MLB Player News

Urquidy will start Wednesday against the Twins in Game 4 of the ALDS, Julia Morales of AT&T SportsNet Southwest reports.

Urquidy seemed to be slated for a bullpen role ahead of Houston's ALDS matchup with Minnesota, but he'll instead get the nod to start as the Astros looks for their seventh consecutive ALCS berth. The 28-year-old righty threw nine straight shutout innings over his final two regular-season outings and has yet to appear in the postseason.

Gibson will be available out of the bullpen in Game 3 of the ALDS on Tuesday versus the Rangers, Danielle Allentuck of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.

Gibson would seemingly be an option to start a potential Game 4, but the Orioles are facing elimination from the best-of-five series and will take an all-hands-on-deck approach into Game 3. The veteran right-hander went 15-9 with a 4.73 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 157:55 K:BB over 192 innings (33 starts) during the regular season. He has yet to pitch in the 2023 postseason.

Ryan will get the start in Game 4 of the ALDS on Wednesday versus the Astros, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Ryan has not yet pitched in the 2023 postseason, though he was lined up to start a potential Game 3 of the AL Wild Card Series before the Twins finished off a two-game sweep of the Blue Jays. The 27-year-old right-hander registered an underwhelming 4.51 ERA in 29 regular-season starts, but he showed improved swing-and-miss stuff and excellent command while tallying 197 strikeouts with only 34 walks across 161.2 innings.

Gray (forearm) is on track to rejoin the rotation if the Rangers advance to the ALCS, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Gray landed on the 15-day injured list just before the end of the regular season due to tightness in his lower right forearm, but he has apparently been trending well with his side work. Max Scherzer (shoulder) could also potentially become an option for Texas in the best-of-seven ALCS, rounding out a four-starter mix that already includes Jordan Montgomery and Nathan Eovaldi. If at least Gray is able to return, Andrew Heaney and Dane Dunning would most likely operate in bulk relief.

Blue Jays general manager Ross Atkins told reporters over the weekend that the injections Manoah was given in his right shoulder late in the season were initiated by the pitcher, Rob Longley of the Toronto Sun reports.

"It was his decision," Atkins said. "We supported him. He made the decision on his own to move in that direction. There were no structural issues." The GM also acknowledged that Manoah "disagreed with the decision" to option him on both occasions, which "created some frustration." However, Atkins also noted that Manoah has not asked to be traded and the GM is "very much looking forward to him being back in our rotation" next season. While it seems as though Manoah might need to mend some fences with the organization, his primary concern will be to figure out what happened in 2023 and rectifying it.

Kremer will start for the Orioles on Tuesday in Game 3 of the ALDS against the Rangers.

It was seemingly either going to be Kremer or Kyle Gibson, who now appears likely to start a potential Game 4. Kremer finished out the regular season on a high note with a 2.89 ERA over his last 10 starts, including 5.1 shutout frames in his final outing. He'll be going up against Nathan Eovaldi on Tuesday as the Orioles try to stave off elimination.

France and Jose Urquidy are being considered to start for the Astros in Game 4 of the ALDS versus the Twins on Wednesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Manager Dusty Baker seemingly ruled Hunter Brown out when he used the righty in relief in Game 2. France really struggled in the final two months of the regular season in collecting a 5.84 ERA, but he posted a 2.85 mark prior to that. Urquidy pitched to a 5.29 ERA this season while missing time with a shoulder issue, although he pitched well in a spot start in his final appearance of the regular season.

Astros manager Dusty Baker said Monday that Verlander is "probably not" an option to start Game 4 of the ALDS against the Twins on short rest, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Houston has not yet announced a Game 4 starter, but it doesn't sound like Verlander is under consideration. Instead, Verlander would presumably be in line to take the ball in a potential Game 5. The Astros are turning to Cristian Javier in Game 3 after splitting the first two games of the series. It figures to be J.P. France or Jose Urquidy starting Game 4 for Houston after Hunter Brown was used in relief in Game 2.

Valdez allowed five runs on seven hits and three walks across 4.1 innings, taking the loss in Sunday's 6-2 defeat against the Twins in Game 2 of the ALDS. He struck out five.

Valdez is a typically reliable member of the Astros rotation, although he is no stranger to the occasional volatile outing. Sunday's start marked the sixth time in 32 starts this season that the southpaw has given up five or more earned runs. Valdez gave up three of his runs on at-bats by Carlos Correa, who knocked in runners in both the first and fifth innings to stick Valdez with the loss. The sixth-year pitcher has fared better overall in the postseason for his career, pitching to a 3.82 ERA and 1.26 WHIP across 73 innings with 80 strikeouts.

Lopez earned the win in Sunday's 6-2 victory over the Astros in Game 2 of the ALDS, giving up six hits and one walk across seven scoreless innings. He struck out seven.

Lopez was utterly dominant in his return to the mound after pitching in Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series against the Blue Jays. The right-hander experienced some pressure in the fourth inning when a Michael Brantley hit moved Kyle Tucker to third base, but Lopez was able to strike out Chas McCormick to escape any damage. Sunday's performance improved his standout pitching stats this postseason to a 0.71 ERA and 1.11 WHIP with two wins and ten strikeouts across 12.2 innings.