MLB Player News

Hicks debuted a changeup in a nine-pitch outing against the Brewers on Friday, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

Hicks utilized the pitch twice with effectiveness during his appearance, as he logged swinging third strikes in both instances. The changeup checked in at 89 mph, making it quite the contrast for hitters compared to Hicks' 100 mph sinker. Hicks worked on the changeup throughout spring training, and it appears to now have officially joined his fastball, slider and aforementioned sinker as weapons in his arsenal as the team's primary closer.

Smith earned his first save of the season, setting the Padres down in order with two strikeouts in the ninth inning in a 3-2 victory Saturday.

The 29-year-old had one career save prior to 2018, but he converted 14 of 18 save opportunities once he became the Giants closer last June. He didn't yield a run during six innings this spring and looked sharp in his regular-season debut Saturday night.

Rodriguez (1-0) allowed two runs on four hits and zero walks while striking out two over five innings in a win over the Padres on Saturday..

Both runs Rodriguez yielded were inherited runners the bullpen allowed to score in the sixth. The only Padres baserunner in the first three innings came because of an error. Through five innings, Rodriguez had allowed just two hits and zero runs. It was a strong first outing for the 27-year-old looking to build upon his 6-4 record and 2.81 ERA from his rookie season last year.

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.