MLB Player News

Yamamoto gave up two hits, walked one and struck out two. In one of the biggest games in the history of Japanese baseball, one that featured Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani and Yu Darvish, Yamamoto set the tone for the Dodgers early on. It was clear from the first inning that Yamamoto was much sharper than he was in Game 1 when he allowed five runs. The Padres never got anything going against the 26-year-old right-hander and now the Dodgers are moving on to the NLCS against the Mets.

Lombard, who doesn’t turn 20 years old until June 2, was one of New York’s standout prospects this spring, was batting .263 (5-for-19) with two homers during 10 Grapefruit League contests prior to going 0-for-3 during Monday’s showdown against the Tigers. The former first-round pick struggled to make contact on pitches in the zone last year in the lower minors, but the physical tools are undeniable. He’s most likely already rostered in deeper dynasty formats and it wouldn’t be shocking if his value skyrocketed this season with a strong performance in the upper minors.

Garrett cleared waivers last week, suggesting that teams think his skills have diminished since he suffered his season-ending broken leg in 2023. His Triple-A performance last season did make the case for that. We’re still rooting for him, though. He looked like he might break through as a regular before getting hurt, and it’d be nice to see him at least get back to being of use against lefties.

The runs came on homers from Matt Mervis and Jesús Sánchez. Parker struck out four. The left-hander was able to start today after leaving his last outing Wednesday with neck stiffness. He appears to be in line to claim a spot in the Nationals rotation, though his fantasy ceiling is limited.

With his velocity down 1-2 mph, Finnegan got just one missed swing on the 19 pitches he threw today. Of course, Finnegan didn’t come to terms with the Nationals until Feb. 25 and has only been officially signed for nine days now; he was always probably going to be a little off in his first couple of appearances.

Alcantara struck out three and walked none in a 57-pitch outing today. Building up ever so slightly slower than usual in his return from Tommy John, he’s sporting a 0.00 ERA through 8 1/3 innings this spring.

He’s off to a 3-for-21 start. Bride was a great surprise for the Marlins last season, hitting .276/.357/.461 in 272 plate appearances. Still, his exit velocity numbers didn’t do anything to back up that line, and Statcast gave him a .224 xBA and .334 xSLG. The Marlins are probably going to play him regularly at first base and/or DH at the beginning of the season, but they’ll be better off turning to younger players in time.

Fortes missed four days with a groin contusion. The Marlins had him batting second today, but that was just about getting him an extra at-bat before he was pulled.

Johnson was torched for nine runs over 2 1/3 innings last September in his big-league debut, which unsurprisingly was his lone start for the Phillies. The 26-year-old righty will open the year back at Triple-A as extra starting pitching depth.

It’s been Jackson Holliday filling in at shortstop during Henderson’s ongoing absence just in case Baltimore’s franchise cornerstone isn’t ready for Opening Day. Hyde added that there isn’t an exact timetable for Henderson to return to game action as he recovers from a mild intercostal strain. It’s too early for fantasy managers to panic, but the lingering injury concern should drop Henderson to the back-half of the first round in all drafts for the remainder of the spring.

It’s never a positive sign to see a player immediately exit after being hit by a pitch in the hand area, but Garver’s exit appears to be precautionary, at a bare minimum. The 34-year-old veteran slugged two-run homer — his third round-tripper of the spring — against Brewers starter Tobias Myers during his first at-bat of the Cactus League contest prior to being hit by a pitch his next time up. There should be an additional update on his status shortly.