MLB Player News

Wall-timore no more? The Orioles famously — or possibly infamously — made changes to left field before the 2023 season, and it’s obviously created a more difficult hitting park; particularly for right-handed hitters. Elias told reporters the wall will be moved in between 9 and 20 feet after the team “overcorrected” in it’s initial move. This is a boost to several hitters in the Baltimore lineup like Adley Rutschman and Ryan Mountcastle, but maybe a bit of a hit on some of the pitchers. Long live Wall-timore.

Congratulations to the Herget household. Herget has a 1.50 ERA in 11 appearances for the Rockies thus far this year, with 11 strikeouts and just two walks. He’ll be back shortly, we assume.

Matt Shaw is getting some run in center field for the Cubbies against LHP Cristopher Sánchez. Crow-Armstrong’s power has been missing for most of April, as he’s hitting .247/.300/.333 with just one homer and five stolen bases in the early season. Worse, the Cubs have hit him eighth or ninth in his last nine starts. Crow-Armstrong had a volatile profile coming into this year and so far he’s hitting the lower end of his outcomes.

Felix Reyes, who has now hit cleanup three days in a row, is getting a start while García rests. Garcia has been a disappointment thus far, with a negative baseball-reference WAR as he hits .212/.299/.329 with two homers and one steal in his first 24 games. Reyes is at .273/.273/.545 in his first 11 plate appearances as a professional.

This is all about getting a fresh arm in the bullpen. Rangel threw three innings on Wednesday, allowing one run on three hits. The Phillies will get a fresh arm up in their bullpen for the weekend, but Rangel should be back up later this season.

Hoffman has posted a 2.35 ERA and 14/4 K/BB ratio in 7 2/3 innings at Triple-A. He made his MLB debut last season, allowing three runs on three hits in one inning of work. The 28-year-old has missed plenty of bats at the minor league level, so the Phillies hope that will carry over.

Walker was serviceable for the Phillies last season, posting a 4.08 ERA in 123 2/3 innings, but he had a 9.13 ERA in 22 2/3 innings this year. He has not posted a strikeout rate over 16 percent since 2023, so this move is not entirely surprising. With Zack Wheeler (shoulder) coming off the injured list on Saturday, he will slide into Walker’s spot in the rotation.

Keith was out of the lineup on Wednesday despite the Brewers clearly using an opener. He was then brought in as a pinch hitter and went 2-for-3 with an RBI. The Tigers’ desire to platoon him so strictly is a major headache for fantasy managers, as is the fact that he has six RBI in 22 games despite slashing .324/.351/.423. We understand if you don’t want to hold on in fantasy leagues.

Yates threw 11 of his 16 pitches for strikes, but both of the hits off of him were hard hits. He was also sitting 90.2 mph on his four-seam fastball, which is 2.6 mph down from where he was last season. It’s still early in his rehab, but he may need a few more outings to get back to a place where we can consider using him in fantasy leagues.

Since being traded to Baltimore, Encarnacion-Strand has gone 8-for-24 (.333) with two home runs, four RBI, and an 8/3 K/BB ratio in six games. He’s just 26 years old and still has big-time power, so there is a chance he can figure this out in a new organization.

Smith’s command was a real issue here, throwing just 30 of his 62 pitches for strikes. He also sat 95.2 mph on his four-seam fastball and was down to 93.3 mph in the third inning. His slider was also over three mph slower by the third inning. Perhaps he was just struggling to get loose today, but this was a rough performance from the fifth overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft.