MLB Player News

This was Contreras’ first start of the season and he was stretched out to 61 pitches after not topping 50 yet this season. Working as a starter, he leaned far more on his slider than he had in his relief appearances and threw it more often than his fastball. Contreras used that slider as his primary pitch often last season in Pittsburgh as his fastball effectiveness waned. That fastball still isn’t great and he had trouble putting hitters away, as he seemingly always has.

Burdi has been out since late May recovering from right hip inflammation. It seems likely he’ll be ready to return at some point after the All-Star break.

Gallen finds himself the recipient of a tasty matchup on Saturday afternoon against the rebuilding Athletics following a one-month absence due to a Grade 1 right hamstring strain. The 28-year-old upper-echelon fantasy contributor holds a strong 3.12 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 60/15 K/BB ratio across 57 2/3 innings (11 starts) this season.

Hughes holds an astronomical 10.29 ERA, 2.14 WHIP and 18/7 K/BB ratio across 14 innings (12 appearances) this season in the big leagues. He’s headed back to the minors this weekend to make room for Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen to return from the injured list.

It appears to be a routine off day for Carroll with lefty Hogan Harris drawing the starting assignment on Saturday afternoon for Oakland. The 23-year-old’s sophomore campaign hasn’t gone as planned, but he’s shown some signs of life over the last few weeks, batting .253 (22-for-87) with eight extra-base hits (zero homers) and five steals since June 1. The complete lack of over-the-fence pop at the moment remains a massive concern for fantasy managers moving forward.

Ortiz is back at the hot corner and leading off on Saturday after sitting out Friday’s contest due to neck tightness. The 25-year-old rookie infielder has been phenomenal this season in his Brewers debut with an .835 OPS to go along with seven homers and five steals over 251 plate appearances in 72 games.

Iglesias is becoming a bit of a cult hero in New York at the moment, and his on-field performance hasn’t been too shabby either. The 34-year-old journeyman infielder is batting .406 (13-for-32) since June 1. He’s pretty irrelevant for fantasy purposes, but his presence has injected some badly-needed life into the Mets clubhouse.

Chisholm is back in center field and leading in the wake of a one-game absence from Friday’s game against the Phillies after taking a 93 mph fastball from lefty Matt Strahm off his right hand during Thursday’s series opener. X-rays came back negative for any fractures and it doesn’t seem like he’s going to miss any additional time moving forward. The 26-year-old has been remarkably durable this season, managing to play through several minor physical ailments.

Morgan returns to Cleveland’s high-leverage mix after missing nearly four weeks due to right elbow inflammation. The 28-year-old righty, who also missed time earlier this year with a shoulder issue, boasts a 1.64 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 7/5 K/BB ratio across 11 innings (10 appearances) this season.

The deal, which was reported earlier this week, is now official. Boyd is almost exactly 12 months removed from last year’s Tommy John surgery and figures to be able to bolster Cleveland’s pitching mix at some point in the second half of the season as either a traditional starter or multi-inning reliever. The 33-year-old southpaw was effective, when healthy, over the last three years in stint with the Mariners and Tigers.

McCaughan was up for just a couple days as extra relief depth for Cleveland before getting Eli Morgan back from the injured list.