MLB Player News

Helton is out of the lineup for the sixth straight game Monday, but similar to his teammate Troy Tulowitzki, he is getting closer to returning. Jordan Pacheco will make another start at first base Monday against the Padres.

It’s not hyperbolic to suggest that Snelling doesn’t have much left to prove in the minors after recording a stellar 1.86 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and 44/15 K/BB ratio across 29 innings over six starts this season. The 22-year-old southpaw has notched at least nine strikeouts in three of his last four starts and showed improved command in this latest outing after handing out five free passes in his previous start. Snelling is worthy of a speculative roster spot in deeper fantasy leagues on the chance that Miami finally decides he’s ready to take the ball in the majors.

Anderson continues to rapidly cement his status as one of the top fantasy pitching prospects in the game with a microscopic 0.37 ERA and 38/4 K/BB ratio across 24 1/3 innings over five starts in his professional debut. The 21-year-old southpaw, who was the third-overall selection in last year’s MLB Draft, is on track to potentially join Seattle’s rotation by the end of the season and offers enough strikeout upside to envision an instant fantasy impact. He’ll likely spent some time at Triple-A Tacoma before reaching the majors, but it’s a realistic possibility that he reaches T-Mobile Park this summer.

Hernandez generated 19 swinging strikes and tallied nine strikeouts for the second consecutive start. He wasn’t completely untouchable in this one as he surrendered six hits, including a pair of solo homers, while throwing 47 of 70 pitches for strikes. The 19-year-old prodigy, who was selected sixth overall in last year’s MLB Draft, holds a sparkling 1.23 ERA, 0.73 WHIP and 41/6 K/BB ratio across 22 innings this season. He’s still a couple hyperspace jumps away from potentially joining Paul Skenes atop Pittsburgh’s rotation, but he’s clearly one of the top fantasy pitching prospects in the game already.

Hoskins is a part-time player right now, but with Kyle Manzardo off to the kind of start that demands a demotion to Triple-A, it’s quite possible he’ll be a full-timer at some point. His .219/.367/.384 line isn’t all that great, but that .751 OPS is 250 points higher than Manzardo’s .498 mark.

Cantillo gave up two runs in the first and two in the fourth prior to his early exit after 69 pitches. It’s the first time this season that he’s given up four earned runs. Cantillo still has a nice 3.67 ERA, but because of his inability to work deep into games, he’s stuck on one win, even though the Guardians, who prevailed tonight, are 5-2 in his starts. It a big problem in terms of amassing fantasy value, but he still rates as a pretty good play against the Royals next week.

Smith was asked to get four outs for the first time this season and did so without incident. He’ll probably be available to close again Saturday after throwing 22 pitches tonight.

Ginn left his last start with a stinger in his shoulder. He pitched on four days’ rest tonight anyway, but his velocity was down some and he just didn’t impress with his control or stuff. This leaves him with a 4.30 ERA in five starts and three relief appearances on the season. He’s slated to face the Phillies on Thursday, but we wouldn’t be too surprised if the A’s tried someone else.

DeLauter’s first four-hit game extended his hitting streak to six games. He hit a rough patch in the middle of last month, but he’s back up to .286/.372/.524 now, and he leads the Guardians with 20 RBI.

If the A’s had it to do over again, they probably would have sent Rooker on a brief rehab assignment before activating him from the IL, but it looks like he’s fine now after going 0-for-13 in his first three games back from an oblique strain. Besides the two hits, he had a 104-mph groundout and a 97-mph lineout tonight.

Pasquantino’s bat speed numbers are still well down from the last two years, but he managed to hit a couple of balls 107 mph tonight, including one that turned into a 404-foot homer. They were his third and fourth hardest-hit balls of the year. His high this year is 108.1 mph, which would have checked in as his 31st highest last year. He topped out at 114.4 mph then. He’s currently batting .176/.279/.352 with four homers in 129 plate appearances.