MLB Player News

Alvarado struck out one in a perfect ninth inning Saturday to record his third save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Cardinals.

The lefty continued his dominant start to the season. Alvarado has only been scored upon in one of his seven appearances so far, racking up two wins and a hold in addition to his saves along with a 1.23 ERA and 13:2 K:BB through 7.1 innings. While the Phillies' bullpen has a long history of volatility, Alvarado is the team's clear top high-leverage option right now.

Sanchez (1-0) picked up the win Saturday, allowing one run on eight hits and two walks over 6.1 innings in a 4-1 victory over the Cardinals. He struck out three.

The southpaw took a shutout into the sixth inning before Luken Baker rapped a one-out double -- the only extra-base hit off Sanchez on the afternoon -- and was brought home by a Willson Contreras single. Sanchez still walked away with his first win and first quality start of the season, having tossed 64 of 95 pitches for strikes. He'll look to keep rolling in his next outing, which lines up to come at home next week against the Giants.

De La Cruz went 1-for-4 with a grand slam in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Pirates.

De La Cruz put the Reds in front for good in the third inning with his two-out grand slam off Andrew Heaney on a 3-2 pitch. It's the third home run of the year for De La Cruz, his first since he homered twice against the Rangers on March 31. Overall, the shortstop is slashing .237/.286/.441 with 16 RBI, 10 runs scored and three stolen bases through his first 15 games this season.

Heaney (0-1) took the loss Saturday against the Reds, allowing four runs on three hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out six.

All of the damage against Heaney came in the fourth inning Saturday. The left-hander would hit back-to-back batters with two outs before Elly De La Cruz launched a grand slam on a 3-2 pitch. While Heaney would turn in a solid outing otherwise, the Pirates couldn't overcome the early 4-0 deficit, sticking him with his first loss. The 33-year-old Heaney now has a 3.00 ERA with a 0.89 WHIP and 18:4 K:BB through his first three starts (18 innings) with Pittsburgh. He'll look to get in the win column in his next outing, currently lined up for next week against Washington.

Bell went 1-for-4 with a two-run single in Saturday's 7-6 loss to Miami.

Bell tied things up in the third inning, when his single to left field brought Keibert Ruiz and James Wood across home plate. Bell has gone 3-for-11 with three walks, three runs scored, one home run and five RBI across his last three starts.

Williams (1-1) came away with the loss against the Marlins on Saturday. He gave up six runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out two across 4.2 innings.

After getting through the first inning, Williams gave up the first run of the game in the second on a Matt Mervis solo home run to right field. Williams proceeded to give up two runs in the third inning (one of which came on a wild pitch), and after being replaced by Colin Poche in the fifth, he was tagged with two more runs on a Griffin Conine double. Williams generated only five whiffs on 81 pitches (49 strikes), but Saturday marked only the second time since the start of the 2024 regular season that he failed to complete five innings. He'll look to bounce back in his next start, which is tentatively slated for next week on the road against the Pirates.

Pagan turned in a perfect ninth inning to earn the save in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Pirates.

Pagan now has saves in back-to-back days as he's established himself as the Reds' preferred ninth-inning option in the absence of Alexis Diaz (hamstring). The 33-year-old Pagan is now 4-for-4 in save chances while allowing two runs (one earned) on two hits through 7.1 innings to start the year.

Abbott (1-0) earned the win Saturday over the Pirates, allowing one run on two hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out five.

A rotator cuff strain delayed the start of Abbott's season, though the left-hander certainly appeared healthy Saturday, turning in a stellar effort against Pittsburgh. He held the Pirates to a lone single through four innings before Alexander Canario led off the fifth with a home run, the lone blemish on Abbott's line. The 25-year-old Abbott went 10-10 last season with a 3.72 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 114:52 K:BB across 138 innings. He's currently slated to face the Orioles on the road in his next start.

Stowers went 2-for-3 with one run scored and two RBI in Saturday's 7-6 win over the Nationals.

Stowers drove in his first run on a sacrifice fly in the third inning, and he knocked in what ended up being the game-winning run in the sixth with a double to center field that brought home Xavier Edwards. Stowers has gone 4-for-8 with two doubles, one triple and four RBI in the first two games of the series.

Mervis went 1-for-3 with one walk and a solo home run in Saturday's 7-6 win over the Nationals.

Mervis opened the scoring in the second inning when he took Trevor Williams deep to right field for a solo home run. Mervis has smacked homers in back-to-back games, and the 28-year-old first baseman is slashing .281/.333/.656 with five runs scored, four home runs and eight RBI across 36 plate appearances, though he's also struck out 14 times.