MLB Player News

Weiss delivered two hitless innings in relief in Monday's win over the Red Sox, striking out three while walking one.

Weiss failed to crack Houston's rotation out of spring training, though he did make the team as a bullpen option. The right-hander looked sharp Monday, as he set down six straight Red Sox after issuing a leadoff walk in the eighth. It was an encouraging performance for Weiss, after he gave up a home run to Zach Neto in his major league debut Friday. While Weiss could work his way into the high-leverage picture, he's more likely to serve as a swingman or long-relief option this year.

DeGrom (neck) has been cleared to start Tuesday's game in Baltimore.

DeGrom had to be scratched from his first scheduled start of the season Saturday in Philadelphia due to neck stiffness, but he's improved enough in the days since then to take the ball Tuesday. With deGrom ready to go, Jacob Latz -- who tossed four scoreless frames in a spot start in deGrom's stead versus the Phillies -- will head back to the bullpen.

Perez is expected to be available in relief for Tuesday's game against the Athletics with Jose Suarez being named Atlanta's starter, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

After Atlanta selected Perez's contract from Triple-A Gwinnett on Monday, the veteran lefty appeared to be the most likely candidate to fill the vacant fifth spot in the rotation. Instead, manager Walt Weiss will turn to Suarez, who wasn't needed out of the bullpen in the first four games of the season. Perez will take Suarez's spot in the bullpen after joining the active roster as a replacement for Didier Fuentes, who was optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on Monday.

Littell is a candidate to pitch in bulk relief behind opening pitcher PJ Poulin in Tuesday's game in Philadelphia, Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reports.

According to Nusbaum, manager Blake Butera merely grinned and said, "Poulin's starting," when asked if Littell would be involved in the Nationals' pitching plan for Tuesday, but all signs point to the right-hander making his Washington debut. After signing with Washington late in spring training, Littell built up to 2.2 innings and 64 pitches in his final Grapefruit League outing, so he likely would have been under a bit of a workload restriction if the Nationals had elected to use him as a traditional starter Tuesday. He should eventually move into the rotation once he's fully stretched out.

Bassitt (0-1) took the loss Monday against the Rangers, allowing four runs on six hits and four walks while striking out three in 4.1 innings pitched.

All of the damage done against Bassitt came in the first two innings of his Orioles tenure. He allowed one run in the first inning on a fielder's choice, but the crushing inning was the second. Three hits, two walks and a sacrifice fly contributed to the Rangers plating three runs in the frame and jumping out to a 4-0 lead that the Orioles would not be able to recover from. The 37-year-old will look to find better success in his next outing, scheduled for Sunday against the Pirates.

Castillo did not factor into the decision Monday against the Yankees, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out seven over six scoreless innings.

Castillo was in complete control, holding the Yankees hitless until the fourth inning and limiting them to just two hits overall. The right-hander generated 17 whiffs and leaned heavily on his primary arsenal, throwing 87 of his 95 pitches as either a fastball or slider. Castillo had hitters fooled all night, but his final strikeout was a milestone moment, as he got Aaron Judge to swing through an inside breaking ball for his 1,500th career strikeout before exiting after the sixth inning. The 33-year-old will look to replicate Monday's success in his next scheduled start against the Angels.

Weathers did not factor into the decision Monday against the Mariners, allowing one run on four hits and two walks while striking out seven over 4.1 innings.

Making his Yankees debut after being traded from Miami this offseason, Weathers was sharp for much of the outing, giving up his only run in the second inning on an RBI single from Cole Young before settling in and retiring seven straight batters, including four via strikeout during a dominant stretch. Weathers ran into trouble in the fifth with back-to-back singles that effectively ended his night as he threw 77 pitches (49 strikes) in the effort, flashing strong swing-and-miss ability throughout. Coming off a 2025 season in which the southpaw logged just 38.1 innings with a 3.99 ERA, this start was an encouraging step forward for the 26-year-old.

Walker (0-1) suffered the loss in Monday's defeat against the Nationals, allowing seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits and three hits while striking out two in 4.2 innings of work.

Things went wrong almost immediately for Walker in his first start of 2026. He was tagged for four runs in the first inning, two in the second and one in the third, and the Phillies were down 7-0 before nine outs were recorded. The 33-year-old didn't allow seven runs in one start at all last season, so it certainly wasn't the debut that he was hoping for. His next shot at a rebound will likely come at altitude against the Rockies.

Verlander (0-1) took the loss against Arizona on Monday, tossing 3.2 innings and allowing five runs on six hits and two walks while striking out one batter.

It's a feel-good story for Verlander to be back with the team that he's built much of his Hall of Fame resume with, but the veteran hurler looked far removed from his peak years Monday. Verlander fell behind 5-0 by the end of the second inning, with much of the damage coming by way of a Corbin Carroll three-run homer. To his credit, Verlander did manage to retire six of the eight batters he faced following that long ball, but his final line wasn't pretty. Tellingly, the right-hander notched just six whiffs and one punchout while giving up three extra-base knocks. He'll try to turn things around in his next start, which is lined up for a home matchup versus St. Louis.

Soroka (1-0) earned the win over Detroit on Monday, allowing four hits and issuing one walk while striking out 10 batters over five scoreless innings.

Soroka dazzled throughout the start, racking up 12 whiffs and even recording the first immaculate inning of the 2026 campaign in his fifth and final frame. The right-hander was rolling at the time he was pulled, retiring eight straight batters (including six by strikeout), but Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo opted not to push the hurler any further after he reached 89 pitches. Soroka has struggled with injuries for much of his career and hasn't reached 100 big-league innings since 2019, so it's reasonable for Arizona to be cautious with his pitch counts. With that being said, Soroka averaged over a strikeout per frame each of the past two campaigns (during which he was deployed as both a starter and reliever), and Monday's outing makes him an intriguing option for fantasy managers in need of starting pitching.