

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Dylan Cease turned in another stellar start in Monday's 3-1 win over the Rockies. Cease pitched very well in Coors Field, tossing seven innings of one-run ball on one hit and no walks with eight strikeouts. The 28-year-old has settled in with his new team nicely, going 3-1 with a 1.82 ERA, 10.62 K/9 rate, and 3.34 BB/9 rate in his first five starts. He will face a tougher matchup in his next start against the Phillies.


Pittsburgh Pirates closer David Bednar picked up his third save of the season in Monday's 4-2 win over the Brewers. Bednar came in to pitch the top of the ninth inning up by two. He got the first out on a flyout, allowed a single, and got the final two outs on another flyout and a strikeout. The 29-year-old has now only converted half of his save opportunities with a 10.13 ERA, but his strikeout numbers have been solid with a 12.38 K/9 rate. Fantasy managers shouldn't panic this early in the season given Bednar's track record over the past couple of seasons.

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jared Jones turned in another strong start in Monday's 4-2 win over the Brewers. Jones pitched six innings, allowing one run on four hits (including a solo home run) and two walks with seven strikeouts, one of which was true highlight material. The 22-year-old rookie has been excellent to start the season, going 2-2 with a 2.79 ERA, a 12.10 K/9 rate, and a 1.24 BB/9 rate in five starts and 29 IP. He should have a chance to turn in another solid outing in his next scheduled start at the Giants.

San Diego Padres outfield prospect Jakob Marsee went 0-for-4 on Sunday for Double-A San Antonio, bringing his season batting average down to .138. So far, the reigning Arizona Fall League MVP has failed to carry over the success he had last fall into 2024, with just one home run, four RBI, and nine runs scored over 15 games. On the bright side, he has worked 12 walks and stolen eight bases thus far, which were two of his calling cards during his tenure in the minors over the last two seasons. In 2022, Marsee had a BB:K of 30:25 and 15 steals in 31 games, while in 2023 he had a BB:K of 98:97 and 46 steals in 129 games. The 22-year-old has an ETA of 2024 per MLB.com's top prospect list, but he'll need to pick up the pace for that to happen, especially with no Triple-A at-bats to his name yet.


Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Chris Paddack earned his first win of the season in Monday's 7-0 game against the White Sox. Paddack took advantage of a favorable matchup, pitching seven innings while allowing six hits and no walks with 10 strikeouts. Despite this good start, the 28-year-old's return to the starting rotation has not been very successful. He is now 1-1 with a 5.57 ERA in his first four starts. While he was a fantasy prospect early in his career, fantasy managers should wait to see more consistency from him before trusting him. Paddack will look to build on his success in a decent matchup at the Angels.
