The Kansas City Royals are acquiring right-handers Ryan Bergert and Stephen Kolek from the San Diego Padres for catcher Freddy Fermin, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. In Bergert and Kolek, the Royals are getting a couple of hurlers who have looked like decent back-end rotation options this season. Bergert, a 25-year-old rookie, has made 11 appearances (seven starts) and posted a 2.78 ERA with 34 strikeouts in 35 2/3 innings. There may be negative regression coming for Bergert, who has a high walk rate (4.54 per nine) with a 4.44 xERA/4.24 FIP/4.75 xFIP. Kolek, 28, debuted last year and made 14 starts for the Padres this season before the trade. He has recorded a 4.18 ERA with 56 strikeouts and 26 walks over 79 2/3 frames in 2025. Both Bergert and Kolek should plug into a Kansas City rotation that just lost No. 1 starter Kris Bubic (shoulder) to a season-ending rotator cuff injury. Cole Ragans (shoulder), Michael Lorenzen (oblique), and ... [More]

San Diego Padres right-hander Stephen Kolek will be activated to start on Tuesday against the hosting Miami Marlins, according to MLB.com's AJ Cassavell. Kolek is on the team's taxi squad in Miami. The 28-year-old will be called up from Triple-A El Paso to re-enter SD's starting rotation for at least one start against the Fish. It will be Kolek's 13th start of the year for the Friars. He has gone 3-4 with a 4.24 ERA (4.22 FIP) and a 1.29 WHIP while striking out 49 and walking 22 in 68 innings pitched. Kolek isn't much of a strikeout artist, which limits his fantasy appeal, although he will be facing a Marlins squad that currently ranks 18th in the majors with a .709 team OPS. In a start against the Marlins back on May 27 at Petco Park, Kolek allowed a season-high-tying six earned runs on six hits while walking two and fanning three in 5 1/3 innings in an improbable win.

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Stephen Kolek twirled a gem on Saturday, tossing a complete-game shutout in his second career start in the majors, picking up the win in a 21-0 blowout victory over the Rockies. The 28-year-old scattered five hits and two walks over nine innings while striking out seven. A week ago, the righty tossed five and one-third innings of shutout ball, leaving his ERA at a spotless 0.00 after two starts. The former 11th-round draft pick threw 46 2/3 IP for the Padres in his debut last season, but as a reliever, so this is somewhat uncharted waters for him, although he's worked as a starter in the minors. The 6-foot-3 hurler's next start lines up with a surprisingly stout Mariner lineup, and his recent success should allow the Padres to give Yu Darvish (elbow) as much time as he needs to build up his arm for a return to the mound.

San Diego Padres right-hander Stephen Kolek will remain in the team's starting rotation and make another start on Saturday at hitter-friendly Coors Field against the division-rival Colorado Rockies. Kolek will get another starting opportunity for the Friars after he tossed 5 1/3 shutout innings with two walks and four strikeouts for his first win of the season last Sunday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 28-year-old will get another amazing matchup against the last-place Rockies, but the venue in the thin air in Denver will also make him a pretty volatile fantasy streamer. Still, Kolek will be a pretty interesting streamer coming off a strong first outing against a Colorado offense that ranks second-to-last in team OPS at .623. If Kolek continues to pitch well in a starting role, he could remain in SD's rotation until the Padres get right-hander Yu Darvish (elbow) back.

According to Dennis Lin of The Athletic, right-handed pitcher Stephen Kolek will be stretched out during spring training to potentially see time as a starting pitcher. Kolek made his major league debut last season in San Diego and was deployed exclusively out of the bullpen. Across his first 46 2/3 innings in the majors, the 27-year-old posted a 5.21 ERA with a 1.52 WHIP. While he showed strong command with a 5.7 percent walk rate, he was unable to generate many strikeouts as he posted a low 18.5 percent strikeouts rate. He also generated a strong 56.4 percent ground-ball rate but allowed hard contact at a hefty 41.0 percent hard-hit rate. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his progress during spring training, as he could contend for a spot in the back of the rotation if he performs well.

According to Dennis Lin of The Athletic, San Diego Padres right-handed pitcher Stephen Kolek will be stretched out during spring training to potentially see time as a starting pitcher. Kolek made his major-league debut last season in San Diego and was deployed exclusively out of the bullpen. Across his first 46 2/3 innings in the majors, the 27-year-old posted a 5.21 ERA with a 1.52 WHIP. While he showed strong command with a 5.7 percent walk rate, he was unable to generate many strikeouts and posted a low 18.5 percent strikeout rate. He also generated a strong 56.4 percent ground-ball rate but allowed hard contact at a hefty 41.0 percent rate. Fantasy managers should continue to monitor his progress during spring training, as he could contend for a spot in the back of the rotation if he performs well.