MLB Player News

Falter was destroyed by the Reds on Saturday, allowing eight runs on nine hits but came away with a no-decision after the Reds’ bullpen imploded in the game’s final frames. The injury effectively ends his season, and he’ll head into the winter with a 5.36 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, and 60/20 K/BB ratio over 80 2/3 innings.

He will head to New York for the team’s home opener to meet with trainers and decide when he will throw his next side session. The 33-year-old is coming back from offseason surgery to remove bone spurs from his elbow, but his recovery has now been delayed due to hamstring tightness.

Baldwin got things going with a two-RBI single in the second inning and then followed that up with a 107.4 mph double that drove in two more in the fourth. His day could have been even bigger if it weren’t for Denzel Clarke. Baldwin crushed a 102.8 mph ball to dead center field in the seventh inning that would have been a home run if Clarke hadn’t scaled the wall to pull it back. So far, Baldwin is more than following up on his impressive rookie season.

Consider him day-to-day. Derek Hill took over in right field. Pereira struck out in both of his at-bats before departing.

Langeliers now have five home runs and eight RBIs in the first six games of the season. As Sarah Langs pointed out, those five home runs tied Gabby Harnett from 1925 as the most home runs for a primary catcher in his team’s first six games. It’s been an unreal start to the season for Langeliers, and he still has yet to play a home game in his hitter-friendly park in Sacramento.

The right-hander threw only 53 percent of his pitches for strikes and walked five on the day. He did produce 15 whiffs and a 17 percent swinging strike rate, which led to seven strikeouts, but he was behind in counts far too often. It’s nice that his velocity is up this season, and his cutter and four-seamer do look more impactful as whiff pitches this year; however, his hitter-friendly home park and poor command will make him just a deeper league streamer when he’s on the road.

Sale didn’t miss many bats today with just nine whiffs and an 11 percent swinging strike rate, but he threw 72 percent strikes and didn’t allow much hard contact. Against a right-handed heavy lineup, Sale’s slider didn’t induce as many whiffs as it might normally, but he pounded the zone with it and used his changeup effectively as well. He will look to produce another strong start against the Angels next week.

After sitting two straight games against left-handed starters, Raley will be back in the starting lineup today. The bad news is that he’s facing Cam Schlittler and then will likely sit again on Friday when the Mariners face left-hander Reid Detmers. Raley will have some value in fantasy leagues, but you need to be in a format where it’s easy to bench him when the Mariners face a lot of lefties.

McMahon is off to a rough start to the season, going 1-for-14 with seven strikeouts and two walks. McMahon also had a poor season last year, but had spent the offseason working on tweaking his stance and swing mechanics. So far, it has not worked. The Yankees will keep him in the lineup regularly because he plays good defense, but you have to wonder if Jose Caballero plays more third base once Anthony Volpe returns. Amed Rosario will start at third base on Wednesday and hit seventh.

You know the Diamondbacks were going to get the 22-year-old into the lineup after he went 3-for-4 with two homers and four RBI in his MLB debut on Tuesday. Fernandez is likely to be a popular name on waiver wires, and we understand it since he has elite bat speed, plus raw power, and high-end speed. However, he also only has one game played above Double-A and was struggling to assert himself as a prospect in the Diamondbacks organization until taking a step forward last year. He could absolutely be continuing his ascent and making good on plus raw tools, but he could also emerge as an inconsistent young player who finds himself back in Triple-A. You can take the risk on waivers based on his upside, but maybe save some of your FAAB dollars.

Hader has been throwing bullpens but his initial goal was to face hitters in mid-April. He still seems to be on track for that, which likely means he would not return to the Astros until May. With Bryan Abreu struggling with his velocity in his early appearances, the Astros may need to find a solution to the ninth inning for the next month.