MLB Player News

Castro is listed as Saturday's starter against the Rays at Tropicana Field, Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports reports.

Castro worked a career-high six scoreless innings on Aug. 3 against Detroit, but the young right-hander hasn't logged more than 3.2 innings in any of his 16 appearances since. Considering he hasn't thrown more than 69 pitches in a game for the O's this season, owners would be wise to avoid Castro, as a short leash will limit his ceiling in Tampa.

Chavez was saddled with his 11th loss of the season after giving up three runs on four hits while striking out two in an inning of relief Thursday against the White Sox.

Chavez's late-inning implosion squandered what had been a successful bullpen game for the Angels. The 34-year-old had transitioned well to a relief role in August (0.60 ERA over 15 innings), but he reverted to his poor pitching ways in September, posting an ugly 12.46 ERA in nine appearances this month. Chavez will enter free agency this offseason, but he will find it tough to crack any rotation in the majors after failing to make it work for the pitching-starved Halos.

Norris (5-8) earned the win over the Royals on Thursday, giving up two hits over five scoreless innings. He struck out one batter and did not issue a walk.

At one point, Norris appeared in danger of being removed from the game with some sort of back or oblique issue, but the lefty convinced the training staff that he was good to continue on. Norris missed significant time due to a groin injury this season and struggled with walks throughout most of the year, although he did show improvement with his control following his return in September (five walks over 16.2 innings). There are questions about his viability as a starter in the big leagues, but Norris, a former top prospect, will have plenty of more chances to prove himself.

Covey gave up four runs on four hits and two walks while striking out five over 5.2 innings in a no-decision against the Angels on Thursday.

While this wasn't a particularly strong performance, Covey at least allowed the White Sox to hang around, leaving the door open for a late-inning rally. Covey dropped all seven of his decisions this season and has posted the lowest K-BB% among the 262 major-league arms with at least 60 innings pitched in 2017. It's hard to imagine he will get another look in a big-league rotation.

Treinen picked up his 15th save of the season Thursday, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out one in a scoreless inning against Texas.

He allowed the first two batters he faced to reach base, but Treinen buckled down and escaped with his 12th save in 13 chances since taking over as the closer in Oakland. Improved control has been a key to his success this season -- Treinen has shaved his BB/9 to 3.0, from 4.2 a year ago. The right-hander should enter camp next spring with a decent leash in the ninth-inning role.

Manaea (12-10) earned the win over the Rangers on Thursday in his final start of the 2017 season. He was charged with one unearned run on three hits with six strikeouts and three walks over 6.2 innings.

The 25-year-old lefty struggled throughout most of the second half, prompting calls for an early shutdown, but Manaea heads into the offseason on a positive note following this gem. He showed no ill effects from his recent back issue, inducing 13 swinging strikes on 90 pitches. After the game, Manaea explained to Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle that he lost 25 pounds earlier in the season after being described ADD medication, and that resulted in a dip in velocity. Manaea should come at a nice discount in fantasy drafts and auctions next spring.

Manaea (back) is good to go for Thursday's start against the Rangers.

Manaea will make his final start of the 2017 season in Texas after missing his previous outing due to a minor back issue. The left-hander has accumulated a 4.56 ERA and 1.42 WHIP over 28 starts this season, and allowed two earned runs over five innings during his win against the Rangers in late August.

Alvarado fired a scoreless two-thirds of an inning in Wednesday's 6-1 loss to the Yankees, allowing a hit and a walk while recording a strikeout.

That's eight consecutive scoreless efforts for Alvarado since rejoining the club from Triple-A Durham on Sept. 5, as well as 13 consecutive overall at the big-league level dating back to Aug. 4. The 22-year-old southpaw has lowered his ERA from 5.59 to 3.77 over that stretch and is providing plenty of reason to believe he could serve as an effective left-handed relief option next season.

VerHagen (0-3) was tagged with the loss and a blown save in Wednesday's game against the Royals. He gave up two earned runs on two hits and retired just a single batter.

VerHagen gave up a two-run home run to Paulo Orlando in the seventh inning that put Kansas City up 4-3. The 26-year-old now has an uninspiring 5.85 ERA and 1.52 WHIP, and he likely won't be much of a fantasy contributor in 2018.

Lopez allowed four runs on five hits and two walks while striking out seven over six innings in Wednesday's 6-4 extra-inning win over the Angels.

Lopez finishes the season with a no-decision and heads into the offseason with a 3-3 record and 4.72 ERA over eight starts. Despite what appear to be pedestrian marks, the young right-hander threw at least six innings in seven of his eight starts and showed improved command at the major-league level. He's done enough to warrant a spot in the team's rotation in 2018.