MLB Player News

The Reds optioned Sampson to Triple-A Louisville on Sunday.

Sampson was sent down to make room for Jon Moscot to come off the DL and start Sunday's game.

The health of DeGrom's (back) son, Jaxon, has improved slightly, and the right-hander is slated to throw a 40-pitch bullpen session Sunday, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reports.

DeGrom, already sidelined with a lat issue, was placed on the family medical emergency list Saturday due to complications related to Jaxon's birth. It's great news to hear that his son is doing better, but there is no time frame for deGrom to return. DeGrom will miss Tuesday's start against the Phillies and could miss one more, though it's believed that his lat issue has mostly cleared up.

Cueto (3-0) allowed one run on three hits and two walks while striking out seven over 7.1 innings to earn the win Saturday at the Dodgers.

Cueto shut down the Dodgers up until he allowed a run in the seventh inning, letting the bullpen take over to close out the victory. In two of his three starts this season, he's allowed exactly one run while pitching at least seven innings. His ERA now sits at 3.38, and he's looking more like the pre-All-Star break Cueto from last season, rather than the Royals' version. He'll make his next start Thursday at home against the Diamondbacks.

Wainwright (0-2) surrendered 10 hits, seven earned runs, and a walk over 5.1 innings in Saturday's 9-8 loss to the Reds. He struck out two.

The Cardinals' ace was shelled, leading to his exit after 74 pitches. He started out well enough, retiring the first eight batters before opposing pitcher Brandon Finnegan singled with two outs in the third. Things began to spiral downward from that point, with Brandon Phillips tallying an RBI double in the fifth, and Phillips and Eugenio Suarez following with another pair of run-producing two-baggers in the next frame. Wainwright's earned runs have progressively increased in each start, and he's now sporting an 8.27 ERA over 16.1 innings. His next opportunity to right the ship should come next Friday night versus the Padres in San Diego.

Bergman (0-2) surrendered four hits, two earned runs and a walk over five innings in Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Cubs.

Making his first start of the season, Bergman matched a career high of seven strikeouts. While he generally pitched effectively, he was done in by back-to-back homers by Anthony Rizzo and Jorge Soler on his first two pitches in the fourth. He was largely sharp otherwise, throwing 49 of 67 pitches for strikes, and notching first-pitch strikes against 14 of the 19 hitters he faced. Bergman may earned opportunities for additional starts later in the season if the need arises, but he's unlikely to grab another one in the near future if Jon Gray (abdomen) returns as planned.

Nola (0-2) came back down to earth Saturday, allowing seven runs on seven hits over five frames in a loss to Washington. He also struck out six and walked three.

He still doesn't have a win this season, but Nola pitched well enough to win either of his first two starts, yielding five runs in 14 innings. After Saturday's outing, that ERA has skyrocketed to 5.68, but the good news is he is still striking out his fair share of hitters. Nola has recorded 23 punchouts in 19 innings this season. He will go for his first win of the season again versus the Brewers on Friday.

Finnegan allowed four runs (all unearned) over five innings against the Cardinals on Saturday, getting the win after the Reds rallied to take the lead in the sixth inning.

Finnegan was wild on Saturday, walking four and needing 98 pitches to get through five innings. But that's baseball - he was much better against the Cubs earlier in the week and got nothing to show for it, so naturally he got the win on Saturday.

Ryu (shoulder) has a groin strain and will not be able to throw his scheduled bullpen session Saturday, MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports.

The shoulder injury he is attempting to rehab is still the top concern for Ryu, but a groin strain popping up in the rehab process certainly clouds any previously estimated timetables. He is 11 months out from shoulder surgery and as his timetable continues to be pushed back (he was originally scheduled to be ready for the start of spring training), it's hard for fantasy owners to realistically bank on any significant number of innings from him in the foreseeable future.

Sampson has pitched in only two games so far this season, giving up four runs on four hits and four walks over three innings.

Sampson is basically the last man in one of the worst bullpens in baseball. Abandon all fantasy value ye who enter here.

DeGrom (back) was placed on the family medical emergency list Saturday, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reports.

DeGrom and his wife recently had their first child and Rubin is reporting that he'll need to step away from the team for the time being to tend to an issue relating to the newborn. MLB rules dictate that deGrom will be unavailable for a minimum of three days and a maximum of seven days, meaning the earliest he'll be able to return will be Tuesday.