MLB Player News

Del Castillo went 3-for-4 with an RBI in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Phillies.

Del Castillo, who was making his first start of the season behind the plate, had a run-scoring single in the first inning, giving him hits in three straight contests. He's in line for more catching work after the Diamondbacks announced that Gabriel Moreno (back) was headed for the injured list. Del Castillo's bat is ahead of his defensive skills, so it's unclear if the plan is to use him as the primary backup to James McCann or reach down to Triple-A Reno for a third catcher. Not calling up another backstop might make it too risky to use Del Castillo as a designated hitter, which is where he made his first three starts before Saturday.

Cabrera came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 4-3 extra-innings loss to the Pirates, giving up three runs on eight hits and three walks over five innings. He struck out four.

Things could have been much worse for the right-hander, as Pittsburgh also went 4-for-4 on stolen-base attempts against Cabrera and had runners in scoring position in every frame he was on the mound. He still exited the game after 98 pitches (62 strikes) in line for his first loss of the season, before the Cubs forced extras in the ninth against Dennis Santana. Cabrera will take a 1.62 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 13:9 K:BB through 16.2 innings into his next outing, which is set to come at home next weekend against the Mets.

Cruz went 4-for-5 with a walk, a double, a run scored and three stolen bases in Saturday's 4-3 extra-innings win over the Cubs.

All three steals came against the battery of Edward Cabrera and Miguel Amaya, and the Pirates went 4-for-4 on the basepaths against that duo in the contest. Cruz also extended his hitting streak to 10 games with the huge performance from the leadoff spot, and through 60 plate appearances to begin the season he's slashing .345/.400/.618 with four homers, five stolen bases, 10 runs and 12 RBI.

Santana gave up one run on one hit and two walks in the ninth inning Saturday, blowing his first save of the season in a 4-3 extra-innings win over the Cubs. He failed to strike out a batter.

One game after picking up his first save of 2026 on Friday, Santana took a step back, getting only 15 of 27 pitches into the strike zone as he gave up his first run of the year in his eighth appearance. Santana still sports a 1.13 ERA, 0.75 WHIP and 6:4 K:BB through eight innings, compared to Gregory Soto's 1.04 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 13:5 K:BB through 8.2 innings, and the duo seem likely to continue splitting closing opportunities depending on matchups.

Ashcraft didn't factor into the decision in Saturday's 4-3 extra-innings win over the Cubs, allowing one run on four hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out nine.

The 26-year-old right-hander was dominant once again, generating 16 swinging strikes on 77 pitches (50 total strikes), and Ashcraft left the mound in line for his second win in three starts before Dennis Santana blew the save in the ninth and sent the game to extras. The nine Ks were a new career high for Ashcraft, just one outing after he'd reset the counter to eight, and through his first 17 innings as a full-time starting pitcher he's posted a 2.12 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 20:5 K:BB. He'll look to keep rolling in his next start, which is set to come at home next week against the Nationals.

Junk (0-2) took the loss Saturday, coughing up five runs (four earned) on five hits and two walks over five innings as the Marlins were downed 6-1 by the Tigers. He struck out four.

A three-run homer by Riley Greene in the third inning was the big blow off Junk, who tossed 64 of 99 pitches for strikes before exiting. The 30-year-old right-hander has seen an uptick in velocity this season, but so far it hasn't translated into significantly better results. He'll take a 4.32 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 12:4 K:BB through 16.2 innings into his next start, which lines up to come at home next weekend against the Brewers.

Hernandez went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run, an additional run and a double in Saturday's 6-3 victory against the Rangers.

Hernandez broke a 1-1 tie and gave Los Angeles a lead it would never lose with a three-run blast off Jack Leiter in the first inning. The slugger was in a mini three-game slump coming into Saturday, going 1-for-11 with four strikeouts over that span, but he's been very good overall at the outset of the campaign. Hernandez is slashing .306/.327/.531 with three home runs, 11 RBI. 10 runs and a stolen base through 13 games.

Ohtani went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a 6-3 victory versus Texas on Saturday.

After the Rangers' Brandon Nimmo led off the game with a homer, Ohtani returned the favor with a long ball of his own leading off the Dodgers' half of the first inning. The two-way star didn't go deep until his seventh game this season, but he's now homered four times over his past eight games. Ohtani has yet to steal a base this yet, but he's otherwise been quite productive, slashing .283/.412/.528 with the four long balls, nine RBI, eight runs and 11 walks through 14 games as a hitter while having yet to allow an earned run across 12 innings spanning two starts on the mound.

Manager Dave Roberts said Saturday that the Dodgers are monitoring Diaz's fastball velocity, Jack Harris of the California Post reports.

Diaz had a rough outing Friday, allowing three runs in the ninth inning against Texas to blow his first save since joining the Dodgers. More notably, his fastball velocity is averaging 95.9 mph in the early going, which is over a tick below his 97.3-mph average velocity last season. Diaz wasn't available to pitch Saturday after throwing 23 pitches Friday, and Roberts didn't commit to having him available Sunday either, saying, "We'll see how he feels tomorrow," per Harris. However, Roberts also noted that Diaz's velocity isn't much of a concern while pointing out that it's usually lower early in the campaign, so fantasy managers probably have no need to panic.

Vesia struck out the only batter he faced to earn a save Saturday against the Rangers.

The Dodgers took a three-run lead into the ninth inning and turned to Blake Treinen to close things out. Treinen got two outs but also allowed two baserunners on a walk and an error, and Vesia was brought in to face lefty Evan Carter, who was then swapped out for pinch hitter Danny Jansen. Vesia got the job done, fanning Jansen on six pitches to end the contest. The save was Vesia's first of the season after he recorded five saves each of the past two regular seasons. He's one of Los Angeles' top setup men but probably won't see many more save chances since Edwin Diaz, who was unavailable Saturday (per Jack Harris of the California Post) after throwing 23 pitches Friday, is locked into the closer role.