MLB Player News

Cruz (0-1) was tagged with the loss Friday against the Cardinals after allowing an unearned run on one hit and one walk across two-thirds of an inning.

Cruz entered Friday's game to pitch the 11th inning in a 4-4 tie, but he allowed a two-out RBI single to Yohel Pozo, scoring Nathan Church. Cruz has made four appearances since returning to the big-league roster May 8, posting a 6:3 K:BB across 3.2 innings. This unearned run was the lone run he's given up in that span.

Erceg allowed an unearned run on two hits in an inning of work Friday against the Cardinals, striking out two. He was charged with a blown save.

Erceg entered the game in the 10th inning with the Royals holding a one-run lead, but he allowed an RBI single to Alec Burleson that scored Thomas Saggese. This was Erceg's third blown save of the season, and he's now allowed runs in his last two outings. Erceg has gone 10-for-13 in save chances this season while posting a 3.44 ERA and 17:12 K:BB across 19 outings (18.1 innings).

King recorded his fourth save of the season Friday against the Rangers after tossing 1.2 scoreless innings, striking out one.

King recorded the final five outs of the game while tossing 11 of his 17 pitches for strikes. This was a strong bounce-back effort for King, who blew his previous save chance Wednesday against the Mariners and was coming off three straight outings in which he had allowed baserunners. King has a 3.26 ERA in 16 appearances (19.1 innings) this season while going 4-for-6 in save chances thus far in 2026. King should remain as the go-to option for saves in Houston as long as Josh Hader (biceps) remains sidelined. Hader is eligible to return from the 60-day IL on May 24, so King's tenure as the Astros' closer might not last long.

Vargas went 4-for-5 with a double, two RBI and two runs scored in Friday's 9-1 win over the Rockies.

Vargas got the rout started with a run-scoring single in the first inning and logged hits in his first four plate appearances. It was his third consecutive game with two RBI, giving him 30 over his first 36 games. That's one shy of the career-high 31 he had across 86 games for the Nationals in 2023. It's been an unprecedented year for the utility infielder, who entered 2026 batting .249 and averaging 16 RBI across nine MLB seasons. Just when it looked like he was regressing, he's responded by going 7-for-14 with six RBI over the last three contests.

Smith (elbow ) has begun a throwing program, MLB.com reports.

Smith, who began taking dry swings earlier this month, has added another baseball activity in his recovery from elbow surgery. He underwent a procedure to remove loose bodies April 16. The Diamondbacks have not yet offered an estimated timetable for Smith's return. He's currently on the 60-day injured list and eligible to return May 29.

Kelly went 3-for-5 with a double and four RBI during Friday's 10-5 win over the White Sox.

Kelly gave the Cubs a 2-1 lead with an RBI single in the fourth inning, and his second hit in the seventh plated another run to break a 4-4 tie. He completed the hat trick with a ground-rule double in the eighth that scored Alex Bregman and Seiya Suzuki, concluding a 10-run outburst from the Cubs' offense. Kelly is now batting .281 since the beginning of May, but his .636 OPS in that span and inconsistent playing time both work to limit his fantasy appeal.

Burke didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 10-5 loss to the Cubs, allowing four earned runs on eight hits and a walk while striking out five batters across 4.1 innings.

Burke put the Sox in an early hole by allowing consecutive singles to Alex Bregman and Ian Happ to give the Cubs a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Burke bounced back and kept the North Siders off the scoreboard for the next two frames, but he allowed a combined seven batters to reach base during the fourth and fifth, inflating the Cubs' lead to 4-1 at the time of the 26-year-old's removal. The Pale Hose tied the game at four apiece in the sixth inning, taking Burke off the hook for the loss, but that does little to help the fact that he's given up 10 earned runs in 8.2 innings over his last two starts. He'll have a chance to redeem himself next week when he takes the mound in Seattle to face a Mariners offense that ranks in the bottom third of MLB with a .232 batting average.

Cabrera didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 10-5 victory over the White Sox, giving up three earned runs on three hits and three walks while striking out two batters in 4.2 innings.

The Cubs' offense gave Cabrera a 4-1 lead to work with heading into the fifth inning, but the right-hander walked the first two batters he faced, both of whom eventually came around to score. He was taken out of the game after issuing his third free pass of the inning to Sam Antonacci, giving Cabrera his first start of the season with less than five innings pitched. Since starting the campaign with 11.2 consecutive shutout innings, the 28-year-old has surrendered at least three earned runs in each of his last seven starts and owns a 5.26 ERA and 1.50 WHIP in that span. His next chance to right the ship is expected to come at home against the Brewers.

Rice went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional run scored during Friday's 5-2 win over the Mets.

Rice scored his first run of the game in the third inning on a Cody Bellinger single and gave the Yankees another insurance run by hitting a 395-foot homer off Craig Kimbrel in the ninth. Rice remains one of the most productive members of the Yankees' high-scoring offense with a .314/.418/.686 slash line on the season, and his 14 homers put him in a tie with Yordan Alvarez for fourth place on the American League leaderboard.

Schlittler (6-1) earned the win in Friday's 5-2 victory over the Mets, allowing one earned run on two hits and two walks while striking out nine batters across 6.2 innings.

The 25-year-old had a shutout going through six innings, but Juan Soto's leadoff homer in the seventh prevented Schlittler from finishing his start unblemished. That said, Friday's outing extended what has been a dominant run for the young righty, as he's posted a 0.70 ERA and 0.81 WHIP to go with a 38:10 K:BB over 38.1 innings across his last six starts. He's tentatively scheduled to take the mound again Wednesday against Toronto at Yankee Stadium.