MLB Player News

Birdsong threw two scoreless innings during Wednesday's 6-3 win over the Astros, allowing two hits with two strikeouts and a walk.

Birdsong made his first appearance of 2025 and was the last member of the Opening Day roster to play this season. The right-handed reliever started the sixth frame and later got out of a two-out jam. He walked the first batter of the seventh inning before retiring the Astros' next three hitters, finishing with 26 pitches across two innings. Birdsong was neck-and-neck with Landen Roupp for the fifth-starter role in spring training before being moved to the bullpen. However, the Giants' early success has made it more difficult to utilize the 23-year-old Birdsong, who made 16 starts last season, registering a 4.75 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and 88:43 K:BB over 72 innings.

Brazoban struck out one in a scoreless two-thirds of an inning to record his first save of the season in Wednesday's extra-innings win over the Marlins.

The right-hander got the final two outs of the 11th inning on only seven pitches (five strikes) to collect the first save of his career. Mets closer Edwin Diaz has worked earlier in the game, as had top setup men A.J. Minter and Ryne Stanek, so Brazoban's usage doesn't suggest he's now a key high-leverage arm for New York. The 35-year-old has pitched well to begin the season, however -- through three appearances and five innings, Brazoban has a 0.00 ERA and 5:1 K:BB.

Faucher coughed up three runs on three hits in an inning of relief during Wednesday's extra-innings loss to the Mets.

The right-hander got the call in the eighth inning with the Marlins protecting a 4-1 lead, but Faucher served up a three-run blast to Pete Alonso to get charged with his first blown save of 2025. The usage alone suggests he's fallen behind Anthony Bender in the pecking order for closing duties, but the bullpen picture for Miami remains cloudy, especially with Jesus Tinoco (back) on the shelf. Over his first three appearances and three innings, Faucher has a 2:3 K:BB to go along with a 9.00 ERA.

Johnson gave up a hit and a walk over two-thirds of a scoreless inning to record his first hold of the season in Wednesday's loss to the Dodgers. He struck out one.

Entering the game in the sixth inning to protect a 5-3 lead is a long way from the high-leverage usage Johnson was expected to see this season, but Atlanta was desperate to secure its first win of 2025. How the setup crew was deployed ended up being moot when closer Raisel Iglesias served up a walk-off homer to Shohei Ohtani. Johnson has been sharp in the early going, posting a 0.00 ERA and 4:1 K:BB through his first 2.2 innings, and once Atlanta gets off the shneid, holds should start to pile up for him.

Taylor will begin the season with Double-A Birmingham, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports.

Taylor will join Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith in one of the most loaded rotations in the minors after impressing this spring. Taylor has a chance for three plus pitches and plus command, so if he stays healthy, he could be one of the year's top breakout pitching prospects. He had Tommy John surgery at LSU and had a 2.33 ERA, 0.72 WHIP and 32 strikeouts in 19.1 innings last season, although he missed more time with a lat injury.

Langevin is on the 60-day injured list due to a lat strain, Sam Dykstra of MLB Pipeline reports.

He is listed as being on the Arizona Complex League Royals roster, but once healthy, the 21-year-old righty will probably be assigned to a full-season affiliate. Langevin was Kansas City's fourth-round pick last year and has one of the best fastballs in the system -- a mid-90s offering with elite movement -- but the rest of his pitches need refinement.

Pan had Tommy John surgery in November and will miss the entire 2025 season, Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline reports.

A 22-year-old righty whom the Phillies signed out of Taiwan in January of 2023, Pan only managed 63.2 innings in 2023 and 29.1 innings in 2024. He has big-time stuff when healthy, so there's a chance he could end up a high-leverage reliever if it doesn't work for him in the rotation. Pan had a 2.15 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 35 strikeouts in 29.1 innings last year, primarily at High-A.

Hendriks (elbow) threw out to 120 feet Tuesday in Baltimore during Boston's day off, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

Boston manager Alex Cora indicated Hendriks is feeling better but is not yet ready for mound work. That could happen at some point this weekend.

Thompson allowed two runs on two hits while striking out one over a third of an inning in Wednesday's 4-3 win over the Yankees.

Thompson entered to start the ninth inning and close out a 4-0 lead, but he ran into early trouble and was removed after giving up a couple of singles. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo brought in one of his closers, the left-handed A.J. Puk, to face the mostly left-handed batters due up. The one righty in that string of batters, Anthony Volpe, took Puk deep for a three-run home run. Thompson was a reliable arm in a setup role for the Diamondbacks in 2024, primarily serving as a seventh- and eighth-inning bridge.

Iglesias (0-1) took the loss and blew a save against the Dodgers on Wednesday, allowing one run on two hits while striking out two batters over one inning.

With Atlanta off to an 0-6 start to the season, manager Brian Snitker didn't wait until the ninth inning to go to his closer as the team clung to a two-run, eighth-inning lead. Iglesias entered with one out and a runner on first base in that frame, inheriting a 2-0 count on Dodgers catcher Will Smith. Iglesias threw two more balls to put Smith on base but then got Tommy Edman to ground out to move within an out of escaping the jam. However, Max Muncy followed with a two-run, game-tying double, saddling Iglesias with a blown save. The veteran closer remained in the contest for the ninth, and he took the loss when Shohei Ohtani got to him for a walk-off homer. Iglesias went 67-for-75 in save chances over the past two regular seasons, so he figures to have plenty of leash despite Wednesday's stumble.