Erceg was forced into action to clean up a ninth-inning mess after Bailey Falter allowed three runs and brought the tying run to the on-deck circle with one out, despite Kansas City entering the frame with a seven-run cushion. He retired Austin Martin before getting James Outman to ground out to end the contest. The hard-throwing 30-year-old will have some runway to establish himself as the Royals’ primary closing option with Carlos Estévez on the injured list with a foot contusion.

Williams authored a masterful performance in an extremely challenging road matchup against a Dodgers lineup that resembles a fully operational Death Star, scattering two hits and three walks over seven frames while recording double-digit strikeouts for the fifth time in his career. The 26-year-old former top pitching prospect, who posted a sparkling 2.18 ERA across 12 second half starts to close out last year, has looked like an upper-echelon fantasy starter so far, allowing three runs with a 16/9 K/BB ratio across 11 innings of work. He’ll face the Royals on Tuesday in a home matchup.

Roberts added that Justin Wrobleski will temporarily move into the rotation to build in some extra rest for everyone else. Ohtani simultaneously holds the longest active scoreless pitching streak (22 2/3 innings) and the longest active on-base streak (36 games) in baseball right now. The 31-year-old two-way superstar tossed six shutout innings on Tuesday against the Guardians while also reaching base safely three times. He’ll get a couple extra days of rest before taking the ball to close out a three-game rematch of last year’s thrilling Fall Classic.

Guardians manager Stephen Vogt told reporters that DeLauter was scheduled for a day off regardless before suffering a left foot contusion during Tuesday’s game at Dodger Stadium. The encouraging news for Cleveland, and fantasy managers, is that initial X-rays were negative for any fractures. The 24-year-old rookie sensation will be re-evaluated ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Cubs to determine whether additional time off is needed. He should be considered day-to-day for now. It’ll be Angel Martínez taking over in right field on Wednesday night in his absence.

Misiorowski left a fastball over the heart of the plate in the third inning, which Rays slugger Yandy Díaz sliced into the right-field seats for a two-run homer. The electrifying 23-year-old flamethrower didn’t make any other mistakes in this one, limiting Tampa Bay’s lineup to just four hits and a pair of walks over six strong frames. He touched triple digits 17 times and averaged an other-worldly 98.9 mph on his four-seam fastball in this one. He’s recorded a pristine 2.45 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 18/5 K/BB ratio across 11 innings over two starts to open his sophomore campaign. He’ll square off against the Red Sox at historic Fenway Park on Tuesday in his next outing.

The hope for the Royals, and fantasy managers, is that the reset enables Estévez to find the fastball velocity that’s been missing since the outset of spring training. The 33-year-old stopper, who recorded a career-high 42 saves last year, was torched for six runs while recording just one out in an ugly blown save last Saturday against the Braves. He was also struck by a comebacker during that disastrous outing, which led to Lucas Erceg handling closing duties in Sunday’s series finale. It remains unclear whether Estévez will reclaim the closing role once he’s ready to rejoin Kansas City’s high-leverage mix, which provides Erceg with an extended opportunity to establish himself as the club’s primary ninth-inning option.

Alcantara needed just 93 pitches to dispose of the White Sox. 69 of those were strikes, and he went without walking a batter, though he did hit Miguel Vargas. All three hits off him were singles, and the first was actually a bunt with two outs and none on in the second. Alcantara is now tied with Gerrit Cole, Sonny Gray, Shelby Miller and Max Scherzer for second on the active list for shutouts, four behind Justin Verlander. He’s alone in third with 13 complete games, trailing Verlander at 26 and Chris Sale at 16. Give Alcantara a ton of credit for just how efficient he was, but the results probably wouldn’t have been quite the same against a better offense. His stock is up a little with two scoreless victories to begin the year, but he always seemed likely to get off to a good start with the Rockies and White Sox on the schedule. He’ll face the Reds next week.

Skenes struck out five and walked two on the day; however, he threw just 66 percent of his pitches for strikes, which continues his Opening Day trend of just not being as sharp as we’re used to seeing him. He had 11 whiffs, including six on his four-seamer and three on his changeup, and a 26.2 percent whiff rate is nothing to turn your nose up at. Hopefully, his command can be more pristine next week against the Padres.

The 31-year-old left last night’s game in the fourth inning. As of now, we have no further information on the extent of the injury, and the Orioles are awaiting imaging results. However, fantasy managers should expect a long absence, which is a bummer for a pitcher who seemed primed to have a bounce-back season. Albert Suarez was called up to take Eflin’s place in the rotation.

Fernandez received his first call-up earlier this week with Pavin Smith (elbow) landing on the injured list. His first game could not have gone better. The 22-year-old knocked his first base hit in the second inning, then slugged his first career homer with a solo shot off Casey Mize in the fourth. With the team trailing by one run with two runners on in the eighth, he took Kenley Jansen deep for a three-run blast to put the Diamondbacks ahead. Two of his first three hits leaving the yard is certainly a way to start his career. It’s unknown how much playing time Fernandez stands to get, especially with Nolan Arenado and Geraldo Perdomo on the left side of Arizona’s infield, but you have to think two homers certainly earns him more looks in the DH mix.