MLB Player News

Manager Craig Counsell revealed on "The Parkins & Spiegal Show" that the Cubs had called up Thompson from Triple-A Iowa on Friday, per 670 The Score.

With Jose Cuas being sent down Thursday, the Cubs are bringing in Thompson to shore up their bullpen depth. Thompson has not allowed a run in his last three outings with Iowa, striking out six batters while allowing one hit and two walks in five innings over that span.

Through four appearances (6.2 innings), Smyly has a 4.05 ERA, 0.90 WHIP and seven strikeouts.

Outside of his first appearance of the season, Smyly has retired more than three batters in all of his outings, and he should continue to work in a long-relief role for the Cubs. While a 4.05 ERA isn't amazing, it is an improvement on the 5.00 ERA he posted in 2023. The veteran southpaw has also lowered his WHIP from 1.43 last season. It's still early, but Smyly's results have been encouraging so far.

Through four appearances (3.2 innings), Neris has a 7.36 ERA and 1.91 WHIP to go along with five strikeouts.

Neris has continued to miss bats at a high rate as he's done his entire career, though he's struggled to limit baserunners, and that's led to his high WHIP and ERA so far. It's of course a small sample, and the veteran righty posted a 1.71 ERA and 1.05 WHIP last season with the Astros, so better days are likely ahead. Neris should continue to work in a setup role in front of closer Adbert Alzolay.

Antone underwent surgery Friday to repair the UCL and flexor tendon in his right elbow, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Manager David Bell said Antone's procedure went extremely well, though the right-hander is still expected to miss the entire year. He has made just nine appearances across the past three seasons and will now aim to return in 2025.

Bard (knee) will undergo right flexor tendon surgery and miss the rest of the 2024 season, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Bard started the season on the 15-day injured list while rehabbing from a cleanup procedure on his left knee in mid-February. The surgery on his right elbow will put Bard on the shelf for the rest of the season, and it could be his last year with the Rockies as the 38-year-old is a free agent in 2025. Justin Lawrence is currently the primary option for saves in a very volatile Colorado bullpen.

Willingham was recalled from Triple-A Rochester by the Nationals on Friday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

The Nationals will still need to bring up a starter early next week to face the Dodgers, but in the meantime Willingham will give the bullpen a fresh arm. The 25-year-old collected a 6.66 ERA and 15:9 K:BB over 24.1 innings during his time in the majors last season.

Matzek gave up two runs on three hits in the eighth inning of Thursday's loss to the Mets.

He also threw a wild pitch. Atlanta was down 10-3 when Matzek entered the game, so the performance didn't affect the final outcome, but he's now been tagged for five runs over his last two appearances, leaving him with a 9.00 ERA on the season, along with a 4:2 K:BB through five innings. Matzek has picked up one hold in his five games, and that figures to be the primary source of what fantasy value he earns in 2024.

Lee allowed three unearned runs on two hits and a walk over two innings in Thursday's loss to the Mets. He struck out two.

The left-hander entered the game with Atlanta already down 7-0, and an Austin Riley error cushioned the blow to his ERA. Lee has been used in low-leverage long relief spots to begin the season, working more than one inning in all four of his appearances with a 0.00 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 5:3 K:BB through eight innings. While the early ratios are impressive, Lee has yet to collect a win, hold or save, and his fantasy value will remain limited without a more prominent role in the bullpen.

Atlanta recalled Vines from Triple-A Gwinnett on Friday.

The right-hander made his last start for Gwinnett on April 4 and should immediately be available out of the bullpen for Atlanta. However, according to Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Vines could be an option to start Tuesday against the Astros, depending on his usage over the next few days. The 25-year-old Vines made his MLB debut last season and had a 3.98 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 14:7 K:BB across 20.1 innings.

Cuas was optioned to Triple-Iowa on Thursday.

Cuas was projected to serve in a prominent role in the Cubs' bullpen, but he surrendered at least one earned run in four of his first five appearances to begin the campaign. He'll look to get on track at Iowa and has a good chance to return to the majors fairly quickly.