MLB Player News

Manoah has joined Triple-A Buffalo to be built back up after a wide range of medical tests cleared him of any major structural issues, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Manoah hasn't pitched since being optioned to Buffalo nearly two weeks ago, and we now know it's because he was going through a battery of tests to see if anything physical has contributed to his 5.87 ERA and 1.74 WHIP this season. No red flags were found, though, so he'll be thrown into Buffalo's rotation as he looks to get back on track. It's too soon to write Manoah off for the long haul, but he certainly can't be counted on by the Blue Jays or fantasy managers for the rest of 2023.

Miller (elbow) shifted his rehab assignment Thursday to Triple-A Las Vegas.

Miller is moving along in the Athletics' minor-league system as he completes his recovery from the mild UCL sprain that sent him to the injured list back in May. He allowed two earned runs while striking out four batters across 3.2 innings (two starts) with Single-A Stockton, topping out at 32 pitches Sunday. The 25-year-old has some more work to do on the farm if he's going to return to Oakland in a full-on starting role, but early September seems like a reasonable target.

Houston recalled Bielak from Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Bielak has worked as a fill-in starter at times this year for the Astros, but he'll return Thursday in a long-relief role. The 27-year-old right-hander carries a 3.74 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 59:33 K:BB through 74.2 major-league innings in 2023.

Brito will serve as a bulk reliever behind opening pitcher Michael King in Thursday's game against the Nationals, Seth Rothman of YES Network reports.

King has maxed out at 3.2 innings over his 41 appearances this season and will be pitching on three days rest, so he's unlikely to work deep into the game before turning things over to Brito, who is expected to be tasked with covering multiple frames in relief. Though Brito's innings count will likely be capped more coming out of the bullpen than if he were operating as a traditional starter, he should have a better chance at factoring into the decision while he works in bulk relief.

Civale came away with a no-decision Wednesday in the Rays' 6-5 extra-inning win over the Rockies, giving up three runs on four hits over five-plus innings. He struck out nine without walking a batter.

It was Civale's most dominant performance since joining Tampa Bay at the trade deadline, as he generated an eye-popping 35 called or swinging strikes on only 80 pitches. Despite that effort, he was in line for his fourth loss of the year after putting the first two batters aboard in the top of the sixth inning and watching both come around to score after he'd left the mound, but a late rally by the Rays got the right-hander off the hook. Civale has a 3.54 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 20:2 K:BB through 20.1 innings in August, and he'll look to keep rolling in his next start, which is likely to come early next week in Miami.

Whitlock allowed two hits and a walk while striking out one over two scoreless innings in Wednesday's 7-5 extra-inning win over Houston.

Whitlock had traffic on the bases in each of his two innings but was able to work around it. That included a nifty sliding catch of Alex Bregman's popup in foul territory. The play was officially ruled batter interference, because Bregman impeded catcher Connor Wong's ability to make the play. The game also featured Boston closer Kenley Jansen leaving due to a hamstring issue. Pending the severity of injury, Whitlock, a trusted setup arm, could be used for save opportunities.

Maeda did not factor into the decision Wednesday, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks over five innings against the Brewers while striking out six.

Maeda struggled out of the gate, allowing two runs on two hits in the first inning while also hitting Mark Canha with a pitch. The right-hander was much more effective over the next four innings, however, allowing only a solo homer to William Contreras in the third before hurling 1-2-3 innings in both the fourth and fifth frames. Maeda has pitched well in August to the tune of a 3.43 ERA and 23:4 K:BB, and he's now recorded at least six strikeouts in eight of his last nine outings. He has, however, failed to make it through six innings in each of his last two starts after opening the month with back-to-back quality starts.

Severino (3-8) earned the win over Washington on Wednesday, allowing one hit and two walks while striking out two batters over 6.2 scoreless innings.

Severino came into the contest struggling so mightily that his role in the rotation was in some question -- he had posted a 14.17 ERA and 2.48 WHIP over 13.1 innings while losing each of his previous four starts. For one game at least, the right-hander turned things around, tying his longest outing of the campaign with 6.2 frames and posting his second scoreless outing. Severino struck out just two batters, but the Yankees (and his fantasy managers) probably won't dwell over that given the positive start overall. It's going to take more than just this outing to declare Severino back to form, but it was certainly a step in the right direction and leaves little doubt that he'll remain in the rotation for now. His next start is tentatively scheduled to come in Detroit early next week.

Gausman (9-8) took the loss against Baltimore on Wednesday, allowing two runs on five hits and one walk while striking out eight batters over six innings.

Gausman matched Orioles starter Dean Kremer by yielding just five hits over six frames, but three of the knocks against Gausman went for extra bases while those against Kremer were all singles. Consequently, the Toronto ace allowed a pair of runs, which was enough to tag him with the loss in a contest during which the Blue Jays were unable to score. This was nonetheless a solid bounce-back for Gausman after he gave up seven runs (five earned) over 5.1 frames against Philadelphia in his previous outing, and he moved back into sole possession of the AL strikeout lead with his eight punchouts. The veteran right-hander has posted a 3.23 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 195:38 K:BB over 150.1 innings on the campaign.

Detmers (3-10) allowed four runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out three over five innings, taking the loss in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader versus the Reds.

Detmers couldn't carry over any momentum from his dominant outing versus the Rangers last week. He instead gave up four runs -- he's allowed at least that many in five of his last eight starts. The southpaw now has a 5.03 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 139:50 K:BB through 120 innings across 23 starts this season. Detmers is projected for a road start in Philadelphia next week.