MLB Player News

Called on to protect a four-run lead in the ninth inning, Robertson gave up two runs on two hits and one walk over his inning against the Braves on Saturday.

Robertson permitted a two-run homer to Charlie Culberson but finished out the game without further damage to preserve an 8-6 win. The 33-year-old has given up three earned runs in his first two appearances of the season and will need to improve in order to get regular save chances.

Pivetta struck out four and gave up four runs on eight hits and one walk across 4.2 innings in a no-decision against the Braves on Saturday.

Pivetta gave up a single run in the first on a single by Freddie Freeman and two more in the second on a Dansby Swanson homer. After two scoreless frames, the 26-year old allowed another run in the fifth and was removed. Pivetta will try to improve upon this rocky season debut in his next start, now scheduled for Friday at home versus Minnesota.

Wilson struck out three but was tagged with four earned runs over 3.1 innings in a no-decision against the Phillies on Saturday. He allowed five hits and four walks as the Braves gave up an early lead and lost 8-6.

Wilson was nicked for a run in the second on an RBI single by J.T. Realmuto, but he surrendered three runs in the fourth via a Cesar Hernandez RBI triple and a Maikel Franco two-run homer. In what should be an easier matchup, his next scheduled start is Friday against the Marlins at home.

Hader struck out the side in his lone inning of work Saturday to record his second save of the season in a 4-2 win over the Cardinals.

Nine fastballs, nine strikes, and Hader was done for the night, recording the first immaculate inning of 2019 -- a feat accomplished four times last year by the likes of Max Scherzer and German Marquez. The Brewers may prefer to use Hader in a high-leverage role rather than locked into the ninth inning as the closer, but now that he has the role to himself, he might never let it go.

Hudson (0-1) took the loss Saturday as the Cardinals fell 4-2 to the Brewers, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits -- including three home runs -- and two walks over 4.1 innings while striking out six.

The punchouts were nice, but that was the only silver lining to this outing for Hudson. Christian Yelich, Mike Moustakas and Travis Shaw all took him deep, a shocking 2019 debut for a pitcher who served up only one long ball all of last year in 138.1 innings between Triple-A and the majors. Chalk it up to nerves in the 24-year-old's first big-league start, and look for his power sinker to be a little more effective in his next outing, April 6 at home against the Padres.

Diaz pitched one-third of an inning during Saturday's 11-8 win over the Nationals to earn his second save of the season. He did not strike out or walk a batter.

The Mets entered the bottom of the ninth inning with an 11-4 lead, but the Nationals were able to rally for four runs, prompting Diaz for the one-out save. The 25-year-old has a save in both games thus far this season and has yet to allow a baserunner over 1.1 innings.

Minter (shoulder) could return as soon as Thursday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Minter has been battling shoulder soreness since being part of a minor car accident in late February. The injury isn't considered to be too serious, but the Braves decided to give him a few extra days to build his arm strength back up. He's had no issues since resuming throwing and could be back in the ninth-inning mix in Atlanta in under a week.

Alzolay (side) will begin his season doing rehab work in Arizona and won't join the Triple-A Iowa rotation right away, Tommy Birch of the Des Moines Register reports.

Alzolay has been dealing with a side injury since February, and the Cubs will proceed cautiously with one of their top pitching prospects. Jaron Madison, Chicago's director of player development, said Alzolay is "just a couple of weeks behind" and should be able to join the Iowa rotation in late April or early May.

Jansen struck out one in a perfect ninth inning during Friday's 5-4 extra-innings loss to the Diamondbacks.

With the score tied 4-4 and a save situation off the table at home, Jansen worked the top of the ninth and rang up Alex Avila for his first strikeout of the season. The right-hander looked healthy this spring and, assuming his heart issues are behind him, Jansen should once again be one of the top closers in baseball.

Andriese (1-0) picked up the win in Friday's 5-4 extra-innings victory over the Dodgers, walking four batters in 2.1 scoreless innings.

He nearly blew the game in the 10th inning -- entering with a runner on first and two outs, Andriese loaded the bases on a wild pitch, a HBP and a walk before making a great defensive play to snag an A.J. Pollock comebacker and escape the jam -- but the right-hander suffered no damage from his control issues and was rewarded when Carson Kelly's double in the top of the 13th broke a 4-4 tie. Andriese is used to his current long-relief role from his time in Tampa Bay, but from a fantasy perspective offers little other than iffy ratios and bulk strikeouts.