MLB Player News

Williams (1-0) worked a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday to get credit for the win in a 7-6 victory over the Mets.

Seeing his first action since April 1 as he was afforded some extra rest due to a bicep bruise, Williams shut down New York on only nine pitches (five strikes), putting him in the right place to get the win when Garrett Mitchell launched a walkoff homer. After recording a career-high 15 saves last season with Josh Hader shipped to the Padres, Williams and his Airbender changeup figure to shatter than mark in 2023.

Robertson pitched a scoreless eighth inning in Wednesday's 7-6 loss to Brewers.

With the score tied 6-6 on the road, Mets manager Buck Showalter elected to turn to Robertson in the eighth rather than hold him back for a possible save situation. The move backfired when Adam Ottavino served up a walkoff homer to Garrett Mitchell after taking over in the ninth, but it's an indication that Robertson might see more general high-leverage usage rather than being used exclusively for save chances. Even so, the 37-year-old does have the Mets' only save so far in 2023, and he remains the favorite to lead the team in that category in the absence of Edwin Diaz (knee).

Underwood gave up a hit in a scoreless ninth inning Wednesday to record his first save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Red Sox.

The right-hander needed only five pitches to breeze through the frame, erasing a Justin Turner leadoff single with a double play. David Bednar is entrenched as the Pirates' closer and already has three saves this season, but two of then had come in the last two days. It looks like Underwood will be the next man up for now any time Bednar is unavailable, which could give him some deep-league fantasy appeal for GMs speculating on a potential Bednar trade.

Chavez recorded the final out of Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Cardinals to pick up his first save of the season.

A.J. Minter had pitched in the first two games of the series while Joe Jimenez has thrown 16 pitches the night before and may not be ready to work back-to-back days after offseason back surgery, so when Collin McHugh allowed a run in the bottom of the ninth inning to create a save situation, it was Chavez who got the call to close things out. It's the 39-year-old right-hander's first save since 2019, and while he's capable of serving in a variety of roles in the Atlanta bullpen, he's unlikely to see consistent high-leverage work. Through four appearances this season, Chavez holds a 0.00 ERA over 3.2 innings with a hold and a 3:0 K:BB in addition to Wednesday's save.

Phillips retired two of the three batters he faced en route to notching his first save of the season in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Rockies.

With one out and runners on first and second in the top of the ninth, Phillips was summoned from the bullpen to put out the fire. Though he hit the first batter he faced to load the bases, Phillips coaxed a run-scoring sacrifice fly off the bat of Mike Moustakas and then induced a groundout by Charlie Blackmon to extinguish the threat. Phillips' save was the Dodgers' second of the season, and the first in a more traditional fashion after long reliever Andre Jackson picked up the team's first save by pitching three innings at the tail end of a 10-1 win over the Diamondbacks last weekend. Phillips looks like he'll be a part of a committee approach to closing situations, with Brusdar Graterol and Alex Vesia also being candidates to scoop up the occasional save chance.

Sousa was designated for assignment by the Reds on Wednesday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Sousa was the 40-man roster casualty when the Reds selected the contract of fellow relief pitcher Kevin Herget. The left-hander appeared in 25 games with White Sox in 2022, struggling to a 8.41 ERA and 1.72 WHIP with 12 strikeouts over 20.1 innings.

Kuhnel was optioned to Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Kuhnel will head to Louisville after cracking the Reds' Opening Day roster last week. The right-hander appeared in Tuesday's loss to the Cubs, surrendering three runs on five hits and a walk over two frames. Considering the fact that he opened the season on the active roster, Kuhnel seems likely to get another shot in the majors before long. In his place, the Reds selected the contract of Kevin Herget.

The Reds selected Herget's contract from Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Herget will provide the Reds with some additional bullpen depth as the 32-year-old makes his way to a major-league roster for just the second time in his career. The right-hander appeared in three games with the Rays in 2022, producing a 7.71 ERA and 1.29 WHIP with four strikeouts over seven innings. To make room for him on both the 40-man roster and the active roster, Bennett Sousa was designated for assignment and Joel Kuhnel was optioned to Louisville on Wednesday.

Bednar struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Tuesday to record his third save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Red Sox.

Masataka Yoshida reached on an error to lead off the frame, but Bednar shook it off and needed only 10 pitches to retire the next three batters, ending the night by fanning Enrique Hernandez. After notching 19 saves last season with a 32.9 percent strikeout rate, Bednar has delivered more of the same to begin 2023, firing three shutout innings with a 5:0 K:BB.

Kimbrel gave up a run on two hits and a walk in the ninth inning of Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Yankees. He didn't strike out a batter.

Considering the Phillies hadn't won a game yet this season, manager Rob Thomson wasn't taking any chances with a four-run lead and brought in Kimbrel to finish things out. The veteran closer served up a solo shot to DJ LeMahieu and threw only 14 of his 23 pitches for strikes, but he eventually got the job done. Kimbrel has been scored upon in his first two appearances this season with a 1:3 K:BB, which isn't a great sign for the 34-year-old, but his usage Tuesday suggests he's still the top option for save chances in the Phillies' bullpen once they begin to create some. Seranthony Dominguez, Jose Alvarado and Gregory Soto are also in the high-leverage mix, however.