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Drew Rasmussen SP | TB
Rays' Drew Rasmussen: Goes on paternity leave
The Rays placed Rasmussen (personal) on the paternity list Wednesday.
Rasmussen had been slated to start Tuesday's game against the Cubs, but he ended up being scratched hours before first pitch after his wife went into labor sooner than anticipated. Tampa Bay didn't have a player available to replace Rasmussen on the roster Tuesday and opted to wait until Wednesday to deactivate him, with Jesse Scholtens now being recalled from Triple-A Durham in a corresponding move. Rasmussen will rejoin the Rays no later than Saturday, and he'll likely be in line to make a start at some point during the team's weekend home series versus the Yankees.
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Robert Gasser SP | MIL
Brewers' Robert Gasser: Nursing arm injury
Gasser hasn't made an appearance for Triple-A Nashville since March 27 while dealing with muscle soreness in his left biceps and triceps, Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.
The injury may explain why the Brewers didn't recall Gasser and instead opted to promote Shane Drohan from Triple-A to make a spot start Wednesday against the Red Sox, after a doubleheader last week forced Milwaukee to temporarily expand its rotation to six men. Gasser hasn't been placed on Nashville's injured list and appears to be making good strides in his recovery, with Hogg noting that the southpaw is scheduled to throw a bullpen session at some point this week.
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Jonathan Loaisiga RP | ARI
Diamondbacks' Jonathan Loaisiga: Squanders another lead
Loaisiga was charged with a blown save Tuesday against the Mets, allowing one run on two hits while striking out one over one inning.
Loaisiga entered the eighth inning with a one-run lead but quickly ran into trouble, allowing a pair of singles to put runners at the corners before Jared Young lifted a sacrifice fly to bring home the tying run. The 31-year-old has now been charged with back-to-back blown saves after opening the season with four scoreless outings. Despite the recent struggles, Loaisiga still holds a respectable 2.84 ERA and should continue to see high-leverage opportunities alongside Paul Sewald, though potentially with a short leash moving forward.
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Jacob deGrom SP | TEX
Rangers' Jacob deGrom: Planning to make next start
DeGrom said Wednesday that his injured right knee is feeling better, and he expects to be ready to start when his next turn through the rotation comes up this weekend against the Dodgers, Jeff Wilson of AllDLLS.com reports.
DeGrom experienced discomfort in his right knee during his most recent outing Monday against the Mariners, prompting the Rangers to send him in for a precautionary MRI. The MRI revealed no structural damage, and with deGrom's knee having already shown improvement, the right-hander appears to be on track to avoid a stint on the injured list. The Rangers will likely wait and see how deGrom fares during a bullpen session later this week before locking him in for his next start, which will likely come Sunday.
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Cade Povich SP | BAL
Orioles' Cade Povich: Drawing start this weekend
Povich will start Sunday's game against the Giants, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.
After Brandon Young made a spot start in place of the injured Zach Eflin (elbow) on Monday, it will be Povich getting a turn this weekend. Povich made one extended relief appearance Sunday against the Pirates, allowing two runs on four hits and a 2:3 K:BB over 5.2 innings. The left-hander will have an opportunity to make additional starts if he pitches well.
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Caleb Durbin 3B | BOS
Red Sox's Caleb Durbin: Makes impact off bench
Durbin entered Tuesday's game as a pinch hitter and went 0-for-1 with an RBI in a 3-2 win over Milwaukee. He remained in the game at third base.
Durbin pinch hit for Marcelo Mayer in a tie game with runners in scoring position against a left-hander in the sixth inning and plated the eventual game-winning run on a slow roller to second base. Following an 0-for-18 start to the season, Durbin has found moderate success since, going 4-for-15 with a walk, a double and two RBI over the last five games.
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Freddy Peralta SP | TB
Mets' Freddy Peralta: Undone by late struggles
Peralta did not factor into the decision Tuesday against the Diamondbacks, allowing three runs on three hits and three walks while striking out five over 4.2 innings.
Peralta cruised through the first four innings, keeping Arizona off the board, but he ran into trouble in the fifth. Despite opening the frame with consecutive strikeouts, a single and two walks loaded the bases and forced his exit, and all three inherited runners eventually came around to score. The right-hander needed 101 pitches to record just 14 outs, as Arizona consistently extended at-bats with foul balls, and a fielding error behind him added to the pitch count. While the strikeout ability was there, inefficiency and an inability to finish hitters ultimately cut his outing short. Peralta now owns a 4.80 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 19:5 K:BB across 15 innings this season.
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Samuel Basallo C | BAL
Orioles' Samuel Basallo: Playing time trending down
Basallo is not in the lineup for Wednesday's contest against the White Sox.
After starting six of the first seven games of the season, Basallo has been in the lineup just twice over the past five games and has not started consecutive games over that span. The young slugger has gotten off to a sluggish start, going 5-for-30 with a 38.2 percent strikeout rate. Pete Alonso will be in the designated hitter slot Wednesday and Ryan Mountcastle will start at first base for the Orioles.
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Roman Anthony LF | BOS
Red Sox's Roman Anthony: Early throwing issues
Anthony had three instances of poor throws from left field early in the regular season which have been a topic of discussion, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Anthony had two throws to home plate during the team's season-opening road trip which were not close, including one that arrived on multiple bounces. He followed up with an offline throw to third base Monday that led to two runs in an 8-6 loss. Both manager Alex Cora and third base coach Kyle Hudson, who was an outfielder during his tenure as a player in the majors and minors, believe the issue revolves around Anthony's lower-half mechanics. Hudson indicated the arm strength is there, but improper mechanics puts him in a tough position to maximize the strength. Anthony served as the DH on Tuesday, and his throwing issues aren't going to cost him plate appearances; however, as Cora manages playing time for five worthy outfielders, limiting Anthony to DH reduces roster flexibility. It's unclear when he'll return to the outfield, but when he does, teams are expected to challenge Anthony's arm.