MLB Player News

Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said Monday that Smith-Shawver is moving to the team's bullpen, Jesus Cano of The Athletic reports.

Smith-Shawver has struggled in his five starts with the big club this season, collecting a 7.71 ERA, 1.81 WHIP and 18:13 K:BB over 21 innings. His stuff could play up in the bullpen, and Atlanta wants to give Smith-Shawver a trial run in a relief role down the stretch to see if he can help in that capacity in the playoffs.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that Sasaki (finger) threw a bullpen session Monday and is under consideration to return from the 15-day injured list to start Thursday's game in Cincinnati, Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Sasaki wore Dermabond on his right middle finger to protect against a recurrence of the blister that sent him to the IL on Aug. 27. While Sasaki seemed to come out of his bullpen session OK, Roberts wasn't ready to lock him into Thursday's start yet. Sasaki threw a simulated game last week but would likely have workload restrictions if he's cleared to start Thursday.

The Dodgers optioned Sheehan to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

In two starts after re-entering the Dodgers' rotation, Sheehan allowed a total of one run with a 15:2 K:BB over 11.2 innings. Despite the strong showing, Sheehan will exit the roster to make room for a fresh bullpen arm. If the right-hander is included on the Dodgers' first-round playoff roster, it would likely be as a reliever.

Bachar will serve as the Pirates' opening pitcher in Tuesday's game versus the Brewers, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Bachar will draw his sixth start since he landed in Pittsburgh at the trade deadline. He's covered at least 1.2 innings and as much as three frames in his first five opener assignments for the Pirates, so a multi-inning effort Tuesday is likely. Antwone Kelly, Brandon Eisert and Khristian Curtis could all be candidates to cover multiple frames once Bachar exits the game.

Bubic (shoulder) will join the Dodgers in Cincinnati on Monday but will not be activated from the 60-day injured list immediately, Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Bubic completed his rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday, and he wound up tossing 5.2 shutout frames with a 9:2 K:BB in six rehab outings. He will rest a bit before being activated as soon as Wednesday. Acquired from the Royals at the trade deadline, Bubic hasn't pitched in the majors since mid-May, first due to an elbow injury and later because of a shoulder problem. When Bubic does return, he'll be used in a relief role by the Dodgers.

Ritchie might be called up to start for Atlanta on Wednesday against the Cubs, Jesus Cano of The Athletic reports.

That would be AJ Smith-Shawver's turn through the rotation, but the team has yet to officially name him the starter, suggesting it is considering other options. Ritchie has been pitching well for Triple-A Gwinnett since being demoted in early August, and over his last six starts he's posted a 2.14 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 44:14 K:BB in 33.2 innings. During two September starts, he's produced a dazzling 24:2 K:BB in 12.2 frames.

Pivetta did not factor into the decision Sunday, allowing two runs on five hits and no walks over four innings against the Giants. He struck out five.

Pivetta was mostly solid, with his lone blemish being a two-run homer surrendered to Andrew Knizner in the second inning. Making just his second start back from a right flexor strain dating back to mid-April, the right-hander was lifted at 69 pitches (46 strikes) and fell short of qualifying for the win. In 25 innings (six starts), the 33-year-old owns a 2-2 record with a 3.60 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 31:6 K:BB. Pivetta is tentatively scheduled to pitch Friday against the Marlins.

Rodriguez (15-6) took the loss Sunday, allowing six runs (three earned) on eight hits and a walk over 5.1 innings against the Rangers. He struck out seven.

The southpaw surrendered a two-run homer to Corey Seager in the first inning and wasn't his sharpest self Sunday, though a pair of errors in the fifth frame did Rodriguez no favors. The 33-year-old has been consistently solid throughout 2026, posting a 2.62 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 135:58 K:BB across 178.1 innings (30 starts). Rodriguez's next outing is tentatively scheduled for Saturday against the Yankees.

Giants manager Tony Vitello said Sunday that the Giants will have a conversation about whether to shut Webb down for the remainder of the campaign, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Webb had another rough outing Sunday, allowing six runs on eight hits over five innings in a loss to the Padres to fall to 8-8 on the campaign. The veteran hurler has posted a 9.86 ERA over his past five starts and may be wearing down, as Pavlovic notes Webb's season started early because of his participation in the World Baseball Classic. San Francisco's conversation about shutting Webb down is likely connected to the team being mathematically eliminated from the playoffs with a 62-88 record.

Gasser didn't factor into the decision Sunday against the Reds, allowing a run on three hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out five.

Gasser was sharp Sunday, as he held the Reds scoreless through five innings before he was ultimately charged for one run after Elly De La Cruz led off the sixth with a single. While Gasser has failed to make it through six innings in any of his last five starts, he's held opponents to two runs or fewer in each of his last four outings, posting a 2.33 ERA across 19.1 innings in that span. Overall, Gasser sports a 4.30 ERA with a 1.27 WHIP and 92:31 K:BB through 96.1 innings this season. He's tentatively in line to face the Orioles on the road his next time out.