Mining the News (5/5/26)

Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images

American League

Angels

Astros

• Because the team needed Kai-Wei Teng in the bullpen on Saturday, the plan to move him to the rotation hit a snag.

Teng stands out as a saving grace. He is one of perhaps three leverage relievers in a bullpen that boasts a league-worst 6.22 ERA. The team has toyed with stretching him out as a starter — and planned to deploy him as one in Sunday’s game. Using him for 23 pitches on Saturday scuttled the plan, setting this dismal two-day cycle into motion. Teng could not pitch at all on Sunday, which perhaps forced Espada to extend both Blubaugh and Abreu beyond reason.

That Teng threw 31 pitches across two scoreless innings on Monday — in a game the Astros trailed by five runs — epitomizes the excruciating position in which Espada is mired. He deployed one of his leverage relievers in a lopsided game because turning to anyone else would’ve jeopardized their health.

Doing so almost ensures Teng won’t be available to pitch on Tuesday or Wednesday, putting the Astros at a further disadvantage against a Dodgers team with an already superior roster and more pressure on a pitching staff that can’t absorb it.

The team needs to find some stability in their rotation. Their starters have a 5.35 ERA on the season, the 2nd worst in the league behind the Diamondbacks (5.42 ERA).

Rays

• Griffin Jax is building up to join the rotation.

Jax, who told MLB.com’s Adam Berry in late April that he and the team were discussing a potential rotation move, built up to 45 pitches across 2 2/3 frames on Saturday against the Giants. It was his highest pitch count in an appearance since 2022. In each of the last two outings, Jax has mixed in a cutter against left-handed batters. He’d tinkered with that pitch at the end of the 2025 season but hadn’t used it this year until he started to build up.

It’s not an entirely unfamiliar role. Jax was a starter throughout his minor league career and started 14 of 18 appearances as a rookie for the Twins in 2021. He struggled to a 6.37 ERA that season and moved fully to the bullpen in year two. Jax’s strikeout and ground-ball rates skyrocketed in shorter stints.

I’m intrigued, but he’ll have to improve on his 5.8 BB/9. He’s shown no signs of improvement, with a walk in his last four relief appearances.

Red Sox

• Masataka Yoshida will not start much with the new manager.

As for Yoshida, he’s started just one of eight games since Tracy took over. Rather than trying to weave Yoshida into the starting lineup more consistently as Cora had, Tracy was more definitive about using Yoshida as a weapon off the bench.

“It’s not an easy situation, he’s a good hitter,” Tracy said. “But we’re in the same spot we were. He can hit. But then you look at the other four guys too, the speed and the versatility and what they bring to the table, and they’ve got to play. I do think that one thing is clear. You’re not gonna always use him, but when Masa is sitting there on the bench and available, if there’s a lane with a righty (reliever) where they can’t make a move, that’s a good thing for us.”

Before the manager was canned, Yoshida (.296/.415/.370) started about half the time. Now he hasn’t started in six games.

• Trevor Story has dealt with a “tight adductor” several times during the season.

Story had a day off Sunday to manage his workload with a tight adductor that’s cropped up a few times early in the season, but Tracy also said he spoke with Story about the play.

The injury explains Story’s struggles. In 33 games, Story has a .539 OPS, but he’s seen similar or worse stretches over the last few seasons and bounced back.

National League

Braves

• There is a chance Grant Holmes could move to the bullpen.

Weiss indicated that veteran Martin Pérez may be called upon to make a start later this week. The ripple effect could be felt in the relief corps, with Grant Holmes being sent to the bullpen to improve that group’s versatility.

It’s key for Iglesias and the Braves to structurally reshape a fragile pitching staff on the fly. If Holmes shifts to relief, López executes, Iglesias’ arm holds up and Robert Suarez remains available for a high-leverage role, Monday’s panic might leave the Braves with a stronger bullpen than the one they started the month with.

I’m not sure about this beat writer’s take, but we’ll see how the rotation gets set going forward.

Dodgers

• Justin Wrobleski or Emmet Sheehan will be headed to the bullpen once Blake Snell comes off the IL.

The Dodgers have all but ensured Roki Sasaki will remain a starter. Sasaki recorded a quality start on Saturday in his longest and most complete outing of the season, and as long as he continues to show progress, Los Angeles will keep him in the rotation. That means a difficult decision awaits regarding one of Wrobleski and Emmet Sheehan.

Sheehan’s inability to sustain his fastball velocity has been a perplexing concern all season. Those questions arose once more in his start Friday in St. Louis. After his velocity dropped sharply after the first inning, Sheehan registered his slowest fastball of the season in Friday’s loss — an 89.7 mph four-seamer in the fourth.

Giants

• This manager quote was brought up by two authors about starters possibly being a closer.

That seemingly leaves McDonald, the Giants’ No. 16 prospect per MLB Pipeline, out of the mix, but Vitello cryptically noted that he told his pitchers in Spring Training that he trusts them in any situation. Without mentioning any pitcher by name, Vitello said, “If you’re not a starter, you could be that guy who closes for us.”

I wonder if the struggles the team is having with their closers, they will lead them to move a starter. Since two writers brought up the quote, I wonder if there is some unofficial news of a possible move.