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Adley Rutschman C | BOS
Orioles' Adley Rutschman: Slated for MRI
Rutschman (ankle), who was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday, is slated to undergo an MRI on Sunday, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.
The Orioles are listing Rutschman's injury as left ankle inflammation, but his upcoming imaging should clarify whether there's anything more serious going on while also helping to determine a timeline for the backstop's return. Samuel Basallo will likely catch most days while Rutschman is out, and Maverick Handley was called up from Triple-A Norfolk on Saturday to provide another option behind the plate.
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Willson Contreras 1B | BOS
Red Sox's Willson Contreras: Drives in three in win
Contreras went 2-for-4 with a double and three RBI in Saturday's 7-1 win over the Cardinals.
Contreras laced a two-run double in the fourth inning before adding an RBI single in the ninth. The 33-year-old has been on fire since the calendar flipped to April, hitting safely in seven of nine games with four extra-base hits and all eight of his RBI on the season. Overall, he's slashing .250/.419/.417 with two homers and seven runs scored across 62 plate appearances.
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Angel Martinez LF | CLE
Guardians' Angel Martinez: Stays hot in win
Martinez went 2-for-5 with a double, two runs scored and a stolen base in Saturday's 6-0 win over Atlanta.
Martinez caught fire from the sixth inning on, finishing with two hits, two runs scored and a stolen base. The 24-year-old has been red hot, posting four straight multi-hit games and swiping a bag in three consecutive contests. On the season, he's slashing .342/.419/.500 across 44 plate appearances with one home run, six RBI, seven runs scored and four steals.
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Jose Ramirez 3B | CLE
Guardians' Jose Ramirez: Ignites offense in win
Ramirez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk, two stolen bases and an additional run scored in Saturday's 6-0 win over Atlanta.
Ramirez opened the scoring with a solo blast in the first inning before notching his first multi-steal effort of the season. It was a much-needed performance for the 33-year-old, who entered the contest just 8-for-53 on the year. Through 65 plate appearances, he's now slashing .175/.277/.333 with two home runs, seven RBI, five runs scored and two stolen bases while maintaining a solid 8:9 BB:K.
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Bryan Baker RP | TB
Rays' Bryan Baker: Charged with first blown save
Baker took a blown save Saturday against the Yankees, allowing two runs on two hits and one walk in one-third of an inning.
Called upon to protect a 3-1 lead in the eighth inning, Baker was victimized by a Jose Caballero double that plated a pair of runs to tie up the game. The right-hander had been gaining steam as Tampa Bay's favorite for saves, having successfully converted each of the club's prior two save chances, but the Rays' closer committee is likely to remain in a state of flux until someone separates from the pack. Through six frames, Baker owns a 4.50 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 7:1 K:BB.
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Parker Messick SP | CLE
Guardians' Parker Messick: Silences Atlanta for second win
Messick (2-0) earned the win against Atlanta on Saturday, allowing four hits and two walks while striking out five over 6.2 scoreless innings.
Messick pounded the zone, throwing 61 of 84 pitches for strikes while limiting Atlanta to just one extra-base hit. The southpaw has been extremely impressive to open the season, yielding just one earned run through 17.2 innings while logging two quality starts. He'll carry a 0.51 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 16:5 K:BB into a home matchup against the Orioles next week.
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Josh Hader RP | HOU
Astros' Josh Hader: Seemingly close to facing hitters
Hader (biceps) could face hitters next week, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.
Hader began the season on the IL after being diagnosed with biceps inflammation in the early portion of spring training. Astros GM Dana Brown said in late March that the veteran closer would begin facing hitters by mid-April, and that scenario still seems to be very much in play. Hader has been tossing bullpen sessions, and throwing to live hitters would represent another significant step in his rehab program. Activation before the end of April remains a possibility.
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David Bednar RP | NYY
Yankees' David Bednar: Suffers loss, blown save Saturday
Bednar (0-2) was charged with the loss and a blown save Saturday against the Rays, allowing two runs (one earned) on two hits and one walk in one-third of an inning. He struck out one.
Summoned to keep the game tied at 4-4 in the 10th inning, Bednar couldn't overcome a pair of bunt singles and then a soft chopper by Jonathan Aranda that drove in the contest's final run. Although it was the right-hander's first blow save of the year, he's certainly been struggling in the month of April. After working a pair of scoreless outings to begin the year, Bednar has coughed up four earned runs on 10 hits over his last 4.2 innings.
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Max Fried SP | NYY
Yankees' Max Fried: Fires eight strong innings
Fried didn't factor into the decision Saturday against the Rays, allowing three runs on six hits and no walks in eight innings. He struck out six.
The All-Star southpaw worked efficiently during a strong outing Saturday, tossing 66 of his 94 pitches for strikes. Fried has now pitched at least six innings in each of his first three starts of the season, turning in a quality start each time out so far. He's yet to be taken deep en route to producing a stellar 1.93 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 20:5 K:BB over 28 frames. Fried will be looking to extend his streak of quality starts to four against the Angels next week.
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Nick Martinez SP | TB
Rays' Nick Martinez: Contains Yankees in no-decision
Martinez didn't factor into the decision Saturday against the Yankees, allowing one run on five hits and three walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out four.
Martinez danced around plenty of trouble Saturday, working only one clean inning on the evening. The long ball remained an issue for the right-hander as well, as he has now served up one home run in each of his first three starts of the season. Even so, Martinez has allowed two runs or fewer in each start en route to posting a 2.16 ERA and 0.96 WHIP across 16.2 frames.