MLB Player News

Herz (1-1) earned the win against the Marlins on Saturday, allowing one hit and no walks while striking out 13 over six scoreless innings.

Herz was perfect other than a single by Jake Burger in the fifth and cruised to his first major-league win. In only his third career start, Herz registered a whopping 21 swinging strikes on 84 pitches. According to Sarah Langs of MLB.com, he is only the second pitcher in history to record 13 strikeouts and no walks in one of his first three career outings. Herz's minor-league 12.9 K/9 indicates he has real potential to rack up punchouts, and he now owns a 3.77 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 21 strikeouts in his 14.1 innings for the Nationals in 2024. He tentatively lines up to face the Rockies at Coors Field next week.

Happ went 2-for-3 with a walk and a three-run home run in Saturday's 5-1 win over the Cardinals.

The 29-year-old outfielder took John King deep in the seventh inning, Happ's first homer in June. The performance snapped a 1-for-24 slump over his prior seven games, and on the season he's slashing .218/.328/.376 over 65 contests with seven homers, five steals, 32 runs and 33 RBI.

Sosa went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a 6-2 loss to the Orioles on Saturday.

Sosa gave the Phillies an early 2-0 lead when he homered off Grayson Rodriguez in the second inning. Sosa hit .306 in May with three home runs, but he has gone just 8-for-37 with one long ball in June. According to Matt Gelb of The Athletic, Trea Turner's return from a hamstring injury is nearing, which means Sosa will likely return to a bench role in the coming days.

Imanaga (7-1) picked up the win in Saturday's 5-1 victory over the Cardinals, allowing one run on four hits over seven innings. He struck out six without walking a batter.

The 30-year-old rookie delivered his eighth quality start in his first 13 big-league outings on 103 pitches (69 strikes), with the only run against Imanaga coming after a leadoff double by Alec Burleson in the fourth inning. Imanaga will take a 1.89 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 78:11 K:BB through 76 innings into his next outing, which is scheduled to come at home next weekend against the Mets.

Walker dropped to 3-2 on the season in Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Orioles, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks with four strikeouts over 5.2 innings.

Walker was given an early 2-0 lead, but the Orioles chipped away with a sacrifice fly in the third inning and a solo home run by Anthony Santander in the fourth. Santander then broke the tie with a sacrifice fly in the sixth, and Walker was pulled with one out to go in the frame at 92 pitches. Walker has pitched into the sixth inning in his past two starts but has not recorded a quality start or a win since May 11. On the season, he now owns a 5.33 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 40:18 K:BB in 49 innings and tentatively lines up to start next weekend against the Diamondbacks.

Kelly (shoulder) is expected to be held out through the All-Star break, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports Saturday.

Manager Torey Lovullo noted that Kelly hasn't thrown beyond 75 feet yet and is being brought along slowly. The 35-year-old has been sidelined since late April and didn't start a throwing program until June 4. If he does end up sitting through the All-Star break, Kelly wouldn't be back until July 19 at the earliest.

Pallante (2-3) took the loss Saturday, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits over 3.1 innings as the Cardinals were downed 5-1 by the Cubs. He struck out four without walking a batter.

The right-hander didn't pitch badly, blanking Chicago through three innings, but Pallante got lifted after 59 pitches (40 strikes) with two runners on base in the fourth and had to watch Chris Roycroft let them both come around to score. Pallante has been effective in three of four outings since moving into the rotation, posting a 3.64 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 15:7 K:BB through 17.1 innings over that stretch. He lines up to make his next start at home next week against the Giants.

Padres manager Mike Shildt said Friday that Musgrove (elbow) is getting closer to picking up a ball and starting a throwing program, per MLB.com.

Musgrove was diagnosed with a bone spur in his right elbow in early June and consequently received PRP and cortisone injections. While Shildt said Friday that the veteran pitcher could resume throwing soon, he didn't give specifics on a timeline. Given that Musgrove dealt with a similar injury in May, the Padres are unlikely to rush him back, and he's probably at least a month away from a return.

Darvish (groin) threw a bullpen session Friday, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Darvish simulated three innings in the session, tossing 60 pitches. The veteran hurler said before throwing the bullpen that he expects the session to be sufficient ramp-up to allow him to return to the Padres' rotation without a rehab assignment. Per Acee, Darvish could start a game during San Diego's homestand against Milwaukee that begins next Thursday.

Montero will play first base and bat cleanup Saturday against Pittsburgh, Patrick Lyons of JustBaseball.com reports.

Brenton Doyle (knee) was scratched from the lineup Saturday, and as a result Jake Cave will move to center field as Michael Toglia moves to right, opening up first base for Montero. Montero has just two hits in his last 23 at-bats and owns a .546 OPS on the year.