MLB Player News

Bassitt (12-6) earned the win Saturday, allowing three runs on three hits and one walk over six innings in a 4-3 victory over the Reds. He struck out six.

Bassitt threw 56 of his 79 pitches for strikes and kept Cincinnati guessing for the majority of his outing. The 34-year-old retired the first nine batters of the game, including a string of five consecutive strikeouts, before giving up a solo homer to TJ Friedl, followed by a walk and an Elly De La Cruz triple that turned into a Little League home run due to a throwing error. Bassitt went on to complete six frames to earn his 16th quality start and 12th win this season. In seven starts since the All-Star break, the veteran righty owns a 4-1 record with a 3.21 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 41:13 K:BB across 42 innings. He tentatively lines up to face the Guardians at home next week.

Eovaldi (forearm) will throw to live hitters this week while the Rangers are in Arizona for a series against the Diamondbacks, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.

The report indicates Eovaldi has thrown three successful bullpen sessions, which includes the one he reportedly was scheduled to throw this weekend. Presumably, he experienced no issues in the third bullpen session, so the Rangers are moving him onto the next step, throwing to live batters. The Rangers will determine Eovaldi's next step once he completes his live batting practice session Monday or Tuesday.

Sandoval (6-10) took the loss against Tampa Bay in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader, allowing six runs (two earned) on seven hits and three walks while striking out four batters over 4.2 innings.

Sandoval got through three scoreless frames before he yielded two runs on two hits in the fourth. Those were the only two earned runs he surrendered -- when the Rays put up four runs against him in the fifth, they were all unearned due to a two-out error by Jordyn Adams. Still, Sandoval can't be entirely absolved of blame since he gave up four consecutive hits (including two doubles) following Adams' miscue. This was the second straight disappointing outing for the lefty hurler, as he gave up five runs (four earned) over 2.2 frames in his previous start. Prior to the pair of poor performances, Sandoval appeared to be putting things together with a 1.86 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 27:14 :BB over 29 innings across a five-game stretch.

Eflin (13-7) earned the win in an 18-4 victory over the Angels in the second game of a twin bill Saturday, allowing one run on four hits and one walk while striking out four batters over six innings.

Neither team scored through three frames, but the Rays put six runs on the board between the fourth and fifth innings, and Eflin took advantage of the support. The right-hander allowed just one extra-base hit -- a Hunter Renfroe homer in the fifth frame -- and logged his 14th quality start of the campaign. He's won nine of those outings, helping to boost his season victory total to 13, tied for third-most in the majors. That's already a career high for Eflin, whose previous best win total was 11 with the Phillies in 2018.

Glasnow (6-4) took the loss in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Angels on Saturday, allowing seven runs (five earned) on eight hits while striking out seven batters over six innings.

Glasnow wasn't exactly knocked around in the start -- of the eight hits against him, three didn't leave the infield -- but his final stat line nonetheless reflected one of his worst outings of the campaign. It was just the second time in 14 starts that the right-hander has allowed more than three earned runs, and the eight knocks against him area season worst. Glasnow did manage to extend his streak of starts with at least seven strikeouts to 10, and his season ERA still looks good at 3.35. He'll try to bounce back in what is projected to be a favorable matchup at home against Colorado in his next start.

Waldichuk allowed two runs on four hits and three walks while striking out seven over 5.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Orioles on Saturday.

Given the quality of opponent, Waldichuk did well to limit the damage to solo home runs by Austin Hays and James McCann in the fourth inning. Waldichuk has been steady in his last three outings, allowing five runs, 17 hits and five walks with 19 strikeouts over 16.2 innings. He's now at a 5.91 ERA, 1.68 WHIP and 107:59 K:BB through 105 innings over 28 appearances (17 starts) this year. The left-hander is projected for a road outing versus the White Sox in his next start.

Irvin allowed a run on four hits and a walk while striking out three over five innings in a no-decision Saturday in the Orioles' 7-2 win over the Athletics.

Irvin's lone mistake was the first of Aledmys Diaz's two solo home runs in the contest. Beyond that, it was a successful return to Oakland for Irvin, who pitched with the Athletics in 2021 and 2022. He's given up just two runs (one earned) over 14 innings spanning five appearances in August. The southpaw's 4.66 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 53:19 K:BB through 58 innings overall are nothing special, but he's been solid with one run allowed over 10 innings across his two starts since joining Baltimore's six-man rotation. He's tentatively lined up for a home start versus the Rockies next weekend.

Gilbert (11-5) earned the win Saturday, allowing two runs on eight hits and one walk over six innings against the Astros. He struck out three.

Gilbert turned in his fourth quality start of his last five appearances, allowing just two runners to score despite surrendering eight hits Saturday. The win was his 11th of the campaign -- tied for the 10th most in MLB -- and marked his ninth consecutive start that didn't result in a loss. Over that stretch, Gilbert owns a 3.07 ERA and a 53:8 K:BB in 55.2 innings. He's tentatively scheduled to make his next start against the Royals, who chased him after 4.1 innings the last time they met.

Valdez (9-9) took the loss Saturday, allowing six runs on 10 hits and two walks over five innings against the Mariners. He struck out five.

Valdez struggled to get through the Mariners lineup, giving up a season-high 10 hits and tying his season high in runs allowed. He struggled mightily with power, giving up five extra-base hits on the day, including a two-run home run to Dylan Moore in the fifth. Since throwing a no-hitter on Aug. 1, Valdez owns a 6.86 ERA, 12:5 K:BB and 2.3 HR/9 over 19.2 innings. He's set up for a bounce-back opportunity in his next projected start, which is tentatively scheduled to come against the Tigers in Detroit.

Crawford (6-6) earned the win Saturday, allowing one run on one hit and two walks over six innings against the Yankees while striking out five.

Crawford didn't allow a hit until the bottom of the sixth when Giancarlo Stanton tagged him for a solo home run on a hanging four-seamer. That would be the only hit surrendered by the right-hander on the afternoon as the Red Sox backed him with plenty of run support to help him earn his sixth win of the season. Crawford has now allowed three earned runs or fewer in each of his last five starts, while Saturday marked just the fourth time this season in which he's hurled at least six innings.