MLB Player News

Rutschman will sit out his second consecutive contest due to left abdominal tightness with Gary Sánchez handling the catching duties on Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium against his former club. The 27-year-old backstop was scratched from Friday’s lineup out of an abundance of caution with Orioles interim manager Tony Mansolino telling reporters that he’ll undergo an MRI this weekend to determine the severity of the issue. Mansolino added that top prospect Samuel Basallo, who has been tearing the cover off the ball for Triple-A Norfolk recently, has not been discussed as a potential replacement if Rutschman misses time. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day heading into Sunday’s series finale while preparing for the possibility that he’ll require a trip to the injured list.

The 31-year-old southpaw struck out four batters on the night while issuing two free passes. The Royals scratched out a run against him in the opening inning, then Kay blanked them until the seventh where he exited after allowing a leadoff triple to Kyle Isbel. Kay got 10 whiffs on 97 offerings on the night, posting a CSW of 27 percent. Now 3-1 on the season, he’ll carry a 4.61 ERA, 1.54 WHIP and a 29/19 K/BB ratio (41 innings) into Tuesday’s matchup against the Mariners in Seattle. He remains nothing more than a fringe streaming option in deeper mixed leagues.

Perez smacked a two-out single off of Anthony Kay in the third inning but never advanced beyond first base. He also led off the eighth inning with a single off of Sean Newcomb but the Royals couldn’t cash him in. The 36-year-old backstop has picked it up a bit offensively following a miserable start to the season and is now slashing .200/.239/.339 with six long balls and 18 RBI in 176 plate appearances on the season.

The 28-year-old left-hander also walked three batters in the contest while striking out four. Randal Grichuk did most of the damage against him, smacking a two-run homer in the opening inning and adding a two-run single in the third. Bubic got six swings and misses on 84 pitches on the night, registering a miserable CSW of only 18 percent. He’ll look to bounce back as he lugs a 4.11 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and a 51/26 K/BB ratio (50 1/3 innings) into Tuesday’s tilt against the Red Sox.

Happ started the sixth inning by working Chris Sale for a seven-pitch walk. He then advanced to second on a fielder’s choice and took third on an error before scoring the game’s first run on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Matt Shaw. He then provided a massive insurance run with a 424-foot (107.6 mph EV) solo shot off of Reynaldo Lopez in the eighth inning. For the season, the 31-year-old slugger is now hitting .234/.376/.481 with 10 homers, 19 RBI and a pair of stolen bases through his first 189 plate appearances.

With both Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts resting, Smith made his first ever start as a leadoff hitter and wasted no time in putting the Dodgers on the board against Landon Roupp. It was technically his second homer as a leadoff man. He’d come off the bench to occupy that spot twice previously, and one of those two at-bats produced a walkoff three-run homer against the Rockies’ Scott Oberg on June 23, 2019. Smith has yet to get hot at any point this season, but he surely will. He’s currently hitting .258/.329/.379 with four homers through 140 plate appearances.

The two runs came on a fluky inside-the-park homer from Jung Hoo Lee. That Sheehan racked up 19 whiffs and allowed just two hard-hit balls tonight makes this easily his second most impressive performance of 2026, behind only his 10-strikeout game against the Cubs. It’s still an issue that he just can’t maintain his best velocity for more than an inning or two, but as long as the Dodgers keep starting him, he’ll probably be worth using in mixed leagues. He’ll make his next start Wednesday versus the Padres.

Scott lowered his ERA to 1.47 ERA while picking up his fourth save in four tries. He’s walked just two of the 65 batters he’s faced this year, giving up a three percent walk rate that is just one quarter of his career mark of 12 percent. Scott did pitch Wednesday, too, so he might get Friday off. If so, Alex Vesia, who earned a hold tonight, could be the choice to close.

Roupp struck out seven and departed a 2-2 game in the sixth before both runners he left on base came around to score off Matt Gage, putting him in line for the loss. He’s 5-4 with a 3.49 ERA despite having struck out 58 and having allowed just two homers through 49 innings. He’ll pitch in Arizona next week.

Lee’s homer was a 73-mph fly down the left field line that landed just fair and then took an odd bounce off the side wall past a rather nonchalant Teoscar Hernández. It went as his third homer of the year. He’s batting .267/.313/.394 in 179 plate appearances. It’s not quite what the Giants were hoping for, but at least he’s been a league-average hitter and fielder after moving from center to right.

Palencia opened the inning by striking out Michael Harris II and Mauricio Dubon before allowing a two-out single to Austin Riley that brought the tying run to the dish. That’s where Palencia dug deep and got Dominic Smith on a line drive to center to end the threat. For the season, the 26-year-old hurler now boasts a 2.25 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and a 9/2 K/BB ratio over eight innings while converting each of his first three save opportunities.