MLB Player News

Is Paddack turning a corner? This was his first time pitching past the fifth inning this season and he hasn’t allowed more than three earned runs in a start since March when the White Sox of all teams put up a nine spot on him. It was almost a year to the day — May 19th of last season — since he last pitched into the eighth inning. He was untouchable early in this game facing the minimum through his first five innings with five strikeouts and only 43 pitches thrown. Everything looked tremendously easy for him. Also, his velocity was up across the board as his fastball sat 95 mph and touched 97 mph a handful of times. He’ll look to stay hot in his next scheduled start against the Orioles.

Acuña connected on a hanging slider from White Sox prospect Tyler Schweitzer and sent it over the center-field wall at scenic Coolray Field in Charlotte. He also walked four times in the contest, which might be just as impressive. The gargantuan moonshot was his second round-tripper in four games since kicking off a minor league rehab assignment earlier this week. The 27-year-old fantasy superstar remains without a firm return date, but he certainly looks comfortable at the dish right now. The bigger question is how much additional game action he’ll require to get back up to speed in right field following an extended layoff recovering from knee surgery. He figures to get in a couple additional contests before making his season debut at some point in late May.

Santander grabbed a bat in the ninth inning of Saturday’s contest and was intentionally walked before ensuing batter Ernie Clement came through with a game-winning single. The 30-year-old slugger has been held out of the lineup for two consecutive games due to left hip soreness. It’s possible he’ll sit out Sunday’s series finale in an effort to give him some additional rest, but it doesn’t sound like a massive concern given that he was feeling well enough to pinch-hit in a big spot during Saturday’s low-scoring affair.

Bader struck out twice in five at-bats during Saturday’s lopsided win over the Brewers after missing a pair of contests with groin tightness. He was the lone Minnesota starter to go hitless during the one-sided affair. It’s possible he would get some extra time off if the Twins weren’t dealing with an avalanche of injuries at the moment with both Carlos Correa and Byron Buxton on the concussion injured list in addition to Willi Castro dealing with knee issues.

It doesn’t come as a total surprise to see Cruz looking a bit rusty following a five-game absence due to lower back tightness. The electrifying 26-year-old talent may need a couple games to get back up to full speed, but there’s zero reason for fantasy managers to be concerned unless the back issues resurface.

Horwitz went hitless in a pair of at-bats before being lifted for pinch-hitter Alexander Canario in the seventh inning of his season debut. The 27-year-old missed the first seven weeks of the year recovering from right hand surgery. He’ll take over as Pittsburgh’s primary first baseman moving forward.

Yates was clearly uncomfortable while leaving with a trainer during Saturday’s relief appearance against the Angels. That’s bad news for the Dodgers, as manager Dave Roberts told reporters after the game that this will likely result in a stint on the injured list for the 38-year-old, who is headed for an MRI later this weekend to determine the severity. The Dodgers will likely make that roster decision Sunday, and it’s yet another injury loss to a Los Angeles pitching staff that has seen more than their fair share of them over the last two seasons.

O’Hoppe gave the Angels a 2-0 lead in the first with a two-run single off Clayton Kershaw. The biggest blow came in the seventh, however, as he hit a three-run homer to turn a 7-6 deficit into a 9-7 lead and gave O’Hoppe his 10th homer of the 2025 campaign. The 25-year-old’s .254 average and .289 on-base percentage don’t inspire, but the power is legitimate, and makes him a solid — if flawed — fantasy option.

Pages tied the game at 3-3 in the first inning with a roundtripper off Tyler Anderson in the first. He’s already up to nine homers on the season, and that hit along with a single now has him slashing .288/.341/.506. Pages was far from abhorrent in his rookie campaign with a .712 OPS over 403 at-bats, but to say he’s taken a big step forward as a 24-year-old is a massive understatement.

Lugo hit an RBI double in the first inning, and connected on a solo blast in the ninth. He’s gone deep three times in just seven appearances with the Angels, and .381/.409/1.000 slash. That’s not sustainable for anyone, and it’s especially not sustainable for Matthew Lugo. All that being said, he’s earned more playing time — or that should be the case, anyway — with his hot run.

The hits keep coming, and they don’t stop coming. That’s the second four-hit game of the month of May for Freeman, and his sixth multi-hit game of that timeframe. He scored twice in the contest, and while all four hits were singles, his .680 slugging percentage shows that there has been plenty of pop for Freeman in 2025 to go with his superb .375 average and .435 on-base percentage.