MLB Player News

Taillon (4-3) earned the win against the Mets on Saturday, allowing one run on six hits and no walks with 10 strikeouts over seven innings.

Taillon was excellent Saturday, with a solo home run by Francisco Alvarez in the fifth inning being his only blemish. He generated an impressive 15 swinging strikes on 93 pitches and notched a season-high 10 punchouts. Taillon has logged three consecutive quality starts and now owns a 2.90 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 53:16 K:BB over 68.1 innings this season. The 32-year-old lines up for a start against the Giants next week.

Megill (2-4) took the loss against the Cubs on Saturday, allowing six runs on five hits and three walks with six strikeouts over three innings.

Megill allowed six baserunners and five runs in a disastrous 38-pitch first inning. He managed six strikeouts over the next two frames but also surrendered a solo home run to Christopher Morel and was replaced to open the fourth at 78 pitches. The outing was Megill's worst of the season, and he has now yielded 15 earned runs over 17.2 innings in four June starts. He owns a 4.81 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 43:16 K:BB through 33.2 innings in 2024 and tentatively lines up to face the Astros next week.

Suzuki went 2-for-4 with an RBI, a run scored and a stolen base in Saturday's 8-1 win over the Mets.

Suzuki opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first inning and then stole second and scored in the same frame. He later added a double in the fifth. Suzuki is slashing .292/.395/.523 with seven multi-hit efforts in 65 June at-bats. The 29-year-old is contributing a bit of everything this season, slashing .269/.347/.461 with eight home runs, 28 RBI, 27 runs scored and seven steals through 197 at-bats.

Morel went 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored in Saturday's 8-1 win over the Mets.

Morel hit an RBI single in the first inning and crushed a 446-foot solo home run in the third. Morel's .209 average so far in June is actually his highest in any month this season, and the homer was his fourth in 19 June games. The 24-year-old is batting just .202 to date but does have 14 home runs and 43 RBI over 267 at-bats in 2024.

Alvarez went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in Saturday's 8-1 loss to the Cubs.

Alvarez's solo home run off Jameson Taillon in the fifth inning was the only run the Mets could muster Saturday. He later added a double in the seventh frame and walked in the ninth. Alvarez has homered on back-to-back days and has gone 10-for-19 with two long balls and six RBI over his past five contests. The young catcher is hitting .284 with three home runs and 16 RBI in 88 at-bats this season.

Howard was charged with three runs (two earned) on four hits and one walk over one inning of relief in Wednesday's 6-5 loss to the Cubs. He recorded three strikeouts.

After making both of his previous two appearances as a starter, Howard was deployed out of the bullpen behind opening pitcher Erik Miller. Miller left the game after pitching the first inning, then Spencer Bivens, Sean Hjelle and Taylor Rogers worked innings two through six before Howard entered the game in the top of the seventh. Though he worked just one frame, Howard tossed 33 pitches and should remain fairly stretched out if the Giants need to turn to him for a start or a bulk-relief appearance during the team's four-game series against the Cubs to begin the upcoming week. The Giants currently have just two healthy full-time starters (Logan Webb and Jordan Hicks).

Stephenson (undisclosed) fouled out in his only plate appearance during Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Red Sox.

Stephenson has been dealing with an undisclosed injury, but he was called upon to pinch hit for Luke Maile on Saturday. While Stephenson wasn't well enough to start the contest, it's certainly encouraging that he was able to take an at-bat.

Marlins manager Skip Schumaker said that Luzardo, who was placed on the 15-day injured list earlier Saturday with a lumbar stress reaction, will likely be out for 4-to-6 weeks, the Associated Press reports.

Luzardo's back issue cropped up during his previous start last Sunday in Washington, but he had been on track to start Saturday's game against the Mariners until the Marlins scratched him a day in advance. He was moved to the IL a day later, with Schumaker confirming prior to Saturday's contest that the southpaw will be sidelined through at least the All-Star break with the injury. With the Marlins shaping up as non-contenders this season, Luzardo had been a sought-after name on the trade market, but his uncertain health could limit other teams' interest leading up to the July 30 deadline. Luzardo owns a 5.00 ERA over 12 starts on the season, but he had shown improved form since late April with a 3.86 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 37:12 K:BB across 46.2 innings over his last eight outings.

Kershaw (shoulder) reported soreness during Saturday's bullpen session and could have his rehab outing scheduled for Tuesday pushed back, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Kershaw completed three innings in a rehab outing at Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on Wednesday and was expected to jump up to Triple-A Oklahoma City for Tuesday's outing. However, he may need more time between rehab appearances after feeling soreness in his shoulder during a bullpen session Saturday. Even if Kershaw does have to push back his next outing, he wasn't expected back until near the All-Star break regardless.

Bednar was unavailable for Saturday's 4-3 win over the Rays due to left side tightness, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Bednar missed out on a save chance Saturday as Aroldis Chapman stepped up in the ninth to close out the win. Bednar's absence was planned after he felt the tightness during his pregame throwing program, but the injury isn't considered to be serious at this point. If he ends up missing more than just Saturday's game, expect Chapman to continue to see save chances.