MLB Player News

Clase gave up a hit in a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to record his fourth save of the season in a 3-1 win over the A's.

An Elvis Andrus double to right field made things a little interesting, but Clase was able to get the job done. Since stumbling out of the gate and being tagged for runs in each of his first two appearances of the season, the right-hander has a 2.84 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 6:1 K:BB over his last 6.1 innings.

The Athletics optioned Oller to Triple-A Las Vegas on Sunday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Oller hadn't pitched since April 22 and wasn't lined up to start Sunday's series finale with the Guardians, so his demotion comes as little surprise. The Athletics activated James Kaprielian (shoulder) from the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move, and he'll enter the rotation and start Sunday against Cleveland in his season debut. The Athletics have a pair of doubleheader games coming up in the second week of May, so Oller could be in line for a brief stint in the minors before rejoining the big club to make a spot start. He won't make for an especially reliable fantasy option, however, after submitting an 11.17 ERA and 2.38 WHIP across 9.2 innings over his first three MLB starts.

Soto pitched a scoreless inning of relief in Saturday's win over the Dodgers. He didn't allow a hit or a walk and struck out one.

Soto blew his first save of the season in his previous outing, so while Saturday's 5-1 Detroit win didn't produce a save opportunity, it was encouraging to see the lefty bounce back. Outside of the blown save, Soto has been solid this season with a 1.29 ERA across seven innings of work. He has only five strikeouts so far, but after recording a 10.7 K/9 last year, the whiffs figure to pick up as well.

Fulmer, who pitched 1.2 scoreless innings of relief in Saturday's win over the Dodgers, has yet to allow a run this season across 9.1 innings.

Fulmer was effective again Saturday and recorded his third hold of the season in the 5-1 Detroit victory. The righty also has one win and one save, which has boosted his fantasy value. Gregory Soto is still the primary closer, but Fulmer certainly has an important role in the Tigers' bullpen and will remain a solid fantasy asset if he keeps pitching like this.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Sunday that Wells was diagnosed with a Grade 1 UCL strain of his left elbow and will miss 8-to-12 weeks, Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Sun reports.

The projected timeline means that the southpaw reliever likely won't be ready to return from the 10-day injured list until after the All-Star break. A more definitive target date for Wells' return likely won't come into focus until several weeks down the road, when he'll presumably be ready to start up a throwing program again. The Orioles plan to have Wells conduct his rehab at their spring training facility in Sarasota, Fla.

Barnes allowed one run on two hits in the eighth inning of Saturday's 2-1 extra-inning loss to the Orioles.

Barnes entered to pitch the eighth after seven dominant innings from starter Nathan Eovaldi and got two quick outs. However, Cedric Mullins blooped a double, which was followed by a Anthony Santander run-scoring single. While Saturday's outcome can be attributed to bad luck -- Mullins' double had an 83.1 mph exit velocity -- Barnes has been unreliable thus far. He has a 5.87 ERA with four walks (1.2 K/BB) over 7.2 innings.

Barlow earned the save against the Braves on a Saturday with a perfect inning during which he struck out one batter.

Rangers manager Chris Woodward called Barlow the team's closer last weekend, but the right-hander hadn't gotten the chance to prove himself in the role until being called upon Saturday versus the Braves. That was largely due to circumstance -- through their first 20 games, the Rangers had won just six contests and provided only one save opportunity, which went to Matt Bush. Barlow finally got his first chance to close Saturday and did well, needing just 11 pitches to retire the side in order. More opportunities should come in time, and Barlow has demonstrated good stuff so far this season, allowing just five hits while posting a 9:1 K:BB across 6.1 innings.

Tampa Bay designated Guerra for assignment Sunday, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

The Rays will replace Guerra on the 40-man roster and in the big-league bullpen with Robert Dugger, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Durham in a corresponding move. After being acquired from the Padres on April 16, Guerra appeared in six games and gave up five earned runs on eight hits and a walk over 5.1 innings.

Brieske did not factor into the decision in Saturday's win over the Dodgers. He allowed one run on three hits and two walks while striking out three over five innings.

It wasn't the most dominant effort -- Brieske had only three swinging strikes on 90 pitches -- but five innings of one-run ball against this team (in Los Angeles no less) is impressive for a 24-year-old rookie. The right-hander now has a 3.60 ERA and 1.00 WHIP in his first 10 innings. Brieske has allowed a homer both times out so far and has served up three homers total, and he will need to get the long ball in check in a hurry to enjoy similar results moving forward.

Hernandez (0-1) took the loss during Saturday's 3-0 loss to the Yankees, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits and five walks with three strikeouts in four innings.

Hernandez got through a clean first inning but permitted a run apiece in each of the next three frames and was lucky to do so as he escaped a bases-loaded no-out jam in the second with just the one run crossing the plate. Walks weren't an issue prior to Saturday's performance, though run prevention has been as the 25-year-old has now allowed at least three runs in every start and owns a 6.00 ERA through 18 innings across four turns. He's tentatively lined up to make his next appearance Friday against the Orioles.