MLB Player News

The Brewers recalled Bukauskas from Triple-A Nashville on Wednesday.

He'll join the Milwaukee bullpen as a replacement for Trevor Megill (concussion), who was moved to the 7-day injured list in a corresponding move. Bukauskas delivered a stellar 1.04 ERA in 8.2 innings during Cactus League play this spring before being optioned to Nashville, but he's expected to be deployed mostly in the middle innings or in lower-leverage spots while he's with Milwaukee.

Milwaukee placed Megill on the 7-day injured list Wednesday with a concussion.

Megill had appeared in both of the Brewers' first two games of the season, serving as the team's seventh-inning man in a pair of wins over the Mets while recording six outs and allowing no runs and striking out three. The Brewers have had high-leverage, late-inning opportunities available in both of their subsequent two games, and while Megill's lack of usage in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Mets appeared to be the result of rest, his absence in Monday's 3-2 win over Minnesota was more surprising. The concussion likely explains why Megill wasn't available, with Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel relaying that the right-hander first fell victim to food poisoning in New York City over the weekend and was still battling symptoms upon his return to Milwaukee earlier this week, when he suffered a fainting episode at a retail store and hit his head on the ground. As a result of landing on the IL, Megill will be out through at least Saturday's game versus the Mariners. The Brewers called up J.B. Bukauskas from Triple-A Nashville to replace Megill in the bullpen.

Perez (oblique) said Wednesday that he's feeling much better and is optimistic that he can begin throwing soon, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Perez landed on the injured list over the weekend with a right oblique strain, but he might require a minimum-length stay on the shelf. The left-handed reliever was a key bullpen piece for the Orioles over the last two seasons, collecting a 2.43 ERA and 99:48 K:BB over 111 innings.

Phillips picked up the save Tuesday against San Francisco, yielding one hit and no walks over 1.1 scoreless frames. He struck out two.

Fantasy managers got an extended look at the Dodgers' closer Tuesday, with Phillips entering the game with two outs and two runners on in the eighth to get Los Angeles out of a jam. While he kept the Giants off the scoreboard in the one-run win, Phillips did surrender his first hit of the 2024 season via a Jung Hoo Lee single in the ninth. Overall, Phillips is propped up to be one of the most valuable closers in all of fantasy with a safe hold on the closing job for one of baseball's most talented teams.

Yarbrough (1-0) picked up the win Tuesday against the Giants, surrendering four runs on seven hits and a walk across 4.1 innings. He struck out one.

Yarbrough worked in behind Ryan Brasier, who opened the game with a scoreless first inning. While he was able to avoid a blow-up, Yarbrough let runners score in three separate innings, including a solo homer to Jorge Soler to open up the sixth frame. Yarbrough has been utilized as a multi-inning reliever twice since the Dodgers returned stateside, landing a win and a save in those outings. However, he owns an overall era of 4.00 with a poor 3:3 K:BB through nine innings.

Helsley snared the save Tuesday, yielding one hit and no walks during a scoreless inning. He struck out two.

Since allowing a pair of runs and blowing the save in his first appearance of the new season, Helsley has put together back-to-back scoreless frames against San Diego. Considering the 29-year-old has generated ERAs of 2.45 and 1.25 the past two seasons, Helsley's blown save should be much of a concern.

Clase gave up one hit and struck out two during a scoreless inning to earn a save Tuesday against Seattle.

Clase took the mound with three runs of cushion, and the Guardians' lead was never threatened. He's now converted both of his save chances this season and could push for a third straight season of 40-plus saves. Clase is coming off a career-worst 3.22 ERA and 12 blown saves in 2023 after previously having not blown more than five in a single year.

Hernandez (lat) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday.

Hernandez struck out one over a scoreless inning in his first appearance with Round Rock. The plan is for him to make a handful of rehab appearances, including working on back-to-back day, before he rejoins the Rangers' bullpen.

Gage was released by the Dodgers on Tuesday.

Gage had been designated for assignment and the Dodgers have decided to cut him loose after he cleared waivers. The left-handed reliever holds a 1.83 ERA and 20:9 K:BB across 19.2 innings in the majors, so he shouldn't have trouble latching on in another organization.

Assad (1-0) picked up the win in Tuesday's 12-2 rout of the Rockies, allowing four hits and a walk over six scoreless innings. He struck out five.

The 26-year-old right-hander got staked to a 2-0 lead in the first inning and never looked back, tossing 60 of 89 pitches for strikes as he delivered a quality start in his first trip to the mound this season. Assad posted solid numbers as a swingman last year, but with Jameson Taillon (back) not yet ready to make his 2024 debut and Justin Steele (hamstring) now out until May, he'll be needed in the rotation for at least the first month of the season. Assad lines up to make his next start early next week in San Diego.