MLB Player News

Musgrove (1-2) allowed four runs on six hits and a walk while striking out six over five innings, taking the loss Saturday versus the Red Sox.

Enmanuel Valdez accounted for much of the damage against Musgrove with a three-run home run in the second inning. Alex Verdugo added an RBI single in the fourth. Musgrove still has yet to complete six innings in any of his five starts this season, and it's mostly been due to ineffective pitching, as evidenced by his 6.75 ERA, 1.58 WHIP and 25:9 K:BB over 24 innings. The 30-year-old is projected for a road start versus the Yankees next week.

Mikolas allowed three runs on six hits and no walks while striking out two batters over seven innings in a no-decision against the Dodgers on Saturday.

Mikolas dominated Los Angeles in the first five frames, allowing just three hits and no runs. The Dodgers finally got to him when J.D. Martinez hit a game-tying three-run homer in the sixth, but Mikolas bounced back to retire the final six batters he faced. Though he had to settle for a no-decision, this was the right-hander's longest outing of the campaign and his third quality start. He's given up three or fewer runs in each of his seven starts since April 16, posting a 2.90 ERA over 40.1 innings during that span.

Sale (4-2) earned the win Saturday over the Padres, allowing two runs on three hits and a walk while striking out eight over seven innings.

Sale put in his fourth straight quality start, and the three hits allowed matched his season low. Two of those hits were home runs, but they were solo shots by Juan Soto and Fernando Tatis. Just nine starts into 2023, Sale has already covered more innings (50.1) than he did in the three previous years combined (48.1). He's starting to look more like his past self, as Saturday's outing lowered his season ERA to 5.01 with a 1.17 WHIP and 62:13 K:BB. He'll look to keep rolling in a projected road start versus Arizona next week.

Brito did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing four runs on four hits and four walks over four innings against the Reds. He struck out six.

Brito narrowly avoided a disastrous third inning, walking three straight batters to load the bases with two outs, but he managed to allow just one run to score in the inning. However, the Reds got their revenge, with Luke Maile tagging Brito for a two-run home run that brought Jose Barrero in to score. After finishing each of his last three appearances with three or fewer strikeouts, Brito finally found his strikeout stuff, fanning six over four innings to tie his season high in punchouts. With Luis Severino (lat) expected to make his debut Sunday, Brito may be headed toward a demotion considering his 5:3 K/BB and 5.58 ERA likely won't be enough to warrant keeping him on the big league roster.

Sears allowed two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out seven batters over six innings in a no-decision against Houston on Saturday.

Sears' outing got off to a rough start when he allowed two first-inning runs, but he rebounded from there and held Houston scoreless for the following five frames. The southpaw finished with his third quality start of the campaign and didn't allow any homers for just the second time this season. Sears posted an uninspiring 6.23 ERA over five starts in April, but he's been much better in May, recording a 3.57 ERA through four starts. Though he's yet to record a win this season, Sears is beginning to pick up steam as a fantasy option in deeper leagues, with his 9.4 K/9 being particularly enticing.

Lauer (4-5) took the loss Saturday, allowing six runs on six hits and two walks over three innings against Tampa Bay. He struck out two.

Lauer had troubles with the long ball Saturday, giving up homers to Harold Ramirez in the first, Yandy Diaz in the second and Christian Bethancourt in the fourth to tie his season high in runs allowed. Saturday's outing also marked Lauer's third straight appearance giving up multiple home runs while being the first time all season he struck out less than four batters. Though Lauer struggled with one of the top offenses in baseball, he should have a much easier time in his next projected start when he takes on the Giants, who strike out 9.6 times per game.

Brown tossed six innings against Oakland on Saturday, allowing two runs (one earned) on five hits and no walks. He struck out nine and did not factor in the decision.

Brown gave up just one extra-base hit in the outing and demonstrated excellent control, throwing 62 of 97 pitches for a strike and issuing no free passes for the first time this season. The rookie also racked up 15 whiffs while setting a season high with nine punchouts. This was one of his finest outings of the campaign, but he had to settle for a no-decision since Houston's offense managed only two runs while he was in the game. Brown how holds a solid 3.20 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 56:17 K:BB over 50.2 innings on the campaign. His next start is tentatively lined up to be a rematch with the Athletics in Oakland.

Eflin (6-1) earned the win Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits over seven innings against Milwaukee. He struck out eight.

Outside of a pair of homers dished out to Owen Miller and Brian Anderson, Eflin was exceptional Saturday, fanning eight and pitching into the seventh frame for just the second time in 2023. Though the 29-year-old has had troubles with the long ball (1.5 HR/9), he has made up for it with strong strikeout numbers (9.96 K/9) while earning six wins, which is the second-most in MLB. Eflin is in line to face one of MLB's most powerful offenses in his next start, taking on the Blue Jays at Tropicana Field.

Gilbert (2-2) allowed two runs on four hits and a walk while striking out nine over six innings to earn the win Saturday over Atlanta.

Gilbert had a tough first inning, in which he allowed a two-run home run to Matt Olson, but he was able to settle in after that. This was Gilbert's fifth quality start in nine outings this season, and it was the first time in his last four starts he's allowed a homer. The right-hander is now at a 3.81 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 63:10 K:BB through 52 innings. He's projected for a favorable home start versus the Athletics next week.

Pfaadt did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks over 5.1 innings against Pittsburgh. He struck out three.

Pfaadt made it through his fourth big league start relatively unscathed, with all three earned runs coming on one swing of the bat by Ke'Bryan Hayes, who drilled a bases-loaded triple in the third inning. After giving up 13 runs and six homers over his first two appearances (9.2 innings) Pfaadt has bounced back with four earned runs and one homer allowed over his last two starts (10.1 innings). After touting 218 strikeouts in 167 innings of minor-league ball in 2022, fantasy managers who took a shot on the highly ranked prospect have yet to reap any real benefits in that department considering Pfaadt's measly 14:8 K/BB and 7.56 ERA through 20 innings of big league work. Though it's unclear if Pfaadt will make another trip around the Arizona rotation, he remains no more than a dart-throw streaming option for those willing to take another chance on the rookie's strikeout upside and prospect pedigree.