MLB Player News

Brito struck out two over 2.1 perfect innings of relief Saturday in the Padres' 9-6 loss to the Giants.

Brito's appearance was already his third of the season. He had previously given up two earned runs while recording just one out while taking the loss in the Padres' season opener against the Dodgers on March 20 in South Korea, then was charged with another blown save after yielding two runs and recording one out in San Diego's domestic home opener Thursday versus the Giants. After the Padres returned home from the two-game series in Seoul, South Korea, Brito still looked to be a candidate for the vacant fifth spot in the San Diego rotation, but manager Mike Shildt ultimately elected to go with knuckleballer Matt Waldron for that role. Despite his two rocky appearances to begin the season, Brito's strong showing in long relief of Dylan Cease on Saturday could position him to be next in line for the rotation if the Padres should lose a starting pitcher at some point.

Lodolo (calf) reported to Triple-A Louisville to begin a rehab assignment Sunday, and the Reds are targeting April 10 against the Brewers for his season debut, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The left-hander began the season on the injured list with left calf tenosynovitis, but he's on track to return after the 15-day minimum. Lodolo is scheduled for one additional start with Louisville after Sunday before joining Cincinnati's rotation.

The Pirates activated Contreras (personal) from the paternity list Sunday.

Contreras stepped away from the team for a few days to be with his family, but he's now back with the Pirates. The 24-year-old has shifted to a relief role to begin the season and will likely be utilized in lower-leverage spots.

Jefferies had his contract selected by the Giants ahead of his start against the Padres on Sunday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

The 28-year-old will make his first appearance in the big leagues since 2022 as he spent last season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. Jefferies pitched well during spring training with a 2.57 ERA and 16:3 K:BB across 14 innings to earn the early-season look in the rotation. He may be in line for just a spot start, however, as the Giants could have offseason signing Blake Snell available to make his team debut the next time Jefferies' turn in the rotation would come up next weekend versus the Padres.

Ross will start Wednesday's game against the Twins, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.

Ross hasn't pitched in the majors since 2021 and had a 4.50 ERA, 1.58 WHIP and 17 strikeouts in 12 innings during spring training. Wade Miley is on the injured list with a shoulder impingement, but the expectation is that he will join the rotation sometime around April 9 or later that week. Once Miley returns, Ross would be a candidate to move to long relief.

Buehler (elbow) is lined up to throw 40-to-50 pitches in a rehab start with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Initial reports indicated that Buehler would toss 4-to-5 innings Sunday, but it's since been clarified that the right-handed hurler will be held to 50 pitches or fewer. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Friday that Buehler could need around four rehab starts before he's ready to join the major-league club, so he figures to build up his pitch count over the course of the rehab assignment. Once Buehler is ready for big-league action, he'll slot into a Dodgers rotation that is led by newcomers Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto along with emerging star Bobby Miller.

Nola (0-1) took the loss Saturday as the Phillies fell 12-4 to Atlanta, coughing up seven runs on 12 hits and a walk over 4.1 innings. He struck out three.

Five of the hits off Nola went for extra bases, including homers by Ozzie Albies and Matt Olson. The 30-year-old right-hander threw 83 pitches (54 strikes) before exiting, and while it was far from an ideal start to the campaign, Nola has still been one of the most reliable pitchers in the game since emerging as a regular part of the Philadelphia rotation, striking out more than 200 batters in each of his last five full seasons. Nola will look to bounce back against a much less dangerous opponent next weekend on the road against the Nationals.

Fried recorded only two outs Saturday against the Phillies before being lifted, giving up three runs on two hits and three walks while striking out one. He came away with a no-decision.

The southpaw had a disastrous start to his 2024, throwing 23 of 43 pitches for strikes before getting the hook, but he avoided a loss after Atlanta hung seven runs on Aaron Nola in an eventual 12-4 win. Fried struggled with injuries last year but was effective when he was on the mound, posting a 2.55 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 25.7 percent strikeout rate over 77.2 innings, so while this performance was a little shocking, it did come against a tough opponent. He'll try to shake it off in his next start, which lines up to come at home next weekend against the Diamondbacks.

Lynn didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-5 extra-inning win over the Dodgers, finishing with five strikeouts while allowing four hits and one walk over four scoreless frames.

Lynn looked like he could be in for a long night when Los Angeles began the game by lacing three straight singles off him, but the veteran hurler bounced back by striking out Will Smith, Max Muncy and Teoscar Hernandez to escape the jam. The Dodgers put two more runners on base with one out in the second frame, but Lynn again got outs under pressure to emerge unscathed. The right-hander retired the final eight batters he faced but had his momentum stopped by a rain delay, and he didn't return to the mound after the interruption, having already thrown 70 pitches. Though Lynn certainly had some troubles Saturday, this was a positive season debut given the outcome, and it helps instill some hope that he can bounce back from last year's rough campaign during which he posted a career-worst 5.73 ERA.

Yamamoto pitched five scoreless frames in a no-decision in Saturday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to St. Louis, allowing two hits and no walks while striking out five batters.

Yamamoto faltered in his MLB regular-season debut against the Padres in South Korea on March 21, allowing five earned runs and lasting just one inning. His second outing went in the complete opposite direction, as the Japanese hurler struck out the side in a perfect first frame and gave up just two baserunners over five standout innings. Yamamoto may have gone deeper if not for a rare Dodger Stadium rain delay, though he did return to the contest following the 35-minute interruption. Fantasy managers who invested in Yamamoto in fantasy drafts should feel much better after this performance, and given how good he looked Saturday, it's quite possible that the right-hander's worst start of the year is already behind him.