MLB Player News

Jansen gave up a hit and a walk in a scoreless ninth inning while striking out two to record his 14th save of the season in Wednesday's 2-0 win over the Padres.

A walkoff grand slam by Hunter Renfroe is the only blemish on Jansen's ledger so far in May, but that's been the story of his season so far. Seven of the nine runs he's allowed in 2019 have come via the long ball, leading to a career-worst 3.98 ERA, but his 28:5 K:BB through 20.1 innings remains strong, and the NL-leading Dodgers have provided him with no shortage of save opportunities.

Strahm (1-3) took the loss Wednesday as the Padres were downed 2-0 by the Dodgers, allowing two runs on seven hits and two walks over five innings while striking out five.

Once again, the young southpaw was the victim of poor run support. Strahm has given up two runs or fewer in seven straight trips to the mound, including four quality starts, but he has only one win to show for his efforts. He'll take a 3.07 ERA and 39:8 K:BB through 44 innings into his next outing Monday, at home against Arizona.

Jackson struck out three over two scoreless innings to record his fifth save of the season in Wednesday's 4-0 win over the Cardinals.

After Dan Winkler walked the first two batters in the eighth inning on eight pitches while trying to protect a 2-0 lead, Atlanta manager Brian Sntiker turned to his closer to escape the jam and let him finish things out after Charlie Culberson tacked on a couple of insurance runs with a homer in the bottom half of the frame. Jackson now sports a 2.05 ERA and 27:7 K:BB over 22 innings, and he'll likely continue to be needed for more than three outs at a time given the unreliable arms in his setup crew.

Hader allowed no hits while striking out one in a scoreless inning to record his 11th save in a 5-2 win over the Phillies on Wednesday.

Hader made quick work of the Phillies to nail down his 11th save of the season. He has not allowed a hit in his last four outings and has a 6:2 K:BB over that span. Hader has a 2.66 ERA with a 18.6 K/9 and 11 saves through 20.1 innings this season.

Smith struck out the side in the ninth inning to earn the save Wednesday against the Blue Jays.

Smith entered the game in the ninth inning with only a one-run cushion, but never came close to surrendering the lead by striking out the side on just 13 pitches. He now has 11 saves on the season, good for top five in the National League. With a 0.84 WHIP and 2.70 ERA paired with 20 strikeouts across 16.2 innings, he has also provided a useful strikeout total and strong ratios.

Biddle was designated for assignment by the Braves on Wednesday.

Biddle slumped to a 5.40 ERA with a poor 11:10 K:BB in 11.2 innings of work this season. Factoring in his performances from last season, he still has a perfectly respectable 3.46 career ERA in 75.1 innings, which may be good enough for another team to claim the 27-year-old lefty despite his current struggles.

Hernandez was optioned to Triple-A New Orleans on Wednesday, Andre Fernandez of The Athletic reports.

Hernandez was up with the Marlins for four days but did not get into a game. Jarlin Garcia was recalled in a corresponding move.

Garcia was recalled from Triple-A New Orleans on Wednesday, Andre Fernandez of The Athletic reports.

Garcia has allowed five runs in five innings for the Marlins this season, all of which came in one inning in late April against the Phillies. He has a 1.93 ERA in 9.1 innings at the Triple-A level. Elieser Hernandez was optioned in a corresponding move.

Pomeranz (lat) is expected to return from the injured list to start Sunday against Arizona, Amy Gutierrez of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Pomeranz will wind up missing just two days more than the minimum with his strained left lat. He had a solid 3.65 ERA in his first five starts of the season, but poor showings in his last two starts sent that figure up to 5.93.

Hicks, who most recently allowed a hit and a walk while recording a strikeout over an inning in a loss to the Pirates last Friday, hasn't seen a save opportunity since April 29.

The hard-throwing closer does have six straight scoreless appearances and has already compiled 20 strikeouts over 14.1 innings for the season, yet his fantasy owners have been left in the lurch when it comes to saves recently. Hicks remains the unquestioned ninth-inning option for manager Mike Shildt, but a combination of a poor stretch of play by the Cardinals and a pair of blowout victories during that span have conspired to leave him without any save opportunities.