MLB Player News

Scherzer was removed from his start Saturday against the Orioles due to right lat soreness, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Scherzer had been hoping to reach around 80 pitches during his first start of the season, but he was forced out of the game after just 45 pitches across three innings of two-run ball. Although the team attributed his removal to a lat issue, the veteran righty said after the game that "this is 100 percent related to the thumb," per Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca. Scherzer's thumb has been an issue since spring training, and he added that he was in "imminent danger" of doing more damage to it if he were to go back out for the fourth inning. Scherzer and the team will likely want to make sure his thumb and lat are no longer issues before he makes his next start, which could mean a trip to the injured list is coming.

Keller allowed two runs on four hits over two innings of relief in Friday's 8-1 loss to the Diamondbacks. He struck out three.

Keller joined the Cubs over the winter on a minor-league deal, but he did enough in camp to warrant a look as a long reliever on the MLB roster. He was able to make his team debut in mop-up duty Friday, and while Arizona managed some solid contact, he at least tallied three strikeouts in his two frames. The righty figures to work mostly in low-leverage spots for Chicago, at least for the time being, giving him limited fantasy appeal.

Phillips tossed three scoreless innings in Friday's loss to the Pirates, giving up three hits and a walk and striking out one.

Making his Marlins debut, the 27-year-old righty took over from Connor Gillispie in the sixth inning and kept the Bucs at bay over an efficient 23 pitches (15 strikes). Seven of Phillips' eight appearances last year with Philadelphia were starts, and he could be needed for swingman duties in Miami as the team deals with a rash of rotation injuries. While he had some initial success with the Phillies last season, including a four-hit shutout of the Guardians on July 27, he got tagged for 23 earned runs over only 11.2 innings from Aug. 1 on and will be a risky fantasy option if he is eventually needed in the Marlins' rotation.

Yamamoto came away with a no-decision in Friday's 8-5 extra-inning win over the Tigers, allowing two runs on five hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out 10.

After picking up a win back home in Japan during the Dodgers' season-opening set against the Cubs, Yamamoto was mostly sharp in his first stateside outing, tossing 58 of 91 pitches for strikes while fanning double-digit batters for the first time in his MLB career. The right-hander did serve up solo shots to Gleyber Torres (side) and Dillon Dingler to mar his performance, however. Yamamoto will take a 2.70 ERA and 14:3 K:BB through his first 10 innings of the season into his next start, which lines up to come on the road next weekend in Philadelphia.

Flaherty came away with a no-decision in Friday's 8-5 extra-inning loss to the Dodgers, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks over 5.2 innings. He struck out five.

The right-hander blanked the defending champs, and his teammates for the latter part of 2024, through five frames as Detroit grabbed an early 2-0 lead, but Flaherty exited after 83 pitches (50 strikes) after serving up a game-tying homer to Freddie Freeman in the sixth. Flaherty revived his career last year in a campaign split between the Tigers and Dodgers, and his performance in his 2025 debut suggests that rebound was no fluke. He lines up for a much less intimidating matchup next weekend at home against the White Sox.

Kelly (1-0) recorded the win in Friday's 8-1 rout of the Cubs, allowing one run on three hits and four walks over 5.1 innings. He struck out one.

It was far from a dominant outing for the 36-year-old righty to kick off the season, but Kelly minimized the damage from his free passes and got more than enough offensive support. He left the mound after 85 pitches (51 strikes). Kelly will likely need to be sharper in his next trip to the mound, which is scheduled to come on the road next week against the Yankees.

Taillon (0-1) took the loss Friday, giving up six runs on nine hits over 4.1 innings as the Cubs fell 8-1 to the Diamondbacks. He struck out one without walking a batter.

Six of the nine hits off the right-hander went for extra bases, including a pair of homers by Eugenio Suarez. Taillon left the mound after 80 pitches (53 strikes), and his 2025 campaign is off to a much bumpier start than his 2024 season -- he allowed three earned runs total over his first four outings last year. Taillon will look to bounce back in his next start, which lines up to come on the road next week against the Athletics.

Cease didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 4-3 win over Atlanta, giving up three runs on four hits and two walks over 4.1 innings. He struck out seven.

The right-hander exited after 91 pitches (63 strikes) and dominated at times, striking out six of seven batters between a first-inning double by Austin Riley and a third-inning single by former teammate Jurickson Profar. Cease lost focus after that, however, walking the next two batters in the third and running up his pitch count. It was overall a promising beginning to the campaign for the NL Cy Young candidate despite the lack of length, and Cease lines up to face the Guardians at home in his next start.

Lopez came away with a no-decision in Friday's 4-3 loss to the Padres, allowing three runs on nine hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out one.

The right-hander didn't display the same kind of dominance or efficiency he flashed in his breakout 2024 campaign and threw only 58 of 94 pitches for strikes in his season debut, before exiting with the score tied 3-3. On the bright side, Lopez's velocity didn't seem to be an issue -- he sat 94-96 mph with his fastball most of the night and topped out at 98.1 mph against Manny Machado in the third inning. Lopez is scheduled to face another tough opponent next week in a road clash with the Dodgers.

Castillo (0-1) was charged with the loss Friday against the Athletics after giving up two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four over five innings.

Castillo kept the A's off the board until the fifth inning, when a Lawrence Butler double followed by a Brent Rooker home run put his team in a 2-0 hole. Unfortunately for Castillo, the Athletics' pitching staff was able to keep the Mariners off the board for the whole game, so the 32-year-old will end up starting the year with a loss despite a respectable effort on his part. He'll hope for a bit more run support when the Tigers come to town next week.