MLB Player News

Romano earned a save against the Royals on Wednesday with one scoreless inning. He allowed one hit and struck out one batter.

Alek Manoah gave Toronto seven scoreless innings, and Erik Swanson put up another zero in the eighth. The Blue Jays then turned to Romano, who completed the combined shutout and picked up his third save of the campaign with a scoreless frame. The closer is tied with David Bednar for the MLB lead in saves, and he's allowed just one hit while posting a 4:0 K:BB over three innings so far this season.

Quijada picked up a save Wednesday against the Mariners, allowing one hit and striking out one batter in a scoreless inning.

The Angels led by one run heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, and manager Phil Nevin elected to go to Quijada with Seattle due to send up a switch hitter and a lefty as the first two batters in the frame. That decision paid off, as the southpaw reliever worked around a one-out walk to close out the contest and earn the save. Quijada wasn't expected to be a lead candidate for saves out of the Angels bullpen this season, and he may not pick up many more along the way. However, Wednesday's contest provided evidence that Nevin is willing to play the matchups rather than commit to a full-time closer.

Morgan (1-0) allowed a hit and struck out one over one inning, earning the extra-inning win Wednesday over the Athletics.

Morgan has had a productive series in Oakland, earning a win and a save in his last two appearances. The right-hander was dialed in with 15 of his 19 pitches going for strikes Wednesday. He's given up a hit in each of his four outings this season, but he also boasts a 6:1 K:BB and has allowed only one unearned run through four innings. With James Karinchak struggling early on, there's a chance Morgan's strong pitching could lead to him featuring as a high-leverage option as part of the bridge to closer Emmanuel Clase.

Holmes earned a save against the Phillies on Wednesday, striking out three batters in a perfect ninth inning.

Holmes continues to improve from his rough season debut. The 30-year-old earned his first save of the season and threw nine of his 16 pitches for strikes while punching out all three batters he faced. Holmes has provided impressive performances in consecutive outings and will continue to serve as the go-to option in the Yankees' bullpen for save situations.

Voth (0-1) allowed three runs on four hits and struck out three over 1.1 innings, taking the loss Wednesday versus the Rangers.

Voth was responsible for Josh Jung's tiebreaking two-run home run in the sixth inning as well as a Nathaniel Lowe RBI double in the seventh. The 30-year-old Voth was thought to be in the mix to take Kyle Bradish's (foot) place in the rotation, but the Orioles instead opted to call up top prospect Grayson Rodriguez, who allowed two runs on four hits and a walk over five innings in his major-league debut. It looks like Voth will likely spend much of 2023 in a low-leverage role out of the bullpen. He's given up four runs, including two homers, across his first 2.1 innings this season.

Clase earned a save in Wednesday's 6-4 extra-inning win over the Athletics, allowing one walk and striking out one batter over one scoreless frame.

Cleveland's bullpen blew a late lead to send the game into extras, but the Guardians offense was able to put up two runs in the top of the 10th. Clase then came on to close the door in the bottom of the frame, throwing 11 of 15 pitches for strikes and fanning the final two batters he faced. This was a solid bounce-back outing after Clase blew a save chance by giving up two runs against Oakland on Monday.

Estevez wasn't used to close out the Angels' 4-3 win over the Mariners on Wednesday because manager Phil Nevin wanted to give him another day of rest after the reliever pitched Sunday and Monday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Nevin instead opted for Jose Quijada, who pitched around a single to record the team's first save of the season. Even though he wasn't the one to get the save, this news should be heartening for those rostering Estevez, as it would appear he could be at the top of the Angels' bullpen pecking order. It remains a messy situation, but fantasy managers with Estevez should be hanging on for now.

King's velocity was down in Tuesday's loss to Philadelphia, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

King allowed four hits over 1.1 innings in the outing, with the first two knocks driving in a pair of runs that were charged to Domingo German. King's fastball topped out at 95.2 mph in the contest, about a tick below his average velocity on the pitch last season. Overall, King's average four-seamer is clocking in at 94.1 mph this season as opposed to 96.4 mph in 2022. While the right-hander said he believes the reduced velocity to be mechanical, manager Aaron Boone suggested that the reliever may be in the midst of a "dead-arm period." It's not yet certain if the issue will affect King's availability moving forward.

Leclerc picked up the save after striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning during Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Orioles.

Leclerc got the call in the ninth after Will Smith, who picked up the Rangers' first save opportunity Sunday against Philadelphia, worked 1.1 innings following Jacob deGrom's start. It appears Leclerc and Smith are going to split closing opportunities to open the season, which would seem to limit both players' overall fantasy upside. Leclerc now has two strikeouts across two scoreless innings to start the year.

Kelley is recovering from a fractured left foot and should be ready to go at High-A Winston-Salem by the end of the month, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.

Kelley saw time late last season at Double-A, but he has never pitched at High-A, so that's an obvious starting spot for him once healthy. The hard-throwing righty logged a 3.34 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 59:40 K:BB in 64.2 innings at Single-A last year.