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Brady Singer SP | CIN
Royals' Brady Singer: Tagged for five runs
Singer (2-4) took the loss Saturday, allowing five runs on six hits and three walks over four innings in a 5-4 loss against the Athletics. He struck out four.
Singer's rocky start to the season continued Saturday, as he gave up at least five runs for the fifth time in seven starts while taking his fourth loss in his last five appearances. Considering Singer owns an abysmal 8.82 ERA and 1.60 WHIP while the Royals score the fifth-fewest runs in MLB, Singer isn't currently an attractive fantasy option.
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Ken Waldichuk SP | WAS
Athletics' Ken Waldichuk: Struggles with control
Waldichuk (1-2) earned the win Saturday, allowing four runs on six hits and six walks over five innings in a 5-4 victory over Kansas City. He struck out six.
Waldichuk grabbed his first win of the year after four straight no-decisions. He also set a season high in walks, doubling the previous mark of three. Most of the damage came in the fourth, where Waldichuk gave up a solo homer to Freddy Fermin and a two-run shot to Bobby Witt. Waldichuk has struggled with the long ball this year, giving up 11 home runs over 36.0 innings to go along with a poor 7.25 ERA. Though the left-hander doesn't provide much season-long value, he offers some intrigue as a matchup-based streamer considering the Oakland Coliseum's status as a pitcher-friendly ballpark.
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Adam Wainwright SP | STL
Cardinals' Adam Wainwright: No-decision in 2023 debut
Wainwright didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Tigers, giving up four runs on eight hits over five-plus innings. He struck out five.
Activated from the IL earlier in the day after completing his recovery from a groin injury, the 41-year-old gave St. Louis three scoreless frames in his season debut before beginning to fade, eventually getting pulled after 90 pitches (62 strikes) when he gave up back-to-back hits to lead off the sixth inning. Wainwright was still in position to pick up the win until Detroit tied it up in the seventh. The workload is encouraging, and despite his age he has thrown over 190 innings in each of the last two seasons, so Wainwright isn't expected to need extra rest between starts now that he's healthy. He'll likely take the mound for his second start of 2023 next weekend in Boston.
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Colin Rea SP | CHC
Brewers' Colin Rea: Gets no support in loss
Rea (0-3) took the loss Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits and one walk over six innings against San Francisco. He struck out four.
Rea turned in his first quality start of the season but was outdueled by Alex Cobb, who blanked the Brewers over seven innings. Most of the damage was done early, as a Joey Bart double in the second brought Michael Conforto around to score from first base before Thairo Estrada smacked a two-run home run off Rea in the third. Rea finished the outing by retiring 11 consecutive batters. Though the right-hander bears an 0-3 record, he's been a reliable fill-in starter for Milwaukee, who has dealt with a slew of injuries to their top rotation arms early in the season. Because of his unstable role as the team's sixth starter, Rea doesn't have much fantasy value outside of being a matchup-based streamer.
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Alex Cobb SP | DET
Giants' Alex Cobb: Tosses seven scoreless
Cobb (2-1) earned the win Saturday, allowing five hits and two walks over seven scoreless innings against the Brewers. He struck out five.
Cobb had no issues with the Brewers lineup Saturday, holding the team to just five hits over seven shutout innings without allowing a single extra-base hit. Despite the 2-1 record, Cobb has been incredible through seven starts this season, owning a 2.01 ERA and 6.33 K/BB. Though the 35-year-old isn't the best source of strikeouts (8.48 K/9), Cobb provides value by limiting damage while benefitting from making frequent starts in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park.
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Spencer Turnbull RP | TOR
Tigers' Spencer Turnbull: Escapes with no-decision
Turnbull didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-5 extra-inning win over the Cardinals, coughing up five runs on seven hits and a walk over 4.2 innings. He struck out six.
The right-hander continues to have a bumpy return from Tommy John surgery. Saturday's six strikeouts did tie Turnbull's season high, but he also served up multiple homers for the first time in seven starts, and he left the game on the hook for his fifth loss before the Tigers tied it up in the seventh inning. Turnbull will carry a 7.26 ERA and 24:15 K:BB through 31 innings into his next outing, which could come at home next weekend against the Mariners.
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Mike Clevinger RP | PIT
White Sox's Mike Clevinger: Picks up third loss
Clevinger (2-3) took the loss Saturday, allowing four runs on six hits and one walk over six innings against Cincinnati. He struck out seven.
Outside of a three-run home run by TJ Friedl in the fifth, Clevinger exited Saturday's start relatively unscathed, striking out seven and handing out only one free pass. He was unable to keep control of the basepaths, giving up a pair of steals to Jonathan India in separate innings. Clevinger has cooled off after a strong start to the season, giving up 15 runs and six homers over his last four starts while taking the loss three times. Though Clevinger posted a 12.07 K/9 in 2019, he has yet to return to his previous form after suffering a torn meniscus in 2020. However, Clevinger remains a player worth monitoring moving forward in case he finds his groove.
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Nick Lodolo SP | CIN
Reds' Nick Lodolo: Gets pulled early
Lodolo did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing three runs on six hits and one walk over 3.2 innings against the White Sox. He struck out three.
Lodolo was unable to make it through the fourth inning Saturday, marking his shortest outing of the season. Once again, he was plagued by the long ball, giving up solo homers to Hanser Alberto and Seby Zavala prior to exiting. Lodolo has now given up multiple home runs in four straight starts while only pitching more than five frames once in seven appearances. Though Lodolo has shown excellent strikeout stuff (12.32 K/9), his fantasy value is capped by his pitiful 2.64 HR/9 and 6.29 ERA.
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Lance McCullers SP | MIL
Astros' Lance McCullers: Throws bullpen session Saturday
McCullers (forearm) threw a bullpen session in Seattle on Saturday, reportedly hitting 90 mph twice, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
McCullers has been out since February, as he's been nursing an injured right forearm, so Saturday's session is certainly encouraging. The 29-year-old will continue to slowly ramp up his activity over the next few weeks, including an inevitable rehab assignment, which will likely be multiple starts. That said, once healthy, McCullers will help fill the void left in the Astros' rotation by Luis Garcia's season-ending elbow injury.
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Luis Severino SP | ATH
Yankees' Luis Severino: Simulated game goes well
Severino (lat) felt good after throwing a simulated game Friday and will soon make a rehab appearance for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
Manager Aaron Boone said at the start of May that Severino was two or three weeks from returning from the lat strain which has kept him out all season. While a planned rehab start became a simulated game instead, it doesn't appear as though he's significantly behind that schedule. Exactly how many rehab outings he needs will determine whether or not he's able to hit Boone's stated timeline.