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Brayan Bello RP | BOS
Red Sox's Brayan Bello: Activated ahead of start
The Red Sox reinstated Bello (lat) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his start Sunday against the Nationals.
Bello landed on the IL on April 24 due to right lat tightness, which he experienced coming out of his start April 19 versus the Pirates. He was able to get the green light to rejoin the big-league rotation after making one rehab start with Double-A Portland on Tuesday, when he allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits and two walks while striking out five over 2.2 innings. Bello holds a 3-1 record through five starts for the Red Sox with a 3.04 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over 26.2 innings this season.
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Joey Estes SP | ATH
Athletics' Joey Estes: Solid outing in 2024 MLB debut
Estes (1-0) earned the win in Saturday's 8-1 victory over the Mariners, allowing one run on two hits and no walks over five innings while striking out five.
Estes was efficient throughout his five innings of work, doing much of the damage with his slider and four-seamer. While he threw only eight of his 17 first pitches for strikes, the right-hander was frequently able to work his way back from being down in the count and gave up only two hits on the night, though one of those was a home run. Estes also took a liner off his right bicep in the first but still managed to scoop it up and retire Julio Rodriguez for the out at first base before waving off the trainer and continuing on with the inning. Estes' 2024 MLB debut was an impressive one, but it's unclear if he'll stick around with the big club for another turn through the rotation.
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Cole Ragans RP | KC
Royals' Cole Ragans: Surrenders seven runs in loss
Ragans (2-3) took the loss against the Angels on Saturday, allowing seven runs on eight hits and one walk over 6.1 innings. He struck out three.
Ragans first ran into trouble in the top of the second after surrendering a leadoff triple to Kevin Pillar to open the frame, which would eventually lead to three runs coming home for Los Angeles. The lefty would also surrender runs in the third and seventh innings, with the final two of those runs coming across after he was relieved by Nick Anderson. Ragans had given up two runs or fewer in each of his last three starts coming in, but ended up matching his season high with seven runs allowed in Saturday's loss. On a positive note, he's now managed to go at least six innings in three consecutive outings, posting a 20:6 K:BB over that stretch.
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Tyler Anderson SP | LAA
Angels' Tyler Anderson: Nabs third win
Anderson (3-4) picked up the win over the Royals on Saturday, allowing three runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out four over 6.2 innings.
Anderson surrendered one run in the top of the first on a Salvador Perez double before going 1-2-3 through each of the next three frames. The lefty would allow another run in both the sixth and seventh innings, but he was still able to secure his third win of the season thanks to being provided with ample run support. Anderson has now gone at least six innings in three consecutive starts and is yet to allow more than three earned runs in an outing. Saturday also marked his first win since April 8 against the Marlins, as he had lost each of his previous four decisions coming in.
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Matt Waldron RP | WAS
Padres' Matt Waldron: Hit with tough loss
Waldron (1-5) was tagged with the loss against the Dodgers on Saturday, allowing two runs on two hits and two walks over 5.1 innings while striking out six.
Waldron coughed up a solo home run to Freddie Freeman in the top of the first and was later charged with another run in the sixth after having to be relieved by Adrian Morejon with one out in the frame. The right-handed Waldron threw only 11 of 20 first pitches for strikes in the contest en route to taking his third consecutive loss. Waldron has now allowed a home run in each of his last five starts, going 1-4 over that stretch with a 19:9 K:BB.
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James Paxton SP | BOS
Dodgers' James Paxton: Hurls six shutout innings in win
Paxton (5-0) earned the win over the Padres on Saturday, pitching six shutout innings while allowing four hits and striking out four.
Paxton never found himself in any serious trouble throughout the contest, allowing only one extra-base hit as the Dodgers cruised to a shutout win. The veteran lefty threw 15 of 22 first pitches for strikes and produced 10 whiffs on the night en route to earning his fifth win of the campaign. Paxton has allowed one run or fewer in back-to-back starts and in four of his seven outings this season. Saturday also marked his first start this season in which he didn't issue a walk.
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Paul Skenes SP | PIT
Pirates' Paul Skenes: Fans seven in MLB debut
Skenes came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 10-9 win over the Cubs, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks over four-plus innings. He struck out seven.
The 21-year-old right-hander displayed some nerves in his big-league debut, throwing only 54 of 84 pitches for strikes, but he flashed his upside right out of the gate by hitting triple digits on the radar gun on his first two career pitches and reaching 100 mph on five fastballs in total against the first batter he faced, eventually striking out Chicago leadoff man Mike Tauchman on a 100.9 mph four-seamer. Skenes isn't heading back to the minors any time soon, and his next start should come on the road next week in a rematch with the Cubs.
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Justin Steele SP | CHC
Cubs' Justin Steele: Can't keep ball in park Saturday
Steele escaped with a no-decision in Saturday's 10-9 loss to the Pirates, surrendering six runs on six hits -- including three home runs -- and two walks over four innings. He struck out three.
Making just his third start of the season after missing all of April with a hamstring strain, Steele served up homers to Connor Joe and Oneil Cruz in the third inning and Michael Taylor in the fourth, but he got taken off the hook for the loss thanks to a seven-run fifth by the Cubs. Steele has yet to complete five innings in an outing and threw just 74 pitches (53 strikes) Saturday, but he should begin to get stretched out more as he puts the injury further behind him. Steele will take a 4.73 ERA and 11:4 K:BB through 13.1 innings into his next start, which lines up to be a rematch with the Pirates back in Wrigley Field next week.
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Triston McKenzie SP | SD
Guardians' Triston McKenzie: Posts another strong start
McKenzie (2-3) took the loss against the White Sox on Saturday, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and three walks while striking out five batters over 6.2 innings.
McKenzie was tagged for two runs (one of which was unearned) in the second inning but otherwise kept Chicago off the scoreboard in his second-longest outing of the season. Cleveland was able to give the right-hander only one run of support, however, resulting in his third loss of the season. McKenzie began the campaign by giving up 11 runs (nine earned) over his initial 13 innings, but he's yielded just seven earned runs across 27.2 frames since to lower his ERA to a respectable 3.54.
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Andrew Heaney RP | LAD
Rangers' Andrew Heaney: Strikes out eight Saturday
Heaney allowed two runs on eight hits and struck out eight without walking a batter over five-plus innings, taking a no-decision Saturday versus the Rockies.
Heaney gave up a solo home run to Hunter Goodman in the third inning, and a second run was tacked onto his line when Jose Leclerc balked in a run in the sixth. This was another solid start for Heaney -- the eight strikeouts were a season high, and he issued zero walks for the fourth start in a row. He's at a 4.39 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 39:9 K:BB through 41 innings across eight starts this season, but he remains in search of his first win. Heaney is projected to make his next start at home in a favorable matchup with the Angels.