MLB Player News

Baker (1-0) was credited with the win Sunday against the Twins, striking out two in a clean ninth inning.

The Rays have a pretty wide open closer competition during the early going of the season. Griffin Jax has an 11.25 ERA through his first four innings, while both Garrett Cleavinger (calf) and Edwin Uceta (shoulder) are on the injured list. That said, the door is open for Baker, who has tossed three scoreless innings with a 4:0 K:BB thus far, to at least claim more high-leverage work.

Smith earned the save during Game 2 of Sunday's doubleheader against the Cubs, allowing one run on one hit and two walks in the ninth inning. He struck out two.

Smith had the Cubs down to their final out before things got a bit messy. The right-hander issued back-to-back free passes before Ian Happ plated a run on a single, but Smith got Carson Kelly to strike out to hold on for his third save. Smith has now gone 3-for-4 on save chances to go with a rough 7.50 ERA and 1.67 WHIP across his first six innings, but there's no indication at the moment that the Guardians are going to turn away from him as their primary closer.

Castillo did not factor into the decision Sunday against the Angels, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits and one walk while striking out four over 3.2 innings.

Castillo couldn't find a rhythm in this one, allowing at least two baserunners in every inning he worked and exiting before completing four frames for the first time since 2024. The right-hander ran into trouble immediately, allowing a leadoff double to Zach Neto before Jorge Soler brought him home with an RBI single, and the outing didn't improve much from there. Unlike his dominant Opening Day outing in which he tossed six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, Castillo failed to fool hitters Sunday and was consistently pitching under pressure. The 33-year-old will look to bounce back in his next scheduled start against Houston, though it presents a tough test against one of the league's most productive offenses early in 2026.

Messick didn't factor into the decision Sunday against the Cubs, allowing one run on two hits and three walks in five innings. He struck out six.

After firing six scoreless innings in his first start of the season versus the Dodgers, Messick kept his foot on the gas in his second appearance of the year. The southpaw induced 13 whiffs during the nightcap of Sunday's doubleheader, though he was a bit shaky with his control while tossing just 51 of his 91 pitches for strikes. Messick still has a strong 11:3 K:BB through his first 11 frames of 2026, but another tough test in Atlanta awaits him in his next scheduled outing.

Meyers went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Sunday's 12-10 loss to the Athletics.

Meyers led off the eighth inning with a homer, his first of the season. The center fielder came into the game hitting .192 with one extra-base hit. He's now slashing .233/.333/.367 with the one home run, four RBI, five runs scored, one stolen base and a 4:7 BB:K across 36 plate appearances.

Walker went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run and a walk in Sunday's 12-10 loss to the Athletics.

Walker hit a two-run homer off J.T. Ginn in the top of the seventh inning to tie the game 5-5. It was Walker's second home run in as many days and second of the season. He's now slashing .324/.405/.649 with eight extra-base hits, 11 RBI, seven runs scored and a 5:7 BB:K across 40 plate appearances to begin the season.

Smith went 2-for-5 with three RBI, one walk and a stolen base in Sunday's 12-10 loss to the Athletics.

Smith walked and stole his third base of the season in the fourth inning, drove in a run with a single in the fifth and singled home a pair in the eighth to tie the game 9-9. After a slow start to the season, Smith has a six-game hitting streak and is 8-for-20 with two home runs, five RBI and four runs scored during that time. Smith is now slashing .273/.400/485 across 40 plate appearances.

Correa went 2-for-5 with an RBI, two runs scored, a walk and a stolen base in Sunday's 12-10 loss to the Athletics.

Correa struck out in each of his first two plate appearances but walked and stole a base before scoring on a Cam Smith single in the fifth. He singled and scored in the seventh and singled home a run in the top of the 10th inning to give Houston a 10-9 lead. Through 10 games this season, Correa is slashing .263/.349/.368 with one home run, eight RBI, eight runs scored, one stolen base and a 5:6 BB:K across 43 trips to the plate.

Alvarez went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and two walks in Sunday's 12-10 loss to the Athletics.

Alvarez took Jacob Lopez deep in the fifth inning to get the scoring started in this one. It was Alvarez's fourth long ball of the season, and he's now driven in 10 runs. One of the hottest hitters in baseball through the first week-and-a-half, Alvarez owns a robust .400/.578/.900 slash line with 10 runs scored, one stolen base and a 12:6 BB:K across 45 trips to the plate. He's taken six walks over his last two games.

Kurtz went 2-for-3 with a double, three walks, one run scored and a stolen base in Sunday's 12-10 win over the Astros.

Kurtz entered play Sunday in a 2-for-24 slump with a 6:13 BB:K to begin the season. Kurtz walked in the first, singled and stole his second base in the third, walked and scored in the fifth, hit a ground-rule double in the sixth for his first extra-base hit of the season and walked again in the seventh. Perhaps it will help propel Kurtz into a hot streak at the plate. He's now slashing .148/.361/.185 across 36 plate appearances and is still looking for his first home run and RBI of the season.