MLB Player News

Mancini will head out to the open market and attempt to latch on elsewhere after putting up some astronomical numbers this season at Triple-A Reno in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, hitting .308/.373/.522 with 16 homers in 335 plate appearances over 75 games. The 33-year-old hasn’t appeared in the big leagues since the 2023 campaign, but there might be a team out there willing to roll the dice.

In a game that got hectic late, Imanaga made easy work of the Phillies lineup while he was out there. After walking Trea Turner to start the game, he retired 21 of the final 25 batters he faced. Of the four who reached base, one came via an error and another from an infield hit. He wasn’t even missing many bats, just forcing a combination of lazy fly balls and ground outs. Yet, it felt like this was more a function of the Phillies’ failed approach than Imanaga’s prowess. He constantly fell behind in the count, only throwing a first pitch strike to 11 of the 26 batters he faced. They just couldn’t wait to swing at a bad pitch. Alas, another strong start gives Imanaga a stellar 2.17 ERA on the season so far in what’s been a strong bounceback campaign. He’s lined up to face the Dodgers this Sunday.

Thielbar entered the game to chaos after Jacob Webb let the tying run reach the plate in the ninth inning. An error by Scott Kingery didn’t help, but Thielbar had to face lefty-masher Edmundo Sosa and then Trea Turner with the same in the balance and did so with ease. Since Daniel Palencia was surprisingly placed on the injured list late last week, Thielbar has two saves and a win in his only three appearances as the undisputed closer in Chicago.

Who is this power hitter? Hoerner now has four home runs in 23 games this season after hitting just seven across 156 games last season. He’s also over a third of the way to last year’s RBI total with 22 in nearly four weeks of play. There’s nothing super discernible in his profile that says this power surge will continue, so enjoy it while it lasts for one of the game’s best second basemen.

What is there to even say at this point? Bohm’s .128 batting average through 22 games is the lowest among all qualified players. Similarly, his .384 OPS is the lowest among all qualified players. In fact, per Todd Zolecki, that .384 OPS across 22 games is the lowest by a Phillie in the live ball era, which began in 1920. Bohm has some off the field stuff that could be affecting his play at the moment, but he is currently the worst hitter in the league and seems closer to the bench than he is to digging himself out of this hole.

This was another poor showing by Luzardo who really needs to find his way back to form. Only allowing the one run is a massive step in the right direction, but his command is not where it should be. Too often he missed glove-side with his fastball and continued to fall behind the Cubs’ hitters. Then, when he managed to get ahead, his changeup floated away and his sweeper missed by too much. His 6.91 ERA is higher than every qualified pitcher besides Garrett Crochet and Luzardo has a tall task ahead of him with the Braves up next.

Lee was thrown out at home to end the sixth and then departed prior to the eighth inning. Manager Tony Vitello said a couple of slides recently have left him banged up. If Lee needs a day off Wednesday, Will Brennan could play right field.

García was due for some good luck after entering the night with a .237 BABIP, and he got it by collecting four in a game in which he had just one hard-hit ball. It’s his sixth career four-hit game, and his OPS jumped from .569 to .648 tonight. He’s also now 3-for-3 stealing bases.

Drake Baldwin and Eli White homered off him, but Griffin got enough support to improve to 3-0 with a 3.38 ERA. For the year, Griffin has 20 strikeouts and five homers allowed in 26 2/3 innings. He’s not typically a mixed-league option, but he’s not the worst choice with a road start against the White Sox coming up next.

The Beeter closed out a seven-run game wouldn’t seem to mean much, but it was nice to see that was in line to finish tonight. Gus Varland, who has emerged as the Nationals’ primary alternative in the ninth, pitched a scoreless seventh with a 5-3 lead before the Nationals busted out with three runs in the bottom of the seventh and again in the bottom of the eighth. Beeter is sporting a 3.48 ERA to go along with his two saves.

López walked three and gave up three soft singles in a three-run first. The second then opened with a homer and a single, leading to his removal. López really didn’t deserve any luck while throwing just 30 of his 58 pitches for strikes, but to give up five hits and just two hard-hit balls was mostly a fluke. It’s his first loss of the year, and it leaves him with a 3.74 ERA through five starts. He’ll face the Phillies on Sunday.