MLB Player News

The Royals placed Singer (personal) on the restricted list Thursday.

Singer is one of 10 Royals on the 26-man active roster who won't be eligible for the four-game series in Toronto due to his vaccination status. He'll be formally reinstated from the restricted list for the Royals' first game coming out of the All-Star break July 22 against Tampa Bay. Since he started in Wednesday's series finale with the Tigers, Singer wasn't on track to get a turn through the rotation in Toronto anyway, but his placement on the restricted list nonetheless allows the Royals to bring aboard infielder Michael Massey from Triple-A Omaha as an extra option off the bench.

The Royals placed Keller (personal) on the restricted list Thursday.

Keller is one of 10 Royals on the 26-man active roster who won't be eligible for the four-game series in Toronto due to his vaccination status. He'll be formally reinstated from the restricted list for the Royals' first game coming out of the All-Star break July 22 against Tampa Bay. Left-hander Angel Zerpa was called up from Double-A Northwest Arkansas as a replacement pitcher, and he could be an option to start one of the final two games of the series in Toronto if he isn't used out of the bullpen the next two days.

Civale was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right wrist sprain Thursday, Tom Withers of the Associated Press reports.

Civale exited Wednesday's start against the White Sox due to the wrist injury, and he'll be sidelined until at least late July after receiving his diagnosis. The Guardians won't need to fill his place in the rotation until after the All-Star break, but it's not yet clear when the 27-year-old is expected to return to game action.

The Rays placed Baz on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a right elbow sprain after he experienced discomfort while playing catch Tuesday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports. He'll receive a platelet-rich plasma injection for the elbow and will rest and rehab for a month before being re-evaluated, according to Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network.

Even if he's cleared to resume throwing following the four-week shutdown, Baz will likely need at least a couple weeks to get ramped back up for game action, so fantasy managers shouldn't count on the right-hander making his way back from the IL until at least early September. That reality likely makes Baz a comfortable drop in most redraft leagues, and his injury could prompt the Rays to explore acquiring another starting pitcher prior to the Aug. 2 trade deadline. After opening the season on the IL while recovering from arthroscopic surgery on the same elbow, Baz debuted June 11 and produced a 5.00 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 30:9 K:BB in 27 innings before succumbing to another elbow-related setback.

The Red Sox promoted Groome from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on Thursday.

A 2016 first-round draft pick, Groome's ascent through the Red Sox farm system was slowed by the Tommy John surgery he had in the spring of 2018 and the cancellation of the 2020 minor-league season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He's enjoyed generally good health for the past season and a half, however, and the 6-foot-6 lefty has resumed displaying the skills that made him a sought-after prep arm a half-decade ago. Though his strikeout and walk rates have trended in the wrong direction at Portland compared to a year ago, the 23-year-old Groome still punched out 24.9 percent of the batters he faced in 2022 while submitting a 3.52 ERA over 76.2 innings.

Watkins (3-1) earned the win Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits and two walks over five innings against the Cubs. He struck out five.

Watkins allowed leadoff baserunners in the third and fourthinnings but was able to escape both frames without giving up a run. However, he surrendered his first run of the game in the fifth following a triple from Christopher Morel and a sacrifice fly by Rafael Ortega. Over his last four starts, Watkins has given up just three earned runs across 22.2 innings while sporting a 17:5 K:BB during that span. He finishes the first half of the 2022 campaign with a solid 3.93 ERA over 52.2 innings.

Giolito (6-5) earned the win Wednesday, allowing one unearned run on five hits and one walk over 6.1 innings against the Guardians. He struck out five.

Giolito allowed leadoff doubles in the fourth and sixth innings but was able to strand both runners without giving up a run. However, the right-hander got into trouble again in the seventh after giving up a one-out single to Franmil Reyes followed by a full-count walk to Nolan Jones. Reynaldo Lopez replaced Giolito after the walk, but the starter was charged with an unearned run after Reyes scored on a fielding error by Josh Harrison. After surrendering 30 runs during a five-start streak that ended Jun 22, Giolito has given up two or fewer runs in three of his last four outings and has 26 strikeouts across 25 innings during the latter span. The right-hander isn't scheduled to start again until after the All-Star break.

Flexen (6-8) picked up the win in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Nationals, allowing one run on six hits and two walks over six innings in a 6-4 victory. He struck out one.

The right-hander also hit one batter with a pitch and managed a paltry six swinging strikes in 85 pitches, but the Nats didn't make much hard contact against Flexen, with only one of their six hits against him going for extra bases. The 28-year-old delivered his third straight quality start and eighth of the season, and he'll take a 3.84 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 67:34 K:BB through 96 innings into his next outing, which will come after the All-Star break.

German (shoulder) is scheduled to make the fifth start of his rehab assignment Friday with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Greg Joyce of the New York Post reports.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone left the door open for German to be activated from the 60-day injured list this weekend if the big club needs an extra arm out of the bullpen for its three-game series with the Red Sox, but for the time being, the 29-year-old right-hander is on track to make what should be his final rehab start. German tossed four scoreless innings and threw 53 pitches in his most recent rehab outing July 9, and he should be close to fully stretched out following Friday's start. At the moment, the Yankees don't have an opening in the rotation available for German coming out of the All-Star break, though that could change if the shoulder tightness Luis Severino experienced during his start Wednesday against the Reds forces him to the IL.

Giolito (6-5) allowed one unearned run on five hits and one walk while striking out five across 6.1 innings to earn the win Wednesday against the Guardians.

Giolito shut down the Cleveland lineup and was not charged with an earned run in a start for the first time since Opening Day. He's allowed two or fewer runs in three of his last four starts, but he has also been beaten up for five or more earned runs in three of his last six outings. That inconsistency has led to a 4.69 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 102:32 K:BB across 88.1 innings for Giolito on the season.