MLB Player News

Mayers was optioned to Triple-A Memphis on Tuesday.

Mayers was the corresponding roster move to clear a spot on the Cardinals' active roster for Carlos Martinez, who was brought back from the disabled list ahead of his scheduled start against the Marlins on Tuesday. The 26-year-old Mayers owns a shiny 2.30 ERA across 15.2 innings with St. Louis this season, so he should be back with the big club as soon as a fresh bullpen arm is needed.

Miller (elbow) made his second rehab start at Double-A Jackson on Monday, tossing 4.2 innings of one-run ball and scattering four hits and four walks. He struck out six batters in the outing.

Despite the high walk total, Miller still pounded the zone effectively Monday, tossing 52 of his 79 pitches for strikes. The Diamondbacks will probably want to see Miller build up to 90 pitches before deeming him ready to return from the 60-day disabled list, so it seems likely that he'll require one more start in the minors. Assuming Miller is activated around mid-June, he could slide into the Arizona rotation, though the strong performances of late from Nos. 4 and 5 starters Matt Koch and Clay Buchholz, respectively, make that less of a certainty than it appeared to be a couple weeks ago.

The Giants optioned Johnson to Triple-A Sacramento following Monday's 10-3 win over the Diamondbacks, the Associated Press reports.

Johnson tossed two scoreless innings Monday while the game was well in hand for San Francisco, lowering his ERA to 5.83 in the process. With former starter Ty Blach now on hand to work in long relief after being dropped from the rotation, Johnson became somewhat of a redundant piece in the San Francisco bullpen. The 27-year-old should receive more regular work upon returning to Sacramento, with his demotion clearing a spot on the active roster for Madison Bumgarner (finger), who is set to return from the 60-day disabled list Tuesday to make his season debut.

Rodriguez will get to make at least one more start, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Rodriguez put together a strong showing Sunday against the Phillies, as he was able to notch his first career win. Manager Bruce Bochy stated that Rodriguez will make another start, although he'll likely head back to Triple-A Sacramento when Jeff Samardzija (shoulder) returns from the disabled list, which could be in a week or two. Rodriguez's next outing figures to come Saturday against the Nationals.

Ferguson had his contract purchased from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

The 21-year-old prospect owns an impressive 1.23 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 50:13 K:BB across nine starts (44 innings) between Double-A Tulsa and Triple-A Oklahoma City. While nothing has been confirmed at this point, Rob Cervenka of ThinkBlueLA.com reports that Ferguson could step into the Dodgers' rotation to make a spot start Wednesday against the Pirates. Either way, the Dodgers will need to make a pair of corresponding roster moves prior to Tuesday's series opener in order to clear room on their active and 40-man roster for Ferguson.

Scribner was placed on Triple-A Reno's 7-day disabled list Friday with right shoulder inflammation.

Scribner made a spot start for the big club May 12 with the Diamondbacks, but was optioned back to the minors after giving up two runs on four hits and six walks in 3.2 innings. The right-hander has maintained an underwhelming 5.11 ERA and 1.25 WHIP across 44 innings with Reno this season and seems unlikely to receive another look in the new term with Arizona even once the shoulder issue is behind him.

Yates picked up his first save of the season on Sunday, working around three hits to record a scoreless ninth inning and close out San Diego's 6-3 victory over the Reds.

Yates got the nod for ninth-inning duties in this contest, as regular closer Brad Hand was brought in an inning earlier for matchup purposes against lefty Reds bats Joey Votto and Scooter Gennett. Hand has been solid all season, so Yates probably won't see many save opportunities outside of scenarios like this, or when Hand gets rested. That said, he's been putting up great numbers in his own right, as this outing gave him a 1.29 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP and a 26:6 K:BB through 21 innings this season.

Rodriguez (1-0) allowed one earned run on five hits and two walks while striking out six across six innings to earn the win Sunday against the Phillies.

Rodriguez put together a solid effort to earn his first career win, with the only run he allowed coming on a solo home run by opposing pitcher Jake Arrieta. He recorded an impressive 13 swinging strikes on only 85 pitches and also showed the ability to miss bats at Triple-A Sacramento, striking out 9.5 batters per nine innings this season prior to being called up. He was not considered a premium prospect in the Giants' system, though, so handle this strong start with some skepticism.

Koch (4-3) picked up the win against the Marlins on Sunday, scattering three hits over seven strong innings without allowing a run, striking out six and walking none as the Diamondbacks prevailed 6-1.

Koch was knocked around for five runs on 11 hits in his last start against the Reds, but he bounced back nicely with this seven-inning shutout of Miami to bag his fourth win of the season. He's posted solid numbers since taking over the rotation spot for Taijuan Walker with a 3.76 ERA and 1.16 WHIP through 55 innings, and he seems to have secured the role with Walker out for the season due to Tommy John surgery. His 31:13 K:BB isn't eye-popping, but Koch holds some streaming appeal based on how he's pitched so far, particularly in favorable matchups.

Jansen struck out one in a clean ninth inning to record his 14th save of the season Sunday against the Rockies.

After a shaky outing in his first appearance of the series on Friday, Jansen bounced back and needed only eight pitches to successfully convert the save opportunity Sunday. Despite a slow start to the season, Jansen is third in the National League in saves and has slowly worked his ratio stats closer to his career norms.