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Jake Cronenworth (ribs) 1-for-2 with a two-run homer and three walks on Tuesday in a minor league rehab game for Triple-A El Paso.
Cronenworth didn’t show any signs of rust in his rehab debut and figures to return to San Diego’s lineup at some point later this week. The 31-year-old infielder has been out since mid-April working his way back from a non-displace fracture in his right ribs.
Tyler O’Neill (neck) went 1-for-3 with a walk on Tuesday in a minor league rehab game for Triple-A Norfolk.
O’Neill was at DH in his rehab debut and will likely need a handful of games over the remainder of the week before he’s ready to return to Baltimore. The 29-year-old slugging outfielder has been out since April 26 with neck inflammation.
Rangers signed RHP Robert Dugger to a minor league contract.
Dugger hasn’t appeared in the majors since making 27 appearances (13 starts) from 2019-2022 between the Marlins, Rays, Reds and Mariners. The 29-year-old righty will head to Triple-A Round Rock as extra organizational pitching depth.
Jung Hoo Lee went 3-for-6 with a homer and three RBI on Tuesday night, powering the Giants to a wild 14-5 extra-inning victory over the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
The 26-year-old outfielder broke the game open with a 385-foot (105.4 mph EV) two-run shot off of Colin Rea in the third inning that extended the Giants’ lead to 4-0. He also chipped in an RBI single and scored as part of the team’s nine-run uprising against Ryan Pressly in the 11th inning. With the three-hit night, Lee is now hitting an impressive .312/.364/.507 with four homers, 23 RBI and three stolen bases through his first 36 games.
Ryan Walker suffered his second blown save of the season on Tuesday, giving up a pair of runs on one hit and two walks over 2/3 of an inning.
After a pair of brutal outings that challenged his job security in the ninth inning, Walker had delivered three straight scoreless appearances heading into Tuesday night. He came on with a two-run lead to protect and immediately got himself into trouble, issuing a leadoff walk to Pete Crow-Armstrong and a one-out walk to Carson Kelly. He then allowed an RBI single to Justin Turner before rallying to strike out Ian Happ. Giants’ skipper Bob Melvin didn’t want to leave him in to face Kyle Tucker, so he summoned Erik Miller from the bullpen and Tucker got him for an RBI single to charge another run to Walker’s ledger. Fantasy managers who are counting on the 29-year-old right-hander for saves may want to add Camilo Doval as a handcuff where available.
Justin Verlander was once again denied a victory thanks to a bullpen implosion on Tuesday, holding the Cubs to three runs on five hits over his five frames.
The 42-year-old hurler walked two batters while punching out three on the evening. Most of the damage done against him came on a two-run blast by Miguel Amaya in the third inning, while the Cubs tacked on another on an RBI infield single by Jon Berti in the fifth. Verlander exited with a 5-3 lead and once again in line for a victory, and for the third time recently the Giants’ bullpen was unable to hang on for him — this time a blown save by Ryan Walker in the ninth. He got nine whiffs on 82 pitches on the night, posting a CSW of 29 percent. He’ll bring a 4.50 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and a 35/15 K/BB ratio (42 innings) into Monday’s matchup against the Diamondbacks.