Tigers.

Buxton just needed the Red Sox to come to town to shake off this slow start. He’s 6-for-10 with three homers the last two days, raising his OPS from .531 to .768. The two-homer game is the 18th of his career. He scored four runs just once other time, that being his lone three-homer game on Aug. 27, 2017 against the Blue Jays.

Masataka Yoshida was in the third spot tonight, as the Red Sox try to keep finding ways to insert him into the lineup. Yoshida had two hits tonight, but the Red Sox also gave up a run in the first that wouldn’t have scored as Ceddanne Rafaela been playing center instead of being on the bench. Duran’s 0-for-4 came with some extra concern, as he was caught flipping off a spectator after an eighth-inning groundout. It sounded like the person deserved it, but it still might cost Duran a couple of games.

Walker continued his scorching start at the plate with another multi-hit game on Tuesday, starting with a solo homer off Michael Lorenzen in the second inning. He reached on a fielder’s choice in the third and scored, then led off the fifth with a base hit. Walker collected his third hit of the game with a single in the seventh. The 35-year-old slugger is slashing .313/.389/.594 with four home runs, 12 runs scored, and 15 RBI across 72 plate appearances.

Goodman put the Rockies on the board early, taking Colton Gordon deep for a solo homer in the first inning. He did it again in the fifth, leading off the frame with a solo blast off AJ Blubaugh for his second round-tripper of the game. The 26-year-old backstop is off to a solid start at the dish, hitting .254/.333/.475 with four homers, 12 runs scored, and seven RBI across 66 plate appearances.

Varsho’s third homer of the season came off Jacob Misiorowski and brought the Brewers to within a run at 3-2 in the sixth. He also singled to bump his slash to .263/.333/.491 with seven RBI, and he’s picked up multiple hits in three of his last four games.

Bryan King had come into the game with two runners on and one out in the eighth inning. He allowed a run in on a hit before getting out of the jam with a one-run lead. King was given the opportunity to close out the ninth, but gave up two hits with two outs before he was pulled at 28 pitches. De Los Santos came in for the final out to record the save. Bryan Abreu had pitched in two of the last three days, totaling 50 pitches. He’ll likely get lower leverage work until he shows improvement. King is still the best bet for save chances at the moment, at least until either Abreu gets right or Hader returns from the injured list.

Gordon struck out the side in the first but was tagged for a solo homer by Hunter Goodman. Three hits in the second brought two more runs home for the Rockies in the second. Jordan Beck added a run with a solo homer in the fourth inning. Gordon then loaded the bases on two hits and a hit batter before he was replaced with two outs at 68 pitches. The bullpen would strand the runners on base. Gordon collected five strikeouts. The 27-year-old left-hander should get another turn in the rotation next Monday against the Guardians in Cleveland, given Houston’s lack of healthy starting pitchers. Still, there’s no real fantasy appeal here.

Lorenzen tossed a clean first inning, then a solo homer by Christian Walker in the second. The wheels fell off in the third as Lorenzen would be chased after four hits, a walk, and two errors put six runs on the board for the Astros. He struck out three. The 34-year-old right-hander departed with a 9.18 ERA, 2.22 WHIP, and a 13/5 K/BB ratio across 16 2/3 innings. Don’t expect much better when he takes on the Dodgers in Colorado on Sunday.