MLB Player News

Another rough outing for Whisenhunt, as this one comes after he gave up six runs (five earned) over 3 2/3 last Friday. The southpaw has struck out 11 in eight innings, but the 13.50 ERA over those frames is a little more indicative of how he’s pitched. There’s no reason for long-term panic, however, as Whisenhunt is a southaw with one of the best change-ups you’ll see from a prospect — or just pitchers regardless of levels — and a fastball that can get up to 97 mph. He’ll obviously need to pitch better to do so, but this is absolutely a pitcher that could help fantasy rosters by the end of 2024.

The Yankees surprisingly had Jon Berti play first base against the Royals in the Game 2 loss even though he’d never played the position before. Berti does have some (small sampled) success against starter Seth Lugo; going 3-for-6 in his limited action. If it’s not Berti, the Yankees could have Oswaldo Cabrera or Ben Rice handle the not-so-hot corner.

Black will manage the Rockies for a ninth season. The 67-year-old has more wins than any other skipper in the club’s history; even with a record of just 537-657 over the first eight years. It’s not likely that W-L gets any better in 2025.

The hope is that McNeil could get those at-bats in Arizona and be ready to return for the Mets in the NLCS — if the Mets are able to advance past the Phillies, of course. The 32-year-old has not played since September 7, but it sounds like it’s very likely — maybe even probable — that he’ll be a part of the Mets in some sort of role if they’re able to continue their run past the Divisional Series.

Bohm was benched for Game 2 against New York, but even after going hitless off the bench the 28-year-old will be back on the hot corner against southpaw Sean Manaea. Edmundo Sosa is still in the lineup with Bryson Stott sitting against the left-hander, and Austin Hays gets the start in left with Brandon Marsh on the bench to begin play. The full lineup for Philadelphia as they look to take a 2-1 series lead: DH Kyle Schwarber, SS Trea Turner, 1B Bryce Harper, RF Nick Castellanos, 3B Bohm, C J.T. Realmuto, LF Austin Hays, 2B Sosa, and CF Johan Rojas.

Aguiar was diagnosed with a shoulder strain back in September, but clearly there was more to the injury than first believed — or at least first described. The surgery will keep him from being able to pitch in 2025, and he’ll battle for a roster spot in 2026 if all goes well.

Winker was out against southpaw Cristopher Sanchez on Sunday, but he’ll return to the lineup against righty Austin Nola for the pivotal Game 3 contest with J.D. Martinez not in the starting group. Tyrone Taylor also was out of the lineup for Game 2, but he’s back in center with Harrison Bader retreating to the bench. The full lineup: SS Francisco Lindor, 3B Mark Vientos, LF Brandon Nimmo, 1B Pete Alonso, 2B Jose Iglesias, DH Winker, RF Starling Marte, CF Taylor and Francisco Alvarez catching with Sean Manaea on the mound.

It was the first game of the AFL, and Clarke made an immediate impression. The 24-year-old scored the only run of the game in a 1-0 victory for the Solar Sox. A fourth-round pick by the Athletics in 2021, Clarke had a so-so 2024 year with a .784 OPS over 431 at-bats, but he did still 36 bases and puts up plus run times. No other tool projects more than average, but Clarke has a chance to be a starting outfielder — and potentially one with a bit of fantasy upside — since there’s no real weakness in his game, either; outside of the swing-and-miss that most young hitters suffer from.

No runs scored, since Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino combined to go 0-for-9 with six strikeouts behind him. Two of Garcia’s hits checked in at 106 mph. In large part because the Royals were facing a lefty, Garcia was leading off tonight for the first time since Aug. 31. He made a case to remain there against a righty in Game 3, but at least after a performance like this, he knows he’ll be in the lineup somewhere. That is something he often couldn’t count on during September.

Ragans and Carlos Rodón both seemed to fade quickly tonight, but it resulted in only one run being charged to Ragans and that just because Bobby Witt Jr. couldn’t corral a hard shot to short. The left-hander wound up striking out five and walking four while throwing 87 pitches to get his 12 outs. He’ll be expected to start again if there’s a Game 5 on Saturday.

Erceg was working with a three-run lead, so the solo shot leading off the ninth wasn’t particularly damaging. Erceg went on to give up a two-run single to Jon Berti, but he then got Gleyber Torres to ground out to end the game. The homer tonight was the first he’d allowed since June 12, when he was still with the A’s.