MLB Player News

Koenig was placed on the IL on Saturday due to forearm inflammation. In light of the good news, he might have a shot at returning right after the break.

It was a Maddux, as Eovaldi needed 99 pitches to complete the four-hitter. He excelled tonight even those his velocity was down 1-1.5 mph from last year. He really had the splitter and curve working, though, getting 14 of his 18 missed swings on the offerings. Eovaldi’s previous shutouts came with the Red Sox in 2022 and the Rangers two years ago. Tonight was just his fifth complete game in 277 career starts.

Spiers was seventh or eighth on the Reds’ SP depth chart at the beginning of the spring, but he claimed a rotation spot with both Andrew Abbott and Rhett Lowder landing on the IL and he made a case to hold on to it with a nice showing tonight. He’ll definitely make one more start Sunday against the Brewers. After that, the Reds might not need him again before Abbott is ready.

Langford’s 361-foot homer was only his third longest fly of the night; he had 389- and 371-foot flyouts, as well as a line drive single. The 23-year-old is 7-for-22 with two homers thus far, though that’s amounted to just two RBI and three runs scored.

Fraley popped up his lone ball in play today, and he has only two hard-hit balls on the young season. The Reds certainly aren’t going to move on from him in the first month or so, but maybe they’ll eventually give Rece Hinds a shot in his place if Hinds starts off well in Triple-A and Fraley is just his usual slightly below average self.

Lowe took Pirates rookie Thomas Harrington deep in the – for his second round-tripper of the season. He also added a run-scoring single in the eighth inning, just for good measure to cap off a three-hit effort. The 30-year-old slugging second baseman is batting .333 (7-for-21) with two homers and five RBI through five games.

Baz was staked to a three-run lead right out of the chute and scattered seven hits over six shutout frames in an extremely impressive season debut. The 25-year-old former top prospect leaned heavily on his curveball in this one, throwing in 34 times out of 96 pitches (65 strikes), while averaging a crisp 97.1 mph on his fastball. He generated 13 swinging strikes, including eight on his curveball alone, and finished with a near-elite 35 percent CSW while registering the first double-digit strikeout performance of his career. He’s in line for another favorable home matchup next Tuesday when he squares off against the Angels.

Harrington got off to a rocky start as the Rays tagged him for three runs on three hits, including run-scoring knocks by rookies Jake Magum and Kameron Misner, and a pair of walks during a 30-pitch opening frame. Things didn’t get any better from there as he continued to struggle uncharacteristically with his control and gave up three additional runs on four hits, including a two-run homer by Brandon Lowe. The 23-year-old top pitching prospect projects as a high-floor starter with the command and control to outperform expectations, but he’s going to need some time to acclimate to the big leagues. It’s unclear whether he’ll get another start for the Pirates, but he’s in line to face the Cardinals on Monday at PNC Park.

Bello was cruising along in his first rehab outing with a pair of scoreless frames before giving up three hits and one walk in the third inning, which led to his removal after 47 pitches (32 strikes). He finished with five strikeouts and also issued a pair of walks. The 25-year-old righty should be ready to rejoin Boston’s starting rotation by mid-April, barring something unexpected.

Cabrera struck out four and threw 46 pitches (27 strikes) in his first rehab outing as he continues to work his way back from a blister issue that derailed his spring. The 26-year-old righty should only need one or two additional rehab starts before he rejoins Miami’s rotation mix.

Henderson made his third appearance at shortstop during his fourth rehab game. His third-inning homer carried a stratospheric 112.2 mph exit velocity and traveled 401 feet to right field. The 23-year-old fantasy superstar should be ready to return to Baltimore’s lineup on Thursday when he’s first eligible to be activated from the injured list.