MLB Player News

Junis earned the save in Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Mariners, when he allowed two hits with no strikeouts over a scoreless ninth inning.

For the second straight game, Junis was called to the mound to close out the game for the Rangers. He gave up back-to-back singles to open the ninth inning but needed just six pitches to get the next three batters out. Junis and Tyler Alexander each have two saves this season, but while Alexander's both came when Robert Garcia and Chris Martin were unavailable, Junis was deployed ahead of Martin on Tuesday. The back of the Texas bullpen remains muddled for the time being.

Assad (1-0) tossed 5.2 scoreless innings to earn the win Tuesday against the Rays, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out three.

Assad got the call to the majors with Matthew Boyd (biceps) and Cade Horton (forearm) landing on the injured list within the past few days, and Assad stepped up with a strong performance for the Cubs. Horton is now set to undergo season-ending surgery on his right UCL, so it's possible that Assad sticks around as Chicago's fourth or fifth starter for the foreseeable future. The righty struggled with injuries of his own last season, but he's mostly been effective for Chicago when he's been on the field since making his MLB debut in 2022. Assad is penciled in to start again Monday against the Phillies on the road, and he's worth a look in fantasy leagues if he can string together a few good outings.

Diaz earned the save in Tuesday's 4-1 win over the Blue Jays, striking out three while allowing one hit and one walk in a scoreless ninth inning.

Diaz kept the Blue Jays off the board despite yielding two baserunners in the ninth, ending the night by striking out Tyler Heineman. It's been a strong start to the season for Diaz, who has collected a save in four of five outings, allowing just one run while striking out eight over five innings. He's well on his way to eclipsing his save total from 2025 (28) when he was a member of the Mets.

Slaten was unavailable for Tuesday's game against the Brewers due to oblique soreness, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

The team has labeled Slaten as day-to-day, so his injury doesn't seem to be too severe. The 28-year-old is off to a strong start this season after striking out five batters over 3.1 shutout innings, picking up holds in two of his four appearances.

Knipp (elbow) is tentatively slated to return to game action in June, Jonathan Mayo of MLB Pipeline reports.

Knipp underwent Tommy John surgery in early 2025 after dealing with elbow inflammation in spring training. The 24-year-old righty has yet to make his pro debut after being selected in the sixth round of the 2024 draft.

The Blue Jays designated Fleming for assignment Tuesday.

Toronto will continue to churn the final spot in its bullpen, as Fleming was dropped from the 40-man roster just one day after long reliever Austin Voth was DFA'd to clear a spot for him. The veteran lefty was unlikely to be available for at least a couple of days after he worked in long relief in his Blue Jays debut during Monday's 14-2 loss to the Dodgers, covering three innings while yielding four earned runs on six hits and two walks.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Tuesday that Ponce will undergo surgery to repair a torn right ACL, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Ponce suffered the injury just over a week ago but had been evaluating his options. The timeline for his recovery from the operation is six months, effectively ending his first season with the Blue Jays after just one abbreviated start. Ponce has a good chance to be ready for the beginning of next season as long as he's able to check off all the necessary boxes during his lengthy rehab process.

Anderson went three up and three down in his one inning Monday in the 8-6 win against the Red Sox. He did not record a strikeout.

Anderson appeared in 66 games out of the bullpen for the Brewers last season and went 2-6 with a 3.23 ERA. Milwaukee has put Anderson on the mound six times already this season and he has posted a 2.70 ERA. The Brewers' bullpen has right-handers Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill to pitch in high-leverage situations, but a lack of other options beyond them opens the door for Anderson to be used often in middle relief.

Mattson allowed two hits while striking out two in one inning Monday in a 5-0 loss to the Padres.

Mattson was a revelation out of the bullpen for the Pirates last season, posting a 2.45 ERA in 44 appearances after being called up in May. The right-hander has had a heavy workload so far this season, pitching in six out of Pittsburgh's 10 games and posting a 3.00 ERA and seven strikeouts. The Pittsburgh bullpen does not have many proven right-handers other than Dennis Santana, which means Mattson should continue appearing in many games this season.

The Athletics selected Kuhnel's contract from Triple-A Las Vegas on Tuesday.

The right-hander delivered two scoreless outings for Las Vegas and will replace Luis Morales on the Athletics' active roster. Kuhnel last pitched in the majors in 2024, when he made 10 regular-season appearances between the Rays and Astros and gave up five earned runs with a 5:0 K:BB over 10 innings.