MLB Player News

Rusin allowed two runs on two hits and a walk in Monday's win against the Padres.

The southpaw was handed the ball for the ninth inning in a 7-2 ballgame, but he proceeded to turn the game into a save situation following a homer by Cory Spangenberg and an RBI triple by Jose Pirela. Rusin is off to a rough start to the season, as he also allowed three runs in his first outing against the Diamondbacks. He was an integral part of last year's bullpen and should have a decent leash, but it's hard to trust him right now in NL-only leagues.

Smith (elbow) has been throwing live batting practice sessions, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Smith is working his way back from Tommy John surgery which cost him the entirety of the 2017 season. He's expected to begin a rehab assignment in mid-April. He has been targeting a May 1 return and remains on track for that timeline. He's unlikely to be near the top of the closer depth chart when he returns, though with Mark Melancon already on the disabled list with a right elbow flexor strain, the Giants' bullpen situation is more fluid than it initially appeared.

Hicks fired 1.1 scoreless innings in Monday's 8-4 win over the Brewers, allowing a walk and recording a strikeout.

That's three straight scoreless appearances to open up his major-league career, the latest development in the rookie's meteoric rise. Hicks has rung up a strikeout in each of his first three games as well -- unsurprising given the elite velocity he possesses. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that prior to Monday's outing, six of the eight fastest pitches thrown in the majors thus far in the new season came off the right arm of Hicks, whose two-seam fastballs during that stretch all clocked at 100 mph or more. He also used a 99.3 mph sinker to set down Todd Frazier in Sunday's win over the Mets, flashing yet another lethal tool in an arsenal that projects to afford him plenty of late-inning opportunities over the course of the season.

Chafin allowed a run on two hits and struck out a batter over an inning of relief in Monday's 8-7 win over the Dodgers in 15 innings.

Chafin induced two groundouts to begin the seventh inning but put the Diamondbacks in a two-run hole after allowing a double to Yasmani Grandal and RBI single to Cody Bellinger. The lefty was hardly the only member of the bullpen to experience some hiccups Monday, as three other Arizona relievers (Yoshihisa Hirano, T.J. McFarland and Fernando Salas) conceded runs. One poor outing won't make manager Torey Lovullo reluctant to call upon Chafin in the middle innings.

The Mets recalled Robles from Triple-A Las Vegas on Monday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

One of the Mets' final cuts in spring training, Robles will rejoin the big club less than two weeks later with Anthony Swarzak's oblique injury leaving the team shorthanded in the bullpen. Robles has displayed strikeout stuff during his time in the majors the past three seasons, but poor command and control have undermined him. He posted 4.6 BB/9 and yielded 10 home runs across 56.2 innings with the Mets last season, resulting in him losing the trust of former manager Terry Collins.

Jansen gave up a game-tying three-run homer to Chris Owings with two outs in the ninth inning Monday to blow a save in the Dodgers' eventual 8-7 loss to the Diamondbacks.

After his fastball was clocked around 88-to-89 mph Friday, Jansen's velocity was up in the 91-to-92 range Monday, which is still a little below his average velocity last year. Making matters worse, there were photos of him rubbing his shoulder in the dugout after the inning. Something clearly seems to be off with the 29-year-old at the moment, so fantasy owners may want to consider investing in setup men Josh Fields and/or Pedro Baez as possible handcuffs at closer.

Richards took the loss in his major-league debut against the Red Sox, giving up five earned runs on eight hits in 4.1 innings, striking out five and walking one.

Richards had never pitched above Double-A before Monday's debut but he did put up a 2.87 ERA and 77 strikeouts in his final 14 minor-league appearances last season and a 0.75 ERA in spring training. While those are solid numbers, Monday's outing suggests that it's best to wait and see if he can consistently translate that to the major-league level before considering him for fantasy purposes.

Thompson (shoulder) is listed on Low-A Fort Wayne's roster to start the 2018 season.

Thompson suffered a shoulder injury in late July of last season, but should be ready to go for the upcoming campaign. He appeared in just seven games in 2017 for Fort Wayne, allowing 14 runs on 23 hits while striking out 28 across 27.0 innings. Thompson will hope to stay healthy and see more action in 2018.

Peralta snagged his first hold of the year in Monday's win over the Cubs, but needed some help from closer Raisel Iglesias to get out of the eighth inning.

Peralta struck out the first two batters he faced, but then allowed a walk to Ben Zobrist and a single to Ian Happ before getting lifted for Iglesias. He has already pitched in three of the Reds' first four games, which is a concern given how his performance declined after heavy early use last year.

Iglesias recorded a four-out save Monday against the Cubs.

Reds manager Bryan Price had to turn to Iglesias with two outs in the eighth after Wandy Peralta put two runners on, and Iglesias rallied to strike out Anthony Rizzo after pitching around Kris Bryant. He was perfect in the ninth, pitching on back-to-back days.