MLB Player News

Stanek allowed one run on one hit and one walk while striking out one in one inning to record a save against the Rangers on Wednesday.

With Ryan Pressly (knee) on the injured list, fantasy managers have been eager to see who would notch Houston's first save in his stead. Hector Neris has been a popular pickup, but he pitched the eighth and registered a hold Wednesday, with Stanek given the opportunity to close things out in the ninth. The right-hander made things interesting, allowing a run on a walk and a double before striking out Kole Calhoun with the tying run on third base to end the game. Pressly may not be far from a return, and Stanek isn't a lock for the team's next save opportunity while the No. 1 closer is out, so the latter is only a speculative short-term pickup in fantasy.

Holmes earned the save, pitching a perfect ninth inning with two strikeouts in a 5-2 win Wednesday over Baltimore.

Holmes recorded his second save of the season, sandwiching a groundout between two strikeouts. He's primarily a setup reliever and has recorded five holds on the season, last recording a save in a 5-2 victory over the Orioles on April 16. Since allowing a run on Opening Day, Holmes has thrown nine scoreless innings, striking out 11. Aroldis Chapman has been excellent to start the season and the closer role is firmly his but Holmes may continue to receive the occasional save opportunity.

Robertson (1-0) pitched 1.1 scoreless innings of relief with three strikeouts to earn the win Wednesday against Atlanta.

The Cubs used Robertson to record the final out in the bottom of the eighth inning, then let the veteran work the ninth as well. The righty continued to cruise, as his ERA is still at 0.00 to go with 11 strikeouts across 8.2 innings this season. Robertson left the game with the teams tied 3-3 but earned the win when Chicago scored three times in the top of the 10th. Rowan Wick picked up his first save of the season with Robertson pulled after retiring his four batters on 18 pitches.

Burdi signed a minor-league contract with the Nationals last week.

Burdi was cut loose by the Diamondbacks in mid-March but has now latched on with the Nationals. He made seven appearances between the White Sox and Orioles last season and allowed six earned runs with a 7:5 K:BB over 10 innings.

Rogers pitched one-third of an inning, retiring the only batter he faced on the way to a save in Wednesday's 8-5 win over the Reds.

After the Padres entered the bottom of the ninth inning up 8-3, Rogers was called upon to protect an 8-5 lead with two men on base. He promptly induced a game-ending flyout off the bat of Jake Fraley on the first pitch he threw, securing his sixth save of the season. Rogers is 6-for-7 on save opportunities and has not allowed an earned run while posting a 0.57 WHIP with seven strikeouts over seven innings this year.

Hader walked two but struck out three across a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save Wednesday against the Pirates.

Hader walked two of the first three batters he faced, but he struck out Yoshi Tsutsugo and Roberto Perez to end the game and earn his 10th save of the season. That mark leads the league, but perhaps more impressive have been the skills Hader has displayed. He has yet to allow an earned run across 9.1 innings while striking out 15 and walking only four.

Wilson allowed one hit and no walks while striking out four across four scoreless innings Wednesday against the Brewers.

Wilson was originally tabbed as Pittsburgh's starter, but he ultimately entered the game in the third inning. He proceeded to cover four effective frames, keeping the Brewers scoreless. Wilson won a job in the rotation out of spring training, though he failed to cover more than 4.1 frames in any of his three starts this season. It is not clear whether the team will continue Wilson in this role, but it was clearly the most effective he has looked early on in the campaign.

Graveman did not allow a baserunner and struck out four across two innings to earn the save Wednesday against the Royals.

Graveman has regularly pitched in high-leverage situations this season, though he earned a save thanks to the absence of Liam Hendriks (back). He was dominant with the opportunity, as he needed only 20 pitches to retire six batters. It appears as if Hendriks will be able to avoid a stint on the injured list, though if his health worsens it appears that Graveman will be in line for save opportunities.

Chafin allowed one run on two hits across an inning of relief in Wednesday's loss to the Twins. He struck out one.

Chafin, who suffered a groin injury in spring training, was activated from the 10-day injured list Tuesday but didn't enter the game. He looked rusty in his season debut Wednesday, as he allowed back-to-back doubles to start the inning, though he escaped with only the one run allowed. Despite the tough outing, Chafin should settle into a valuable bullpen role as the team's top lefty reliever outside of closer Gregory Soto.

Kittredge pitched 1.1 innings, surrendering one run on two hits while striking out a batter on his way to a save in Wednesday's 3-2 victory over the Mariners.

Kittredge was called upon to get a four-out save Wednesday, giving up a single to Ty France before getting Jesse Winker to ground out with two on to end the eighth inning. After retiring the first two batters in the ninth, Abraham Toro took the right hander deep for a solo shot, but Kittredge was able to get Julio Rodriguez to fly out to end the game. The save was his third of the season and he now sports a 1.93 ERA and 0.64 WHIP over 9.1 innings.