MLB Player News

David Robertson started the ninth with the Rays leading 6-2, but he allowed a two-run homer to Marcus Semien, and Jt Chargois loaded the bases. Inns was tasked with the cleaning up the mess, and he struck out Breyvic Valera to end the contest. It’s the second save of the year for Inns, and it’s possibly (probably) the last.

The Mariners’ closer has been pitching through the strain since the second game of the season, which may explain why he has had some “off nights” during the 2024 season. However, he has also pitched to a 1.73 ERA with 36 strikeouts in 26 innings, so it hasn’t been impacting him too much. “I’ve been here before,” said Munoz. “I’ve felt like this before, so I know we can manage that and be ready to go. ... I am 100% [with] this team.”

Hyde was quick to say that “there are no health concerns for Kyle Bradish,” but the decision was “just about giving him extra rest.” The right-hander was hit hard in his last start against the Rays last week but has a strong 3.18 ERA in 28 1/3 innings since coming back from an elbow injury. There is no word yet on when Bradish will pitch, but if the Orioles decide to have him skip the entire series then he would face the Braves next week.

The 26-year-old was acquired from the Red Sox in the offseason from the Mariners but posted a 12.79 ERA, 2.05 WHIP, and a 5/2 K/BB ratio over 6 1/3 innings before landing on the IL with right shoulder impingement. The right-hander did have a 2.83 ERA in 28 2/3 innings for the Mariners as a rookie last season, so he could be an important addition to the Red Sox bullpen if he can recapture that form in the minors while recovering from his injury.

Soderstrom will hit seventh and play first base with J.D. Davis taking a seat. With Davis hitting just .229 on the year, there’s been a chance for the 22-year-old Soderstrom to carve out more playing time. Unfortunately, he’s not hitting well himself, slashing .174/.309/.304 with a 42 percent strikeout rate. Fantasy managers in deep leagues can keep an eye on Sodestrom to see if he can pick it up and earn more at-bats, but he’s not rosterable in leagues right now.

Davis was a trendy fantasy sleeper in the spring but he had a really rough start to the season, hitting .162/.280/.206 slash line with zero homers, four RBI, zero stolen bases, and a 29/11 K/BB ratio over 83 plate appearances. According to Stumpf, the first thing Davis did after was go “to the fastball machine and turned it up as high as it could go. For three days before his assignment to Indianapolis started Davis swung there.” The idea was to combat Davis’ self-described issue with over-thinking in the batter’s box. “People talk about how the speed of the game speeds up, but the second I did that without thinking about anything, it went back to what I’ve done my whole life, my whole career.” Davis performed well in Triple-A, hitting .296 with seven home runs and a 1.078 OPS over 101 plate appearances, and will hope to carry it over into his current big league stint.

Gleeman notes that the Twins wanted Varland to increase his changeup usage, and” he’s thrown it nearly three times as often for the Saints,” up to 23 percent overall. The pitch has been “encouraging” to the organization, and they’ve also been “working with Varland to tweak his cutter in search of more movement.” Varland has a 4.30 ERA and 39-to-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 37 2/3 innings since being demoted, but Gleeman notes that much of the damage against Varland has been on the pitches he’s currently working to develop, which is understandable since pitch mix changes don’t often happen quickly. While these modifications may not have a major impact for Varland’s fantasy value this season, they’re certainly positive developments.

Gleeman notes that Willi Castro is perfectly suitable as the team’s starting second baseman now that Edouard Julien has been sent to the minors, but the veteran is mostly just a “decent placeholder” and fits best in a super-utility role. While it’s possible that Julien hits well enough in Triple-A to force his way back into the lineup, Gleeman believes that Lee could force the Twins’ hand if he hits well enough in the coming weeks. The 23-year-old was a top-50 prospect and viewed as Major League-ready coming into the season, but missed the past three months with a herniated disk in his back. If he proves healthy and effective, we could see him in Minnesota within the next month.

Springer started the season as the lead-off hitter and was moved down as far as eighth in the order as he struggled to start the year. The veteran is now 11-for-40 (.275) over his last 12 games with two home runs, five RBI, and ten runs scored. There were no major red flags in his profile at the start of the season, so it seems likely that Springer can work his way back up to the top of the lineup. At 34 years old, he may be in the downward stage of his career, but he should retain enough value to be rostered in all formats.

This is now the third straight start for Schneemann since being called from up Triple-A and it will be the third different position he has started at. The 27-year-old was hitting .294/.428/.556 with 10 home runs and four stolen bases at Triple-A and seems to be occupying a super-utility role in Cleveland that could enable him to start at least four times per week. That could give him value in deeper formats.

It’s just a routine day off for the 25-year-old who continues to start regularly in center field for the Guardians. Freeman has moved back down in the lineup with both Stevan Kwan and Andres Gimenez back, which will hurt his counting stats, but he does have five home runs and eight steals on the year, so he remains valuable in deeper formats.