MLB Player News

Lawrence earned a save against the Padres on Thursday, striking out one batter in a perfect inning of work.

Lawrence notched his first save of the season Tuesday in his ninth appearance of the campaign, and it didn't take him long to build upon that with another save two days later. After giving up five runs (four earned) in his second outing of the season April 5, the right-hander has yielded just two earned runs over eight outings covering 8.1 frames since. Given that he's logged back-to-back saves for Colorado and has two of the three saves overall on the campaign for the club, Lawrence appears to be strengthening his hold on the team's primary closer role.

Neris picked up the save Thursday against Houston, allowing two walks and no hits over a scoreless inning. He didn't log a strikeout.

Neris converted on his third save of the last five days and appears to have a decent hold on the Cubs' closing job, replacing Adbert Alzolay. However, Neris's walk issues persisted Thursday, handing out two free passes to bring his season total to nine in nine innings. His lack of control has been uncharacteristic, as Neris combined for just 48 walks in 141 appearances during his previous two seasons with the Astros.

Ryan was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Ryan has had success in the majors this season, maintaining a 3.00 ERA with a 13:5 K:BB across 12 innings. He threw 1.2 scoreless frames Thursday against the Brewers, so this move is likely just a roster shuffle to get a fresh arm in the Pirates' bullpen in the short term. No corresponding move was announced.

Hjelle (0-1) took the loss versus the Mets on Wednesday, allowing three runs on two hits and a walk while striking out two over 2.2 innings.

Blake Snell (thigh) was placed on the injured list Wednesday, forcing the Giants to go with a bullpen game. Hjelle ended up with the most innings of the seven pitchers used, but he was unable to match his success from his season debut Sunday versus the Diamondbacks, when he pitched two innings of one-hit ball. The right-hander was on the shelf with an elbow injury to begin the season, and he'll likely serve as a long reliever for the majority of 2024.

Hudson (2-0) earned the win Wednesday over the Pirates, allowing one hit over 1.2 scoreless innings. He struck out one.

Hudson has now earned wins in his last two appearances as he continues to impress early in the year. The left-hander has allowed just one run over 13.1 innings while posting an impressive 0.60 WHIP and 13:2 K:BB. Hudson made six appearances with the Dodgers last season, working to a 7.27 ERA over 8.2 innings.

Myers is slated to start Sunday's game against the Yankees at American Family Field, Sophia Minnaert of Bally Sports Wisconsin reports.

With Wade Miley (elbow), DL Hall (knee) and Jakob Junis (shoulder) all still on the injured list without clear timelines to return, Myers will end up sticking around for a second turn through the Milwaukee rotation. The 25-year-old had been a standout performer for Triple-A Nashville prior to getting called up this week and held his own in his MLB debut Tuesday, taking the loss despite limiting the Pirates to one run on four hits and one walk over five innings.

Garrett (4-0) got the win over the Giants on Wednesday, allowing one run on two hits and one walk over two innings while striking out four.

Garrett replaced Sean Manaea with two outs in the bottom of the fifth and retired Jorge Soler on the first pitch to end the inning. The reliever then needed only 12 pitches to get through the next frame before surrendering a solo homer to open the seventh. It marked the first earned run allowed on the season for Garrett, who is now tied for the major-league lead in wins. The right-hander has been outstanding out of the bullpen for New York thus far, posting a 0.71 ERA to go along with a 25:4 K:BB.

Blach (0-1) took the loss against San Diego on Wednesday, allowing four runs on five hits and two walks without striking out any batters over five innings.

Blach tossed an inning in relief in his season debut debut Monday, so it was a bit of a surprise to see him go five frames and throw 76 pitches two days later. The left-hander looked like he could be headed for an early exit after giving up four first-inning runs, but to his credit, he finished off his outing with four straight scoreless frames. It's unclear how Blach will be used by the Rockies moving forward -- last season, 13 of his 20 appearances for the team came in a starting role, while he made just one start across 24 outings in 2022.

Suarez earned a save against the Rockies on Wednesday, striking out one batter in a perfect inning.

Suarez needed just seven pitches (five of which were strikes) to set the Rockies down in order and preserve a three-run San Diego victory. The right-hander extended his streak of scoreless outings to nine and lowered his sterling ERA to 0.77. Suarez has been one of the league's best closers so far this season with nine saves (tied for first in MLB).

Payamps recorded the save in Wednesday's 3-2 win over the Pirates, striking out two in a scoreless ninth inning.

The Pirates made things interesting in the ninth, getting the tying and go-ahead runs on base on a pair of Milwaukee errors. However, Payamps got Jared Triolo to fly out before striking out Andrew McCutchen to seal the 3-2 victory, notching his fourth save of the year. The 30-year-old Payamps has three saves in his last four outings as he lowered his ERA to 3.72 with a 0.62 WHIP and 9:1 K:BB through 9.2 innings. Payamps appears to be the current favorite for saves but is hardly locked in as Milwaukee's closer, with Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill also in the mix.