MLB Player News

Kimbrel (1-2) pitched the final 1.1 innings of Sunday's 2-1 win over St. Louis, allowing an unearned run and a walk with two strikeouts to earn the win.

Kimbrel got the final out of the ninth and remained in the game for the 10th after Javier Baez gave the Cubs a two-run lead. Initial runner Paul Goldschmidt crossed the plate, but Kimbrel was able to limit the damage to guarantee the victory. He's allowed two runs in nine May innings.

Santillan is a potential candidate to get a spot start Friday for the Reds against the Cubs, with the team needing a pitcher to fill the gap until Wade Miley returns, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The Reds are off Monday, giving Tyler Mahle, Jeff Hoffman and Sonny Gray their regular rest before needing a spot start Friday. Santillan has a 1.86 ERA over 19.1 innings spread over four starts at Triple-A Louisville. Vladimir Gutierrez is also on the 40-man roster at Louisville and could make the start.

Hand worked around a base hit and a walk to toss a scoreless ninth inning en route to picking up his seventh save of the season in Sunday's 6-5 win over the Orioles. He also struck out a batter in the 12-pitch appearance.

Hand navigated the inning more smoothly than his box-score line would suggest; he intentionally walked Trey Mancini on four pitches and threw all but one of his other eight offerings for strikes, including two swings and misses. The lefty threw a perfect inning to notch a save in Saturday's 12-9 win, so after the back-to-back clean appearances, he appears to have regained some job security after he had given up at least one run in five of his prior six outings.

The Dodgers recalled Bickford from Triple-A Oklahoma City ahead of Sunday's game in San Francisco.

He joined the bullpen as a replacement on the active roster for Jimmy Nelson (forearm), who was moved to the 10-day injured list. Like Nelson, Bickford is a converted starter capable of covering multiple innings in relief, but the Dodgers will likely limit the right-hander's usage mostly to lower-leverage spots.

Pomeranz (lat) tossed a bullpen session Friday and is scheduled to throw live batting practice Sunday, Shaun O'Neill of MLB.com reports.

The left-hander continues to make progress, though his precise return date remains uncertain. Pomeranz last pitched May 9, though he wasn't officially shelved until five days later. He has registered a 1.98 ERA and 20:7 K:BB across 13.2 innings this season.

The Dodgers placed Nelson on the 10-day injured list Sunday due to right forearm inflammation.

Phil Bickford was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City to replace Nelson, who likely developed the injury during his most recent relief appearance Thursday against the Diamondbacks. After David Price worked the first two innings of that game as an opener, Nelson came on and dominated over the next two frames, striking out a season-high five batters. The Dodgers will hope that Nelson won't end up missing more than the minimum amount of time with the forearm issue, as the 31-year-old has emerged as a key piece out of the bullpen.

Yamamoto was removed from Sunday's start against the Marlins with right shoulder soreness, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

The right-hander was pulled due to the shoulder issue after surrendering five runs (four earned) on six hits across four innings. It was likely only a spot start for Yamamoto with Jacob deGrom (side) set to return from this injured list this week, but the 25-year-old could now be headed to the injured list rather than back to the minors.

Lambert (elbow) was recently cleared to resume throwing bullpen sessions, Nick Groke of The Athletic reports.

Lambert will advance to the next phase in his rehab program following July 2020 Tommy John surgery after he experienced no setbacks while throwing off flat ground. The right-hander should gradually increase the intensity of his bullpen sessions over the next few weeks before testing himself against hitters in live batting practice at some point in June. The 24-year-old will have an outside chance to return from the 60-day injured list late in the second half of the season, but the Rockies likely won't be counting on him to fill a rotation spot.

Betances (shoulder) threw a side session Sunday, Justin Toscano of The Bergen Record reports.

The 33-year-old has been sidelined by a right shoulder impingement since making his season debut April 7, and this is the first indication that he's back to throwing. Betances is eligible to return from the 60-day injured list in early June, though he figures to face a longer absence given Sunday's side session was his first since landing on the shelf.

Lamet earned a hold in Saturday's win over Seattle, tossing three innings and allowing one unearned run on two hits and no walks while striking out five.

Lamet again worked in tandem with Ryan Weathers, who covered the first four innings of the game. Craig Stammen came on and pitched the fifth while Lamet handled innings six through eight. The right-hander was dominant in long relief, picking up five punchouts and allowing only an unearned run. Per Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune, Lamet maintained 96-97 mph heat on his fastball, providing optimism that he is getting stronger as he continues to build up. The 28-year-old could return to a starting role at some point during the campaign, which would boost his fantasy value considerably.