MLB Player News

Birdsong picked up a hold during Sunday's 5-4 win over the Yankees, tossing two scoreless innings while striking out three and hitting one batter.

The 23-year-old entered the game in the sixth frame and retired all three batters he faced. The right-hander later hit Aaron Judge with a pitch in the seventh but escaped the inning without allowing a hit. Birdsong was efficient, facing seven batters and throwing 15 of his 20 pitches for strikes. After falling short in his bid for a spot in the Giants' Opening Day rotation, Birdsong has been dynamite in relief, having yet to allow a run while posting an 0.89 WHIP and 9:3 K:BB with three holds across nine innings over four appearances. The Giants don't seem motivated to have Birdsong get stretched back out for a starting role anytime soon, as manager Bob Melvin told Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News on April 5 that the right-hander is being treated as a true reliever at this point after San Francisco chose not to have him piggyback No. 5 starter Landen Roupp in his first start earlier this month.

Astros general manager Dana Brown said Sunday that he expects Gusto to make at least one more start with the big club, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

After opening the season in the Houston bullpen, Gusto slid into the rotation Saturday as a replacement for Spencer Arrighetti (thumb), who was placed on the 15-day injured list earlier in the week. Though he took a loss against the Angels and gave up three earned runs over four innings, Gusto delivered a strong 6:1 K:BB and induced 12 whiffs on 72 pitches. The Astros seemingly came away encouraged by the rookie's performance, and he looks like he'll be in line to make his next start during the team's three-game series versus the Padres next weekend. Gusto could be headed to the bullpen or to Triple-A Sugar Land after that, however, as Lance McCullers (forearm) could be on track to return from the 15-day injured list the following week.

Duran threw a perfect inning while striking out one in Sunday's 5-1 win over Detroit. He has a 1.42 ERA with five strikeouts in 6.1 innings but doesn't have a save chance.

He was lined up to get a save opportunity, but the Twins scored in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Duran a four-run lead to protect in the ninth inning. The Twins do not have a save yet as a team this season. Duran's velocity is down slightly this season (99.9 mph average fastball from 100.5 mph last season), but he's still been very effective. He's set to get the bulk of save chances for the Twins, though manager Rocco Baldelli will likely play matchups and use Duran in the eighth inning at times with Griffin Jax pitching the ninth inning.

Milner struck out two over a scoreless inning in Sunday's 3-1 loss to the Mariners.

Milner made a sixth consecutive scoreless appearance to open the season. He's allowed three hits and walked one while striking out eight over seven innings.

Strahm gave up one run on one hit in one inning Sunday against St. Louis, striking out three.

Strahm threw 15 of his 19 pitches for strikes but struggled with his command, allowing a Yohel Pozo leadoff double to eventually come around to score following a wild pitch. It was the first run Strahm allowed so far this year, so the southpaw should remain Philadelphia's top left-handed setup man while Jose Alvarado works as the primary closer. Through 7.1 innings, Strahm has yielded only four hits, registered a 12:2 K:BB and tallied three holds.

Dominguez picked up a hold Sunday against Toronto after throwing 1.1 clean innings. He struck out one.

Dominguez came on to protect a 4-3 lead with two runners on base in the sixth inning, striking out Bo Bichette on a foul tip to end the frame before retiring the side in the seventh frame. Dominguez has yielded just one hit over seven shutout innings to begin the season, but the right-hander doesn't carry much fantasy value outside of leagues that record holds while closer Felix Bautista is healthy for the Orioles.

Pressly earned the save in Sunday's 4-2 victory over the Dodgers, pitching a clean inning with one strikeout.

The veteran reliever made quick work closing out this win, completing the task in seven pitches, all of which were strikes. Pressly is now a perfect 4-for-4 in saves opportunities this season. However, under the hood, the 34-year-old has shown signs of slowing down, as his 3.38 ERA across eight innings is underpinned by a 6.11 FIP, 2.13 WHIP and 3:6 K:BB.

Rea took a no-decision Sunday against the Dodgers. He struck out five over 3.2 innings while allowing a run on four hits and one walk.

After not pitching since April 7, Rea was tasked with filling in for Justin Steele (elbow) against the mighty Dodgers. Rea impressed over this 68-pitch outing, throwing 42 strikes and generating nine whiffs. The 34-year-old has pitched to a 1.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 7:1 K:BB across nine innings and should continue to hold a rotation spot as Steele is slated to miss the rest of 2025. Rea currently lines up to make his next start against Arizona at home next weekend.

Estevez allowed a hit in a scoreless inning during Sunday's win over Cleveland. He struck out three and earned a save.

Estevez coughed up a single to Steven Kwan to open the ninth inning but punched out the next three batters he faced to close out the 4-2 win. It was Estevez's fifth save in six chances. He dropped his ERA to 1.29 with a 9:4 K:BB through seven innings this season. Estevez has collected five of Kansas City's six saves so far.

Martinez struck out two over one inning to earn a hold in Sunday's 5-2 win over the Brewers.

Arizona led 3-2 when the right-handed Martinez opened the eighth inning against three scheduled righty hitters. He retired the side in order, including a lefty pinch hitter. That held the lead for lefty A.J. Puk heading into the ninth, when the Brewers had lefties scheduled. The late-game bullpen deployment is working without manager Torey Lovullo having to name one closer. Martinez has yet to allow a run or a walk while striking out nine over 5.2 innings.