MLB Player News

Royals manager Matt Quatraro took his foot off the pedal today. After using his second and third best relievers to keep the game close in the seventh and eighth, Quatraro declined to go to Lucas Erceg in the ninth. Erceg worked Wednesday, but it was just seven pitches and he’d had Monday and Tuesday off. With the Twins having probably the worst ninth-inning situation in the AL, it seemed very much worth it to try to keep it 2-1. Instead, in came Cruz, who also worked Wednesday and is only in the majors because of Carlos Estévez’s injury. The three homers from Matt Wallner, Kody Clemens and Josh Bell turned into a 5-1 game entering the bottom of the ninth. The Royals ended up not scoring, though again, Quatraro could have helped there. Letting Lane Thomas, who is terrible against righties, bat with two on and none out against Justin Topa produced a double play that doomed the Royals’ chances. One imagines Cruz will be sent down after this, especially since he’ll be unavailable Friday anyway.

Javier tossed two scoreless innings, then gave up a run on two hits and a walk in the third. Josh Lowe then took him deep for a solo homer in the fourth. Javier needed 87 pitches to get through the four frames. Bryan King would take over on the mound in the fifth. Javier struck out five batters and ended the day with a 6.44 ERA, 1.68 WHIP, and a 30/17 K/BB ratio across 36 1/3 innings. He’ll take on the Athletics in Houston on Sunday.

Pasquantino returned from a wrist injury on Monday and had a double in the win over the Athletics. On Tuesday, he had two hits, a double and an RBI. Pasquantino is hitting .236 with a .672 OPS and 34 RBI on the season. He drove in at least 97 runs in the previous two seasons.

Foscue got the start on Tuesday with a left-hander on the mound. He came through right away with a solo homer off Jackson Kent in the second inning. He then drew a bases-loaded walk in the third to drive in his second run. Foscue was lifted for a pinch-hitter to lead off the fifth with a right-hander in the game. The 27-year-old infielder has been limited to a short-side platoon, but has performed well in his time, slashing .257/.321/.474 with eight homers and 23 RBI across 168 plate appearances.

Langford singled to lead off the bottom of the first inning and scored the first run of the game on a groundout. He singled again to lead off the third before scoring for a second time on a fielder’s choice. Langford would later reach for a third time on a walk in the sixth. The 24-year-old outfielder is hitting .257/323/.465 with 14 homers, 44 runs scored, 33 RBI, and nine steals across 316 plate appearances. While setting an excellent pace, he’s been limited to 74 games due to forearm and hamstring injuries.

Quantrill dominated the Nationals on Tuesday, holding them scoreless over a season-high seven innings. He scattered four hits and did not walk a batter while collecting five strikeouts on an efficient 61 of 91 pitches for strikes. The 31-year-old right-hander has allowed one run or fewer in each of his last four starts. He’ll take a 3.13 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, and a 54/22 K/BB ratio across 77 2/3 innings into a start against the Angels in Texas on Sunday.

Kent gave up a run on two hits in the first inning, then served up a solo homer to Justin Foscue in the second. He ran into more trouble in the third, giving up three runs, including a bases-loaded walk. Kent returned for the fourth and gave up a pair of two-out hits before departing at 84 pitches with three strikeouts. The 23-year-old left-hander has allowed eight runs with a 9/8 K/BB ratio over 7 2/3 innings across his first two starts. He’s lined up to start against the Marlins in Miami on Sunday.

Perkins gave up one hit, walked one and struck out four. He entered in the third inning as the bulk pitcher. Perkins was 0-3 with an 11.48 ERA in three starts in August entering play Tuesday. He has a 6.96 ERA on the season. Perkins is lined up to face the Astros on the road on Sunday.

Grisham homered off Shane Baz in the third and then put the Yankees ahead again with his two-run single in the seventh. He’s hit five homers in his last eight games, and he’s batting .281/.305/.684 in 15 games this month.

The lone run came on Coby Mayo’s homer in the third. In the second, Rodón, returning from elbow inflammation, allowed two to reach with one out before getting a likely double play ball, only for Jazz Chisholm Jr. to record no outs on the play. Rodón, though, bounced back to strike out Carlos Narváez and Jackson Holliday, with the final pitch to Holliday barely catching the corner high and outside to get overturned for a strike. Rodón threw 68 pitches tonight, which is about what was expected coming in. He should get up to 80 or so Sunday against the Blue Jays.