MLB Player News

It seems like a virtual lock that Herz would wind up requiring elbow surgery after suffering a UCL sprain during spring training. Nationals manager Dave Martinez told reporters it was merely a traditional Tommy John surgery that didn’t require an additional internal brace procedure. The 24-year-old lefty will likely be sidelined until the second half of the 2026 campaign.

Holmes kept the Rockies off the board for the first four innings of this one. His first earned run came in the top of the fifth inning on a sacrifice fly by Jake McCarthy to bring home Zac Veen, but that was just the start of a three-run inning for the Rockies. A few batters later, Hunter Goodman would single to drive home Ezequiel Tovar, and Cole Carrigg came around to score on the following at-bat on a groundout by Cole Carrigg. Holmes would make it out of the inning but would not return in the sixth, bringing an end to his night. It was a strong final outing for Holmes, who held his opponents off the board in three of his five starts and posted a 3.04 ERA. Holmes’ next start is scheduled for Wednesday on the road against the Nationals.

Okamoto hit a warning track sacrifice fly in the first, took Seranthony Domínguez out in the fifth, and added an RBI single in the seventh. The 30-year-old is struggling to hit for average in the states, but he’s got 27 homers and 77 RBIs while slugging .441, so he’s been a reasonable return on investment for fantasy managers.

Sugano’s first earned run of the night came in the second inning after a leadoff walk to Ronald Acuña was followed by an RBI double by Michael Harris. Harris would later come around to score on an RBI double by Sean Murphy, who came in to score two batters later on a single by Drake Baldwin. Sugano would allow one more earned run in the fourth before being pulled to start the inning, putting an end to yet another rough start for the veteran righty. Sugano has allowed five earned runs or more in each of his last three starts and has pitched out of the fifth inning just once over that span. Fantasy managers can safely avoid him in his next start, which is set for Wednesday at home against the Orioles.

Merrill blasted a two-run homer in the sixth inning off Shane McClanahan to cut the Rays’ lead to 7-4. It was the 22nd homer of the season for Merrill, who also scored in the fifth inning on a fielder’s choice by Freddy Fermin. Merrill has hit safely in four of his last six games and is slashing .274/.327/.579 in August with seven homers.

Canzone’s 433-foot blast was the only run the Mariners were able to score on Friday as the 4-6 hitters combined to go 2-for-25 with two walks against Dylan Cease and the Jays pen. Canzone’s hitting .300/.373/.467 over his last 15 games with two homers and a stolen base, and he’s hitting left-handers well enough that Seattle has no qualms about penciling him in to a full-time role. It’s been a good season for him.

Díaz hit a solo homer off Padres starter Casey Mize in the bottom of the third inning to give the Rays their first run of the night. It was the 20th homer of the season for Díaz, who also singled in the fourth inning to drive in Taylor Walls and push the Rays’ lead to 6-0. Díaz has now hit 20 homers in back-to-back seasons and needs only six more homers to top his career high (25) set last season.

In July and August, Cease has allowed just 11 earned runs in 10 starts while striking out 89 batters in 73 innings. This effort could only lower his ERA from 2.37 to 2.33. The 30-year-old has lived up to his big contract this season and should finish quite high in the Cy Young balloting. He draws the Guardians next week in another no-thought-required start for fantasy managers.

McClanahan was solid in this one, pitching four innings of shutout ball before seeing two runs come across to score in the fifth. The first run would come via a fielder’s choice by Freddy Fermin to bring in Jackson Merrill, with Xander Bogaerts coming around to score on the next at-bat on a fielder’s choice by Jake Cronenworth. McClanahan would allow a two-run homer to Jackson Merrill in the sixth inning and was pulled shortly after. McClanahan made only three starts this month, but ends August with a respectable 3.24 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP while picking up one win. He’ll look to pick up his 11th win in his next start, which is set for Wednesday at home against the Mets.

Concerningly, he struck out just one batter. Most of his improvement this year has been about raising his whiffs from 20.3 percent in 2025 to 23.7 percent in 2026 while drastically raising his strikeout rate. Hancock allowed nine hard-hit balls in this one and batters were all over both of his fastballs. Things figure to get easier next week against what’s left of the A’s in Safeco Field, but this was not the sort of start you watch and think that Hancock got unlucky in.

Mize was charged with only two earned runs in this one, but the Rays put seven runs on the board while Mize was on the mound. After getting through the first two innings unscathed, Mize saw a sinker to Yandy Díaz land 382 feet over the right-field stands for a solo homer, putting the Padres down 1-0. The Rays would add to their lead in the fourth inning, as Mize struggled to retire anybody and saw five runs come across to score, although he was only charged with one earned run. Mize would allow one more earned run in the fifth inning before being pulled after 77 pitches, and will see his August come to an end with a 7.00 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. He’ll look to get back on track in the final month of the season, with his next start coming on Wednesday in Cincinnati against the Reds.