MLB Player News

Gant walked two and struck out one in the abbreviated outing. He served up a solo homer to Teoscar Hernandez in the second inning then the Blue Jays scratched out a run later in the frame with the help of an error by Brent Rooker. Gant will carry a 3.74 ERA and 1.47 WHIP into his final start of the regular season on Friday against the Royals in Kansas City.

The 31-year-old was designated for assignment by the Giants on Wednesday so they were willing to flip him for anything that they could get at this stage. Wade will stay on the west coast and add a valuable and versatile left-handed bat to the Angels’ bench. He was hitting a meager .167/.275/.271 with one homer and 15 RBI in 169 plate appearances with the Giants.

Chapman jammed his hand on first base while diving back on a pickoff attempt during Sunday’s victory over the Braves. It sounds like he was fortunate to have avoided any significant injuries and should be considered day-to-day. Fantasy managers should check on his status prior to Tuesday’s series opener against the Rockies in Colorado just to be on the safe side.

The 23-year-old shortstop delivered a run-scoring single off of Tomoyuki Sugano in the second inning that extended the A’s early lead to 4-1. He then led off the fifth inning with a double but the Athletics were unable to cash him in. He has been outstanding so far this season, slashing a blistering .372/.408/.528 with eight homers, 38 RBI and five stolen bases in what has been a breakout first half of the season.

Muncy capped off the scoring in the ballgame with a 431-foot (104.7 mph EV) solo shot off of Bryan Baker in the eighth inning. That was his only hit in four at-bats on the afternoon. For the season, the 22-year-old rookie infielder is slashing a disappointing .188/.216/.341 with three homers and eight RBI in his first 88 plate appearances with the A’s.

The 27-year-old left-hander racked up five strikeouts on the afternoon while issuing a pair of free passes. The only run that the Orioles scored in the contest came on a pickoff error in the second inning. Lopez needed 91 pitches to get through four innings though, which caused the A’s to go to their bullpen in the fifth inning and cost Lopez a shot at a victory. He got 13 swings and misses on the afternoon — seven of those on his slider — while posting a CSW of 32 percent. Lopez now sports a 6.00 ERA, 1.71 WHIP and a 31/12 K/BB ratio over 24 innings on the season. He’ll do battle against the Royals his next time out in Kansas City on Saturday.

It wasn’t a save situation because the Dodgers led by four runs, but Kopech finished the game for Los Angeles with Kirby Yates pitching in the seventh inning and Tanner Scott in the eighth inning. Does this mean Kopech is the closer now? Well, maybe, but at the very least he’s firmly in the mix for saves, which muddies the situation for all three relievers.

McNeil has hit three of his six homers the last two days. His exit velocity numbers aren’t any better than usual this year, but he’s pulling the ball more frequently and also striking out less than ever. It’s led to an excellent .257/.355/.533 line so far. That .276 isolated slugging percentage is more than twice as high as his .125 mark over the previous three years. Alas, while things are definitely looking up here, McNeil unfortunately does not have any games remaining against the Rockies.

While Mets hitters were combining to hit six homers, Megill allowed none to Colorado. He’s surrendered just five in 64 2/3 innings on the season. Throw in the outstanding 30% strikeout rate, and it’s kind of surprising he’s not doing better than a 3.76 ERA. Alas, it’d held him back that he has far weaker numbers with men on base than with the bases empty. He remains a fair mixed-league play anyway, and he’ll get the Rays next.

The smart ballclub let one pitcher throw four innings to finish the 13-5 game today. The other wasted four of its five best relievers. Poor Victor Vodnik, who has already missed six weeks with shoulder inflammation this season, made 36 pitches over two innings after having already pitched Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Blackburn might be good for a couple of more saves like this over the course of the year. There’s the chance he’ll be needed in the rotation at some point, but with Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea on the way back, the Mets would prefer that not be the case.

Only six of the 15 balls in play against Dollander were hard hit, but those six produced two homers, a double and three singles, and the rookie also gave up two soft hits besides. Dollander, who was moved up in the rotation to make this start instead of facing the Giants on Tuesday, is now 2-6 with a 6.85 ERA. He’ll pitch in Atlanta next weekend.