MLB Player News

Kirby (7-3) earned the win over Atlanta on Saturday, pitching six innings and allowing an unearned run on three hits and no walks while striking out six batters.

Kirby was dominant through six frames, allowing just two baserunners -- one of whom was wiped out on a double play. He yielded a single to lead off the seventh and was pulled after the next batter reached on an error, but Seattle's bullpen did a good job of limiting the damage, and Kirby was tagged with just an unearned run. The rookie right-hander finished with his ninth quality start of the campaign, and he recorded his fifth win over his past seven starts. Kirby has rewarded fantasy managers who stuck with him after some early-season growing pains. Since the start of July, he's posted a 1.99 ERA and 66:7 K:BB over 58.2 innings.

McKenzie (10-11) allowed six hits and two walks while striking out five over seven scoreless innings to earn the win Saturday over the Twins.

McKenzie was excellent and received sufficient support to help him earn his first win in four starts. This was his seventh scoreless outing in 27 appearances (26 starts) this season, though the Guardians' usually steady bullpen nearly cost him the victory. McKenzie has been excellent throughout the year with a 3.05 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 159:43 K:BB across 165.1 innings. He's projected for a home start versus the White Sox next week if the Guardians stay on turn.

Urquidy (13-6) took the loss Saturday versus the Angels. He allowed six runs on 10 hits, a walk and a hit batsman while striking out four over five innings.

Urquidy didn't get deep into a lot of counts, throwing just 88 pitches (61 strikes) despite the crooked numbers on his line. It's the third time he's surrendered double-digit hits, and the six runs matched a season high. He posted nine straight starts of at least six innings from mid-June to early August, but he's achieved that mark in just three of his six most recent outings. The 27-year-old right-hander now has a 3.75 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 121:33 K:BB through 151 innings across 26 starts this year. Urquidy will look to get back on track in a favorable home start versus the Athletics next week.

Berrios was projected to start Sunday against the Rangers, but Trevor Richards will instead start a bullpen game for the Blue Jays, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

With that, Berrios moves back to start Monday's home game against the Rays. Berrios should get the ball for two big divisional matchups next week, as the Orioles travel to Toronto next weekend. Berrios has endured a tough season to date (5.23 ERA, 1.39 WHIP), but the Blue Jays are still counting on the right-hander to help get them to the postseason.

Kluber (10-8) took the loss Saturday, allowing six runs on eight hits over two-thirds of an inning against the Yankees. He did not record a strikeout or a walk.

Kluber simply did not have it on this particular afternoon. The Yankees started the home half of the first inning with seven consecutive singles, and an eighth single in the frame ultimately chased Kluber from the contest. The right-hander had turned in four consecutive quality starts coming into Saturday's game, and there wasn't any indication of an injury from the team afterward.

Taillon (13-4) earned the win Saturday, allowing three runs on six hits and one walk over 7.1 innings in a 10-3 victory over the Rays. He struck out eight.

The Yankees scored six runs in the first inning, affording Taillon a fair amount of wiggle room. He didn't need much, however, as Taillon was mostly excellent until he put two of the first three batters aboard in the eighth inning, both of which came around to score after his exit. Taillon does not typically pack the swing-and-miss punch of a frontline fantasy starter, but he leads the Yankees in wins and his 1.13 WHIP ranks 10th in the American League among qualified starters.

McClanahan (shoulder) could return Thursday against Toronto, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports.

McClanahan hit the injured list on the last day of August due to a shoulder impingement, but reports emerged quickly that he may not need more than a minimum-length absence. If he is indeed able to start Thursday, that will wind up being the case. He felt good after throwing a bullpen session Friday, so the odds of him making it back when first eligible look good.

Striping didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 4-3 win over the Rangers, allowing two runs on three hits over six innings. He struck out four without walking a batter.

The right-hander was sharp aside from serving up Josh Jung's first career home run. Stripling exited the game after an efficient 68 pitches (48 strikes) in line for his eighth win before the bullpen coughed up the lead in the eighth inning. He's reeled off five straight quality starts since rejoining the rotation in mid-August, posting a 2.67 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 31:4 K:BB through 30.1 innings over that stretch.

Schmidt struck out two and scattered two hits and one walk over three scoreless innings in relief Thursday in the Yankees' 4-3 loss to the Twins.

After making a pair of starts, Schmidt moved back to the bullpen Thursday with Nestor Cortes (groin) making his return from the 15-day injured list. However, because Cortes wasn't fully stretched out following his stint on the IL, Schmidt ended up piggybacking him in what essentially ended up being a tandem start. Cortes shouldn't face any major limitations the next time his turn in the rotation comes up, so Schmidt will likely serve as a more traditional multi-inning reliever for the foreseeable future.

German will start Sunday's home game against the Rays, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.

German allowed three runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out six in six innings Wednesday against the Twins, and he'll make a start on short rest during Sunday's series finale against the Rays. It's possible that the right-hander will be on a pitch count since he'll be starting sooner than expected.