3B Christian Villanueva, who didn't play last year because of a leg injury, collected his first major league hit and home run Wednesday. Villanueva hit .296 and led Triple-A El Paso with 86 RBIs this year.

RHP Carlos Villanueva gave up seven runs in a relief appearance, one day after RHP Leonel Campos gave up five runs in the eighth. Villanueva gave up four home runs in three innings -- he had allowed 13 in 61 innings this season coming in. He is the first reliever in Padres history to give up four home runs in one outing.

RHP Carlos Villanueva's season continues to be defined by a handful of innings. Including Arizona's two-run seventh inning, Villanueva has allowed 17 earned runs combined in five of his outings. He has thrown scoreless ball in 20 of his 34 and allowed one run in his other nine. Villanueva has given up three earned runs in his last two outings, each a two-inning stint.

RHP Carlos Villanueva earned his first save of the season Friday night. Villanueva allowed one hit and recorded one strikeout in his lone inning of work during a 5-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Villanueva, signed as a free agent in January, registered his 10th career save.

RHP Carlos Villanueva signed a one-year, $1.5 million free agent contract with the Padres on Thursday.Villanueva, 32, was strictly a reliever for the Cardinals last year, though he has a history of pitching both as a starter and a reliever. In 35 appearances in 2015, Villanueva went 4-3 with two saves and a 2.95 ERA.In 425 major league games (76 starts), Villanueva has a 49-53 record with 10 saves and a 4.18 ERA.

Villanueva pitched three scoreless innings on Friday, earning the save in a win over Milwaukee.

With the game in hand, Villanueva was left in to collect the final nine outs. While it's Villanueva's second save of the season, Trevor Rosenthal's owners shouldn't be sweating it.

Villanueva picked up the win in relief Thursday, pitching a scoreless ninth allowing just single against Colorado as the Cardinals literally had a walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth.

Kolten Wong scored on a Greg Garcia bases-loaded walk to end it. Villanueva has been a great add for the Cardinals this season, able to provide solid long-relief when needed, something they didn't have last year. He's now 4-3 on the season with a 1.65 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 43.2 innings.

Villanueva picked up a three-inning save Saturday against the Cubs, allowing no runs and just one hit. He struck out three and walked a pair.

The Cardinals had an 8-1 lead entering the sixth inning, and they just handed things off to Villanueva. As he's done so often this year, he cleaned things up pretty efficiently. Villanueva's been a revelation out of the St. Louis bullpen this year, but he mostly sees low-leverage work -- he still has no holds in 18 appearances for baseball's winningest team.

Villanueva took the loss Thursday against Minnesota, recording the first two outs of the ninth with ease before allowing a Kennys Vargas home run.

Villanueva hadn't pitched in 10 days so rust could certainly be an excuse. After appearing in seven games in May and pitching 11.2 shutout innings he's seen just three chances in June, allowing two runs in 3.2 innings during the month. Still Villanueva's overall line is a very good 1.09 ERA and 1.01 WHIP With 21 strikeouts in 24.2 innings.

Villanueva picked up the win in the Cardinals' 9-3 victory over Philadelphia Thursday, pitching 3.2 perfect innings while striking out two.

Villanueva came on in long-relief for rookie Tim Cooney, who was making his first MLB start. Villanueva has been exactly what the Cardinals were hoping for when they invited him to spring training, a versatile and effective arm out of the bullpen. He's made five appearances ranging from as little as 0.2 innings to Thursday's 3.2 while delivering a 0.96 ERA and a 0.54 WHIP.

Villanueva picked up the win in his first appearance of the season Sunday against Cincinnati, pitching the final two innings Sunday allowing no runs on one hit and three walks while striking out three.

Villanueva wasn't great but he was good enough to keep the Reds off the board in extra innings and pick up the win. He won't have much fantasy value because of his role as a long-reliever and spot-starter.

Villanueva has been told that he will make the 25-man roster out of camp, MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch reports.

While Villanueva's career as a starter fizzled out, he has complied a 3.55 ERA and 439 strikeouts in 439 career innings as a reliever. He should slot in as the Cardinals' long reliever, pitching mostly in low-leverage situations.

Villanueva signed with the Cardinals on Wednesday on a deal that includes an invite to spring training, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Villanueva started five games for the Cubs in 2014, but made most of his appearances out of the bullpen and finished the season with a 4.64 ERA and 1.39 WHIP with 72 strikeouts over 77.2 innings. He will likely battle for a bullpen slot out of spring training, with the ability to be a spot starter for the Cardinals if needed.

Villanueva filed for free agency Thursday, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Villanueva appeared in 42 games this season, recording a 4.64 ERA across 77.2 total innings. He made five starts but worked primarily out of the bullpen. With contract up, Villanueva will seek out a new deal, likely with a new team, this offseason.

Villanueva continued his strong second half with 1.2 innings in Friday's game that was not officially completed until Saturday.

Though his year-to-date numbers do not reflect it, Villanueva has pitched well since the break, compiling a 1.57 ERA and 24:4 K:BB ratio in 23 innings. He was a disaster as a starter this year (10.53 ERA in five starts), but in 35 appearances as a reliever, he has a 2.65 ERA and 1.16 WHIP. He does not look like a big-league starter anymore, even though he keeps getting opportunities.

Villanueva picked up his second save of the year on Tuesday. He pitched a scoreless 12th inning while striking out two to down the Rockies.

Rondon blew the save in the 11th, which set things up for Villanueva to get his opportunity in the 12th. Villanueva gave up a one out hit, but worked around it with a strikeout and a ground out to end things. While he didn't work out as a starter, Villanueva has excelled in the bullpen, posting a 2.70 ERA and a 39:13 K:BB over 40 innings.

Carlos Villanueva will start for the Cubs on Saturday against the Nationals in Washington.

Jeff Samardzija had been the scheduled starter, but was traded to the Athletics late on Friday. The veteran right-hander owns a 5.91 ERA and 1.64 WHIP over 45 2/3 innings on the season, and is likely to be on a limited pitch count on Saturday. He should be avoided in all fantasy formats.

Carlos Villanueva will be moved to the bullpen.

The Cubs will activate Jake Arrieta (shoulder) from the disabled list to start Wednesday against the Reds, so Villanueva will be bumped to the pen. It's not a big surprise, as the 30-year-old has a rough 10.42 ERA and 2.21 WHIP across 19 innings this year.

Carlos Villanueva struggled again in Friday's loss to the Brewers, surrendering five runs on 11 hits over his five frames.

He walked one and struck out one during the difficult outing. The Brewers jumped on him with a pair of runs in the first inning, then tacked on single runs in the third, fourth and fifth to complete the damage. Villanueva simply hasn't been good enough while holding down a rotation spot for the injured Jake Arrieta, compiling a 10.42 ERA and 2.21 WHIP over 19 innings. If he gets another turn through the rotation, it would come against the Reds in Cincinnati on Wednesday.

Carlos Villanueva was hit hard again Sunday, giving up five runs on nine hits over 4 2/3 innings in a loss to the Reds.

Villanueva did punch out seven in the outing, but it's a shallow silver lining for an otherwise ugly showing. It leaves the right-hander with a 10.93 ERA and 2.14 WHIP for the year. With Jake Arrieta nearing a return -- possibly as soon as this weekend -- Villanueva's time in the rotation is short.