MLB Player News

Strahm started against the Dodgers on Sunday but didn't factor into the decision as he exited the contest after two innings, striking out two and walking one as the Padres eventually fell 6-1.

Luis Perdomo was supposed to start this game but ended up getting scratched with a shoulder injury, so the Padres turned to Strahm to start things off against the Dodgers. The left-hander managed to keep San Diego's division rivals off the scoreboard, but he ended up making way for Adam Cimber after two innings and 31 pitches. Even if the situation does arise again where Strahm is tasked with starting, he doesn't figure to get the chance to pitch deep enough into the game for it to mean much fantasy-wise.

Giants manager Bruce Bochy said Law (ankle) will begin a rehab assignment Monday at Triple-A Sacramento, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Law last pitched for the Giants on May 9 before he was moved to the 10-day disabled list with the ankle injury, so he'll likely require multiple rehab appearances before being activated. The right-hander has given up seven runs over nine innings with the big club this season and isn't a lock to stick with the Giants once he's reinstated from the DL.

Melancon (elbow) is scheduled to make his third rehab appearance for Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Melancon went a week between his first two rehab appearances, with his most recent one coming Saturday. The fact that Tuesday's outing will come on two days' rest suggests Melancon is inching closer to an activation from the 60-day disabled list, but the Giants have yet to reveal an exact target date for the righty's reinstatement. Giants manager Bruce Bochy has already indicated that Melancon will settle for lower-leverage work upon rejoining the San Francisco bullpen, so he'll likely need to perform well for an extended period before posing a serious threat to unseat Hunter Strickland as closer.

Yates fired a scoreless inning and struck out one en route to his eighth hold of the season in Saturday's 7-5 win over the Dodgers.

Yates has been untouchable this season, posting a 1.00 ERA with 23 strikeouts over 18 innings. The 31-year-old added a splitter to his repertoire this offseason, and the results have been phenomenal. MLB.com's AJ Cassavell points out that opposing batters are 4-for-26 with 13 strikeouts in at-bats that Yates finishes with the split. His 2.14 FIP indicates that this newfound success is no mirage.

Strahm will start Sunday against the Dodgers.

The plan seemed to be for Luis Perdomo to get this start, but Perdomo went down with a right shoulder injury and thus San Diego will be forced to go with a bullpen game headed by Strahm. Strahm has allowed four earned runs while posting a 3:8 K:BB in 7.1 innings since returning from a knee injury. He hasn't thrown more than 36 pitches in an appearance this season.

Hand walked one and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to record his 16th save of the season in a 7-5 win over the Dodgers.

The 28-year-old closer has now converted 10 straight save chances, posting a 0.68 ERA, a 0.98 WHIP and a 19:7 K:BB in 13.1 innings over the course of that streak. Hand is demonstrating once again that he's one of the most dominant relievers in the game, and the only real threat to his fantasy value might come if he gets dealt to a contender by the 22-31 Padres and put in a setup role.

Garcia notched his first save of the season Saturday against the Blue Jays, allowing one hit while striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.

Seranthony Dominguez did some of the heavy lifting in between starter Aaron Nola and Garcia, coming into a tie game with two on in the seventh and getting out of that jam before pitching a scoreless eighth inning. However, Garcia deserves plenty of credit for striking out Justin Smoak and then getting Teoscar Hernandez to ground into a game-ending double play (Josh Donaldson led off the inning with a single). The last four Phillies saves have gone to four different pitchers, with Dominguez, Hector Neris and Edubray Ramos also having notched saves over the last two weeks. Garcia may continue to be a part of that mix but is unlikely to get saves often enough -- or record enough strikeouts -- to be overly useful in standard mixers.

Dominguez struck out one and gave up one hit in a scoreless 1.1 innings Saturday against the Blue Jays, notching his first big-league win.

He came into a 1-1 tie in the top of the seventh inning with runners on first and third and two outs and got the crucial out to get the Phillies out of trouble. Dominguez then went out and pitched a scoreless eighth inning, needing just 12 total pitches to get four outs. Luis Garcia then got the save (his first of the season) in the ninth inning, as manager Gabe Kapler's eclectic bullpen usage continues. Dominguez isn't a true closer, but he will get some saves if he continues to pitch like this, as it is clear that he is one of Kapler's most trusted relievers.

Reyes (elbow) will start Wednesday's game against the Brewers, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.

He will reportedly be pitching without restrictions, at least on a per-start basis, so his owners will want to make sure to deploy him next week for the start in Milwaukee. The 44 strikeouts he racked up over 23 innings during his rehab assignment was awfully impressive, even if his stuff is much more electric than minor-league hitters are accustomed to. It is unclear what the Cardinals will do with the rotation when Carlos Martinez (lat) returns in the coming weeks, but for now, Reyes should continue pitching every fifth day, and he would retain significant fantasy value in roto formats even if he heads to the bullpen later this season.

Grace (groin) will begin a minor-league rehab assignment with Double-A Harrisburg on Monday, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reports.

Grace is set to return to game action for the first time since landing on the disabled list near the end of April with a groin strain. Given the length of his absence, Grace will likely need to make multiple rehab appearances before rejoining the Nationals' bullpen.