MLB Player News

Whitlock (elbow) allowed one run on five hits and struck out four over four innings Tuesday in his rehab start with Triple-A Worcester.

Whitlock, who made the first of at least two rehab starts for Worcester, didn't walk a batter and threw 49 pitches (35 strikes). Pending the outcome of his next start, Whitlock could rejoin the Red Sox next week, at which point manager Alex Cora will have a decision to make. Whitlock will presumably have a starting role waiting for him, but Boston will likely have to move one of its other six rotation members to the bullpen.

Dunning (4-0) won his second consecutive start in Tuesday's 7-4 victory over Atlanta. He allowed one run on six hits and struck out four without walking a batter over six innings.

The right-hander had to deal with traffic on the basepaths in every inning but his last one, but he managed to pitch out of trouble and retired the final seven batters he faced. He's been a Swiss army knife for the Rangers, serving as a multi-inning reliever and now fill-in starter while excelling at both. Earlier in the season, Dunning told Kennedi Landry of MLB.com that improved health following offseason hip surgery was the reason he's been so effective in 2023. In three starts as a replacement in the rotation for the injured Jacob deGrom (elbow), Dunning has allowed three runs on 14 hits and two walks while striking out 12 over 17 innings. He'll get a few more starts before deGrom is ready to return.

Muller did not factor into the decision Tuesday, allowing five runs on eight hits over four innings against the Diamondbacks. He struck out three.

Muller's start seemed to be doomed from the get-go, as Christian Walker tagged him for a two-run home run in the first inning that scored Emmanuel Rivera and increased Muller's streak of allowing a home run to seven straight starts. The lefty ended up allowing five runs, marking his third consecutive appearance giving up at least five runs. If there was any positive takeaway from Tuesday's contest, it would be that Muller didn't hand out a single walk for the first time all year. Considering Muller has yet to go six innings in a start and has only struck out more than three batters twice in nine outings, he offers little value to fantasy managers.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone indicated Tuesday that Rodon (back) currently doesn't need a second cortisone injection, Max Goodman of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

Rodon had a "cortisone-like" shot scheduled for midway through the week, but it doesn't appear that he'll need it. Goodman also reports that Rodon threw Friday, Saturday and Monday, so he seems to be feeling better after a back injury halted his throwing program in mid-April. Though he appears to be past a forearm strain that cropped up early in spring training, the southpaw's back issue has been described as "chronic," so it's still uncertain how far away he may be from beginning a rehab assignment. As it currently stands, it seems unlikely Rodon will appear in a game with the Yankees before mid-June.

Ober (3-0) allowed a run on six hits and a walk while striking out six over six innings to earn the win Tuesday versus the Dodgers.

Ober's strung together three straight quality starts, and he's struck out six batters in each of his last four outings. He threw 65 of 102 pitches for strikes in a fairly dominant showing Tuesday. The right-hander is now at a 1.78 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 28:7 K:BB through 30.1 innings over five starts this season. Ober is lined up for a home start versus the Giants in his next outing.

Singer (3-4) earned the win Tuesday over the Padres, allowing four runs (two earned) on seven hits and two walks with three strikeouts in six innings.

The Royals' defense let Singer down in the fifth inning, and he had some more trouble in the sixth. The bullpen was able to preserve a one-run lead over the last three frames to end his three-start winless skid. The right-hander trimmed his ERA to 7.09 with a 1.53 WHIP and 40:16 K:BB through 45.2 innings over nine starts. Singer's very rarely been anywhere between excellent or awful this season, with this start being the most moderate of the bunch. He's projected for two starts next week, with the first likely at home against the Tigers.

Lynn (2-5) earned the win Tuesday, allowing three runs (one earned) on seven hits over seven innings against Cleveland. He struck out seven.

Lynn secured his second quality start of the season Tuesday and first since April 11 while righting the ship after taking a loss in four of his last five outings. The veteran righty got off to a blazing start, retiring each of the first 11 batters and holding the Guardians scoreless until the sixth frame. Though Lynn owns a 6.66 ERA and a 1.9 HR/9, his one saving grace has been his swing-and-miss stuff, which is embodied in a 10.7 K/9. After finishing with an ERA above 4.00 once in his first 11 years in the bigs, Lynn is on pace to finish above that mark in 2023. However, he could be in line for some positive regression considering his atypically low 61.8 percent LOB percentage, as well as 5.04 xERA and 3.68 xFIP metrics which are significantly lower than his respective 6.66 and 4.76 base figures.

Bieber (3-2) took the loss Tuesday, allowing six runs (five earned) on 12 hits and zero walks over 4.2 innings against the White Sox. He struck out four.

Bieber had his worst start of the season Tuesday, setting season highs in hits allowed and earned runs while failing to make it to the sixth inning for the first time in nine starts. Though he made it through the first four frames without giving up a run, the White Sox finally got to him in the fifth inning by scoring six runs. The inning was highlighted by a three-run home run by Gavin Sheets that plated Yoan Moncada and Andrew Vaughn, while a Jake Burger two-run long ball brought Yasmani Grandal home. Bieber failed to record a quality start for just the second time this season while increasing his season ERA to 3.20 from 2.61 and HR/9 to 0.96 from 0.70. The 28-year-old has not had his typical strikeout juice this year, owning what would be a career-low 6.87 K/9. Part of the reason for this decrease could be a dip in velocity. While throwing 92.9 mph in 2023, he held a 12.48 K/9, before dropping down to 91.5 mph in 2022 with an 8.91 K/9 and staying around 91.5 mph in 2023.

Kremer (5-1) earned the win Tuesday, allowing three runs on six hits over 5.2 innings against the Angels. He struck out four.

Kremer has won three straight outings, allowing four runs through 17.2 innings in that span. After a rough start to the season, the 27-year-old Kremer now sports a 4.63 ERA with a 1.42 WHIP and 36:13 K:BB. He'll look to extend his winning streak in his next outing, tentatively lined up for this weekend in Toronto.

Lorenzen (2-2) earned the win Tuesday, allowing five hits and two walks over six scoreless innings against Pittsburgh. He struck out seven.

Lorenzen has been excellent of late -- he's gone 2-1 in his last three starts while allowing just two runs over 20 innings in that span. On the season, the 31-year-old Lorenzen is now 2-2 with a 3.44 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 26:9 K:BB through six starts (34 innings). At the very least, Lorenzen is worth a look as a streaming option at this point in the season. He's lined up for another favorable road matchup against the Royals in his next outing.