MLB Player News

Mets starter Noah Syndergaard (1-1) earned his first MLB victory Sunday, allowing one run on three hits in six innings to defeat the Brewers.

Syndergaard breezed into the sixth inning but was shaken up after hitting Carlos Gomez in the head with a 97-mph fastball, forcing the centerfielder to leave the game. 

Ryan Braun followed shortly with an RBI single, the only blemish for Syndergaard. 

"It's never really happened," Syndergaard said about hitting Gomez. "It kind of rattled me a little bit." 

Syndergaard fanned five and walked one in the outing. 

"He doesn't just go out there and say, 'Hey, I've got great stuff, I'm just going to pitch,'" Mets manager Terry Collins said. 

Syndergaard will look for career win number two Friday when he starts next in Pittsburgh.

Marlins starter Henderson Alvarez (0-3) was batted around for six runs on nine hits in 5 1/3 innings Sunday to take the loss against the Braves.

Five of the six runs Alvarez allowed came in the second inning, which was highlighted by a two-run single from Jace Peterson.

Alvarez has now allowed 10 runs in 10 1/3 innings (8.71 ERA) over his last two starts.

Alvarez's next start is set for Friday against the Orioles.

With a pair of off-days scheduled this week, the Pirates will skip Vance Worley's turn in the rotation, MLB.com reports.

Francisco Liriano and Jeff Locke will square off with the Twins during a two-game series Tuesday and Wednesday before the team hosts the Mets for a three-game series this weekend. Worley is 2-3 with a 4.38 ERA and 23:14 K:BB ratio in 39 innings.

The Braves announced Sunday that pitcher Williams Perez will make his first major-league start Wednesday against the Rays, with pitcher Eric Stults moving to the bullpen.

Perez was rocked in his major-league debut, giving up four earned runs on two hits and two walks while recording just one out and serving up a home run in a relief appearance on May 8. He fared much better his next time out, giving up one hit and two walks in two scoreless innings while striking out two in two innings on Tuesday. Perez went 2-0 with a 1.33 ERA and 21:9 K:BB ratio in 27 innings across five Triple-A starts before being called up this month.

"[Perez] is a guy who throws strikes and he has a good mixture of pitches," manager Fredi Gonzalez said, per MLB.com. "He's a young guy that could help us in the rotation in the future. So we'll give him an opportunity to start."

Stults has lost each of his three starts in May, posting a 7.00 ERA and 12:2 K:BB ratio in 18 innings this month. He's 1-4 with a 5.36 ERA and 25:8 K:BB ratio in 40 1/3 innings.

The Marlins activated pitcher Henderson Alvarez (elbow) from the 15-day disabled list Sunday, designating pitcher Nick Masset for assignment in a corresponding move.

Alvarez made just two starts in April before hitting the disabled list with elbow tightness and shoulder inflammation. He threw six scoreless innings in a rehab game with Class A Jupiter Tuesday and will start Sunday against the Braves.

Alvarez is 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA and 5:1 K:BB ratio in 12 innings.

Zack Greinke took the tough-luck loss on Saturday as the Dodgers fell to the Rockies 7-1. Greinke pitched six innings, allowing just one earned run on four hits, including a first-inning home run to Carlos Gonzalez. Greinke struck out five and did not issue a walk, but was out-dueled by Jorge De La Rosa.

Greinke earned his first loss of the season, dropping his record to 5-1. His ERA stayed stationary at 1.52, which is still tops in the National League. He'll look to get back in the win column in his next start, currently scheduled for Friday against the division-rival Padres.

Padres pitcher Odrisamer Despaigne will get at least one more start in the rotation after his struggles on Friday, manager Bud Black said per U-T San Diego.

"We're talking about where we're going to slot him for his next start," Padres manager Bud Black said. "With the off day Monday, we can do a few things with the rotation. A lot of it will be based on the other guys and not specifically on Despaigne."

It was Despaigne's third consecutive rough outing. He has ballooned his ERA to 6.75 with 19 runs allowed in his last 9 2/3 innings.

"Sometimes my fastball isn't working and sometimes it's my curveball that's not working," Despaigne said. "It's a matter of consistency."

Mets starter Jacob deGrom was in fine form in Saturday's win over the Brewers. The reigning NL Rookie of the Year pitched six innings, allowing one run on five hits. He walked one and struck out six. deGrom was the beneficary of an offensive explosion by the Mets as they routed the Brewers 14-1.

This was a nice rebound for deGrom who struggled in his last start on Monday when he gave up four runs in five innings. The only run he gave up on Saturday came on a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning. deGrom threw 100 pitches, with 65 going for strikes.

deGrom even went 3 for 3 with an RBI at the plate, including two singles during the Mets' 10-run fourth inning. He's now sporting a very fine .294 batting average.

"It was a big night," deGrom said, per the New Jersey Star-Ledger. "Coming off a couple bad starts, wanted to get out there and put us in a position to win. We played great as a team. Everything came together, the offense, and we pitched well and got the win."

The victory evened his record at 4-4 and dropped his ERA to 3.72. He'll look to keep the good times rolling when he makes his next start, scheduled for Wednesday against the Cardinals.

Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom is struggling early on this season. In his last start against the Cubs, deGrom allowed four runs on five hits, pushing his record to 3-4 with a 3.46 ERA this season. Manager Terry Collins thinks he knows why the issues are happening, according to NJ.com.

"Some of the things that I've seen him do, I think he's tried way too hard to live up to what he did last year," Collins said. "But yeah, I think he puts a little pressure on himself to think he's got to win every game he goes out there instead of just pitching the kind of games he pitches where he's going to be successful."

deGrom posted a 9-6 record with a 2.69 ERA in 22 starts in 2014. He has already allowed six home runs after allowing just seven all of last year. 

"He's not really a strikeout guy, and I think he's overthrowing a little bit," Collins said. "That's caused him to get the ball up in the strike zone, so hopefully he's back to what made him successful last summer."

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole was solid in a loss on Saturday to the Cubs. Cole went six innings, allowing two runs on seven hits while matching his season-high with eight punchouts. He left the game with his team down 2-1, but the bullpen gave up two runs in the seventh inning.

Cole (5-2, 2.40 ERA) gave up individual runs in the first and third innings, but was pretty much on cruise-control after that. He threw 107 pitches with 70 going for strikes.

"I would've liked to have pitched a little bit better," Cole said, per MLB.com. "Yeah, I looked forward to try to get us back on track, and (Lester) beat me today."

He's lined up to make his next start on Saturday against the Mets.