MLB Player News

Dodgers starting pitcher Zack Greinke won his second start in a row Friday, in an easy 7-0 win over the Diamondbacks.

Greinke cruised through yet another solid outing, tossing eight shutout innings in the win. He limited the Diamondbacks to just five hits as a team, while walking just two batters as well. He also struck out six and threw 69 of 106 pitches for strikes in the win.

Greinke has lost just one start this season, and that was a truncated outing that saw him pitch only three innings before a rain delay. He is 7-1 with a 2.03 ERA heading into his next start, set for Thursday against the Mets. 

Cardinals starting pitcher Lance Lynn cruised through seven strong innings Friday, in a 5-2 win over the Cardinals.

Lynn actually fell behind early, and was down after four innings, before a big rally in the fifth got him up for good. He limited the Braves to two runs in his seven innings of work, on seven hits, six of which fell in for singles. He struck out three batters and walked two while throwing 69 of 110 pitches for strikes.

Lynn is now 5-2 after the win, snapping a three-start winless streak. He carries a 3.67 ERA into his net outing, set for Thursday against the Diamondbacks. 

Dodgers pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu took a big step in his recovery from a shoulder injury Friday, and could be on the verge of returning from the disabled list.

Ryu tossed 75 pitches in a four-inning simulated game at the team's spring training complex Friday, and reported no setbacks with his shoulder. Manager Don Mattingly told MLB.com Ryu looked "really good" against minor-league hitters, but was not willing to confirm Ryu's return date.

Despite that, Ryu has a clear path to return to the rotation, especially since the team does not consider a minor-league rehab assignment necessary. Ryu could slot into the rotation spot of Paul Maholm, who is set to pitch Wednesday against the Mets. Maholm's ERA ballooned to 5.40 after his last start. 

Though both pitched well in their major-league debuts this week, the Mets will only be able to keep one of their rookies in the rotation long term.

Manager Terry Collins told MLB.com Friday only one of Rafael Montero and Jacob deGrom will keep his job when Dillon Gee is able to return from the disabled list. That is expected to come May 26, so both pitchers will be fighting for a job in their next few turns in the rotation. 

Jacob deGrom may have had the stronger debut, but between the Mets' recent additions to the starting rotation, Rafael Montero is still the one to own.

As hard as he throws, he has a chance of making an impact as long as he finds the strike zone, but the scouting reports have made him out to be more of a mid-level prospect. Baseball America described him as a potential No. 4 starter coming into the season -- and that's in the real-life sense, not the Fantasy sense.

His minor-league track record suggests the same. While his debut made him out to be a bat-misser, recording six strikeouts while allowing just four hits in seven innings, he averaged 7.4 strikeouts and 9.3 hits per nine innings over his minor-league career. If he's that same kind of pitcher in the majors, he's probably on the waiver wire in most leagues.

Of course, Dallas Keuchel is the perfect example of a pitcher who overcame (or at least appears to have overcome) suspect minor-league rates to become a real Fantasy contributor, but after only one start, I'm not ready to classify deGrom as another exception to the rule.

The Cubs are adjusting their schedule for the upcoming turn in order to keep Jason Hammel and Jeff Samardzija on a five-day schedule.

With Monday's off day, the Cubs are moving Jake Arrieta back to Thursday's game against the Padres, in order to give him extra time to work on his mechanics, according to MLB.com. The move also allows Hammel and Samardzija to remain on schedule, as they will not pitch Tuesday and Wednesday against the Yankees, respectively.

A higher strikeout rate has played a big role in Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto's success this season.

For the first time in his career, Cueto is striking out over a batter per inning. He's seen his strikeout rate jump from 21.1 percent last year, to 28.8 percent in 2014. Cueto isn't doing anything different, either. He's working with virtually the same repertoire, and he hasn't seen a major velocity increase. Despite that, he's been able to post one of the highest swinging strike rates of his career.

Even if he sees some regression, Cueto should turn in an effective season the rest of the way. The bigger question is whether injuries will keep him from tossed 200+ innings for the second time in his career. 

Reds sizzling right-hander Johnny Cueto is being touted as the best pitcher in baseball these days. He's not going to get an argument from the man he sees in the mirror.

"I would say, yes, definitely yes," he told the Dayton Daily News. "My numbers have to talk for me. Every time I go to the mound I do my job. And I do my job to get the best numbers."

Cueto is all but certain barring injury to have his $10 million club option picked up after this season. He is destined thereafter to land a far more lucrative contract with the Reds or some other team in free agency.

Cubs pitcher Kyle Hendricks is performing well at Triple-A.

Hendricks struck out 11 hitters over eight innings in his most recent outing. He did not walk any batters. Through eight starts, Hendricks is actually second in the Pacific Coast League with 54 strikeouts in 50 innings. The 24-year-old has yet to make his major-league debut. 

Marlins starting pitcher Nate Eovaldi failed to make it past the fifth inning and was charged with the loss Thursday night in San Francisco. The right-handed hurler was shelled for six runs on nine hits and two walks while striking out two in 4 1/3 innings, dropping to 2-2 on the year.

Over his last two starts -- both on the road -- covering 12 innings, Eovaldi has surrendered eight earned runs. Following the 6-4 defeat, Eovaldi will try to get back on track Wednesday at home against Philadelphia. He is 2-1 with a 2.73 ERA in five starts at Marlins Park.