MLB Player News

Garcia (15-8) earned the win Sunday, allowing one run on three hits and one walk over six innings with four strikeouts in a 3-1 win over the Rays.

In what was likely his last appearance of the regular season, Garcia allowed one run over six innings, marking the first time he has thrown consecutive quality starts since June 4. The only damage came via a leadoff double followed by an RBI single in the top of the second inning, as he held the Rays to just two other baserunners on the afternoon. After a breakout campaign in 2021 when he recorded 11 wins with a 3.48 ERA over 155.1 innings, the 25-year-old has followed it up with 15 wins and a 3.72 ERA over 157.1 innings in 2022.

Bieber (13-8) earned the win Sunday against Kansas City, striking out three in five innings while allowing two runs (one earned) on seven hits and a walk.

After scattering two hits and a walk through the first three innings, Bieber ran into trouble in the fourth and was the victim of some bad defense. The Royals hit three singles in the fourth and scored one of their two runs following a throwing error by Gabriel Arias. The five frames completed brought Bieber's season total to exactly 200, his second time reaching that mark in his career. He lines up to start one of the first two games of the American League Wild Card series at the end of the week in Cleveland.

Wacha (11-2) took the loss Sunday in Toronto, allowing five runs on six hits and a walk while striking out four in four innings.

Wacha was hit hard Sunday, allowing a home run in each of the second, third and fourth innings. The 31-year-old did not give up three homers in any of his first 21 starts this season but was taken deep three times in each of his last two starts. He will be a free agent after the season and has played well enough to likely get a better deal than the one-year, $7 million contract he received for 2022. For the season, he went 11-2 with a 3.32 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 104:31 K:BB in 127.1 innings across 23 starts.

Wentz was optioned to Triple-A Toledo after he allowed two unearned runs on two hits and four walks over 4.2 innings Sunday against the Twins, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports. The left-hander had four strikeouts and didn't factor in the decision.

Wentz pitched well but didn't qualify for the victory since he was pulled during the fifth inning after Minnesota tallied two runs on three walks, an error and a sacrifice fly. It was the 24-year-old's final outing of the season, and he closed the campaign with a 3.03 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 27:13 K:BB across 32.2 innings. He should enter spring training with a chance to secure a rotation spot to begin 2023 after a strong showing in his first taste of the big leagues this year.

Garcia will be called up from Triple-A Toledo to start Monday against the Mariners, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Garcia was last in the majors in mid-August and delivered a quality start against Cleveland, and he'll rejoin the big-league rotation once more during the final week of the season. The 27-year-old has a 3.29 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 11:8 K:BB in 13.2 frames across his three starts for Detroit this year.

Gausman was removed from Sunday's start against the Red Sox due to a laceration on his right middle finger, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.

Gausman allowed two runs on four hits with four strikeouts and zero walks across three frames before he exited with the injury. The right-hander won't factor in the decision for his final outing of the regular season, and he will finish with a 12-10 record in 31 starts to go along with a 3.35 ERA and 205:28 K:BB. The finger issue is unlikely to be a serious concern, though it's unclear if the injury will affect his availability for the wild-card round, which begins Friday.

Kikuchi is the leading candidate to start Wednesday in Baltimore, Mitch Bannon of SI.com reports.

It's Alek Manoah's turn in the rotation, but the Jays will seemingly save him for the playoffs. Kikuchi's strikeouts spiked after a move to the bullpen Aug. 17, as he has 31 strikeouts over 16.2 innings. However, he has remained ineffective at preventing runs, logging a 5.40 ERA and 1.56 WHIP while surrendering four home runs and walking nine across that stretch.

Manoah is unlikely to pitch the final game of the regular season Wednesday in Baltimore, Mitch Bannon of SI.com reports.

While Manoah is on turn, Yusei Kikuchi is the likely starter in what would amount to a bullpen game. The Jays will likely save Manoah, who is fifth in the majors with 196.2 innings, for what they hope is a long postseason run.

Bello (2-8) took the loss Saturday, allowing four runs on 10 hits and two walks over four innings against the Blue Jays. He struck out four.

Bello allowed an RBI single and a two-run double from Danny Jansen en route to putting Boston in a 4-0 deficit through three innings. Prior to this outing, the righty had allowed three runs or fewer in seven straight starts. The 23-year-old has pitched six innings or more just twice during his rookie campaign.

Stripling (10-4) earned the win Saturday without allowing a run on four hits over six innings against Boston. He struck out three.

Stripling did not allow an extra-base hit in his quality outing against Boston. The righty recently went through a five-start stretch where he allowed six home runs with a 4.45 ERA over 28.1 innings, but he has bounced back by allowing only one run with no homers over his last two outings. The 32-year-old is outstanding at home with a 2.47 ERA over 69.1 innings compared to a 3.60 ERA over 65 innings on the road.