MLB Player News

Martinez has started 27 of 30 games since he was recalled last month, so this is rather surprising, even if he had been slumping. The 22-year-old was hitting .236/.306/.373 overall. The Guardians will likely give his playing time to the recalled Will Brennan and Tyler Freeman.

The Twins are saying it’s a Grade 2 strain, so at best, he’s probably not going to return until the second half of September., if he makes it back at all. Unfortunately, he can be dropped in fantasy leagues. Louie Varland figures to take his rotation spot, at least as long as he puts together a decent start in today’s doubleheader. Zebby Matthews might be next in line.

Blewett arrives in the Twins pen after posting a 3.66 ERA and a 52/17 K/BB in 51 2/3 innings for St. Paul. His only previous major league experience was five appearances with the Royals in 2020 and ’21.

Farmer is back after missing a month with a shoulder strain. With Carlos Correa and Brooks Lee on the IL, he should see a fair amount of playing time in the short term. He needs to be better than he was before going on the IL, though; he’s hit just .189/.291/.265 in 151 plate appearances this season.

Lee’s been struggling with the issue for several days now, so he’ll get a break here. It’s unclear if he’ll have a role when he’s ready to return, assuming that Carlos Correa is back before him. Lee has hit a modest .253/.309/.333 in 110 plate appearances. For now, the Twins will go with Willi Castro, Austin Martin and Kyle Farmer between second and short.

Stewart will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery. He had a 5.17 ERA in 16 appearances for the Twins this season, with eight of the nine runs he allowed coming in three outings in between IL stints last month.

Bryan Shaw then finished the shutout, which featured two pitchers with a combined 30 seasons of major league experience. Cueto hasn’t added to that total this year, having gone 5-1 with a 4.85 ERA in 12 starts in the minors. Still, he might make a cameo in September.

The Twins are hoping Joe Ryan doesn’t miss too much time with his triceps problem, but if things take a turn for the worse there, the team will probably need Matthews at some point. He has been roughed up a little in two of four starts since he was promoted to Triple-A, leaving him with a 5.68 ERA, but the 23/1 K/BB in 19 innings is impressive.

Eden hasn’t spent any time on a 40-man roster this season, making him eligible to be traded. The 26-year-old speedster was hitting .198/.299/.322 with 26 steals in Triple-A. He might join the Yankees as a pinch-running specialist next month.

The Nationals should have given Chaparro a roster spot after acquiring him from the Diamondbacks for Dylan Floro at the deadline, but they decided to stick him in Triple-A initially. He’s since gone 8-for-24 with three homers, putting him at .333/.405/.575 overall for the season. The Nationals haven’t given him any time at third base in the minors, so when he is called up, he’ll probably serve mostly as a DH. Hopefully, it will happen in the coming days.