MLB Player News

Barraclough struck out the side and hit a batter in a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to pick up his first save of the season in a 4-1 win over the Rockies.

Manager Don Mattingly said after the game that Brad Ziegler "was not feeling 100 percent," according to ESPN, but whether that means Ziegler is dealing with an illness or injury -- or Mattingly is just trying to ease him out of the closer role gently -- is still unclear. Given Barraclough's dominance in his first save attempt and overall success this season -- he now has a 2.31 ERA and 21:7 K:BB in 11.2 innings -- it seems likely that more ninth-inning duty lies ahead for the right-hander.

Pivetta (1-1) allowed four earned runs on six hits while walking three and striking out six across five innings to take the loss Saturday against the Braves.

While the box score indicates Pivetta was hit hard Saturday, that wasn't the case. He did surrender a solo home run to Nick Markakis, but the runs he allowed in the third inning came on two infield hits followed by a single and a sacrifice fly. While the three walks surrendered are a concern, he has shown improved control this season. This start wasn't a gem by any means and it's reasonable to say Pivetta didn't have his best stuff Saturday, but there's no reason for concern based on this start about his long-term results.

Vizcaino struck out all three batters he faced to earn the save Saturday against the Phillies.

Vizcaino recorded just his third save of the season in four chances, but he looked dominant in the process. The Braves seemingly have a fluid closer situation with Manager Brian Snitker saying he would be flexible in how he deployed Vizcaino and A.J. Minter. However, Vizcaino has a 1.42 ERA and 1.18 WHIP, so if he loses save opportunities it cannot be blamed on poor performance.

Boxberger notched his eighth save of the season Saturday against the Nationals, allowing two walks and a hit across a scoreless inning while striking out one.

Boxberger retired the first two batters he faced before a double and a pair of walks (one intentional) loaded up the bases, but he was able to retire Michael Taylor to stay a perfect eight-for-eight on save chances this season. He's been shaky at times, as was evident in Saturday's outing, but the veteran still owns a solid 2.45 ERA and 14:6 K:BB through 11 innings this season.

Alexander was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Saturday.

Alexander was likely unavailable for Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Giants after pitching in Game 1 and during Friday's game, so the Dodgers opted to send him back to the minors in exchange for an additional outfielder with Yasiel Puig (foot) sidelined. The southpaw is off to a slow start to the season, as evidenced by his unsightly 6.35 ERA across 11.1 innings, but he should be back with the big club sooner than later.

Gomez was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Gomez was unavailable for the second game of Saturday's doubleheader after pitching 3.1 innings of relief in Game 1, so the Giants opted to shuttle him back to the minors in exchange for a fresh bullpen arm. He owns a 7.71 ERA across five appearances (9.1 innings) with the big club this season.

Hoffman was activated from the disabled list and optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque on Saturday.

Hoffman has been dealing with shoulder soreness since early March. He was already pitching for Albuquerque on a rehab assignment, but now he'll continue to do so as a normal member of the team. The 25-year-old has thrown 130.2 career big-league innings with a 5.65 ERA.

Ortiz was placed on the disabled list with hamstring tightness, Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Ortiz has a 2.11 ERA in 21.1 innings for Double-A Biloxi so far this season, striking out 24.7 percent of batters while walking 7.9 percent. He possesses three solid pitches in his fastball, slider and changeup and profiles as a future mid-rotation or back-end starter.

Garcia will start Tuesday against the Phillies, Andre Fernandez of the Miami Herald reports.

Garcia could have thrown on regular rest Saturday, but he'll end up with three extra days due to the returns of Wei-Yin Chen (elbow) and Dan Straily (forearm) and the team not wanting to skip Caleb Smith. The southpaw has a stellar 1.00 ERA through 27 innings so far this season, but his 4.58 xFIP suggests that major regression is due to come. His 20 percent strikeout rate is below average while his 12 percent walk rate is quite poor. His early success is primarily attributable to an extremely low .121 BABIP and an absurdly high 99 percent strand rate.

Melancon (elbow) was transferred to the 60-day disabled list Saturday.

Melancon was removed from the 40-man roster in order to make room for Alen Hanson. He'll now be ineligible to return before May 25. The veteran closer recently resumed baseball activities while rehabbing his elbow strain, but he's apparently still a month away from being ready to go. Hunter Strickland remains the Giants' closer in his absence.