MLB Player News

Montas (hand) is listed as the Athletics' probable starter for Thursday's game against the Rangers in Oakland, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Montas' inclusion on the Athletics' pitching schedule for the four-game series with Texas implies that he was able to complete a between-starts bullpen session without any discomfort. His previous start last weekend against the Angels was cut short in the second inning, when he was struck on his pitching hand by a line drive.

Schmidt (3-2) picked up the win against Baltimore on Tuesday, allowing an unearned run and striking out one batter over two innings.

Schmidt checked in for the 10th inning and retired all three batters he faced to keep the score tied. He remained in for the 11th frame and allowed the designated runner to score on a pair of groundouts, but the Yankees walked off with a win in the bottom of the inning to provide Schmidt with the win. The right-hander has allowed only one earned run over 13 innings this season while posting a 10:4 K:BB.

The Twins placed Ryan on the COVID-19-related injured list Wednesday.

With Ryan heading to the COVID-19 IL, the Twins summoned Devin Smeltzer from Triple-A St. Paul to take the rookie right-hander's spot in the rotation Thursday against the Royals. It's unclear whether Ryan tested positive for the virus or is being deactivated as a matter of precaution, but it's possible he won't have to miss more than one turn through the rotation while he's on the COVID-19 IL. More information on Ryan's status should come by the end of the week.

Manning (shoulder/illness) covered 1.2 innings in his rehab start Tuesday at Triple-A Toledo, giving up one run on two hits and two walks while striking out three.

Making the fourth start of his rehab assignment at Toledo after his previous outing was cut short when he experienced lightheadedness, Manning experienced no health-related setbacks. However, the right-hander didn't work as deep into the start as the Tigers has hoped, as he was pulled after throwing just 43 pitches (25 strikes). According to Jason Beck of MLB.com, manager A.J. Hinch said that the Tigers have an organizational edict to limit all minor-league pitchers to no more than 30 pitches in a given inning, so Manning was pulled early after he struggled with efficiency during the second inning. As a result of the short outing, the Tigers are still deciding whether Manning will need another rehab start, or if he's built up enough at this point to slot back into an injury-depleted big-league rotation that desperately needs another healthy arm.

Gausman (4-3) picked up the win in Tuesday's 8-1 victory over the Cardinals, scattering four hits and two walks over six scoreless innings. He struck out eight.

After uncharacteristically issuing two free passes in the first inning, Gausman knuckled down and pounded the zone, firing 74 of 105 pitches for strikes before exiting, and St. Louis never got a runner past second base. The right-hander has been worth every penny for the Blue Jays so far after signing a $110 million deal in the offseason, providing six quality starts in nine trips to the mound with a 2.25 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 65:5 K:BB through his first 56 innings with Toronto.

Velasquez allowed one walk and struck out five across three scoreless innings in Tuesday's loss to Boston.

Velasquez made his first appearance out of the bullpen this season, and he delivered some needed length in the blowout loss. He struggled mightily as a starter earlier in the campaign, particularly in his two most recent outings, when he allowed 11 earned runs across 10 innings. As a result, he has likely lost his grip on a consistent rotation spot, with Johnny Cueto taking over in his place. Even if Velasquez continues to make spot starts for the time being, he is almost certainly headed for a relief role once Lance Lynn (knee) is able to return.

Montgomery didn't factor into the decision in Tuesday's 7-6 extra-innings win over the Orioles, allowing two runs on four hits over six-plus innings. He struck out five without walking a batter.

The southpaw tossed 57 of 88 pitches for strikes en route to his third quality start of the season, but Montgomery got the hook after serving up a solo shot to Austin Hays to lead off the seventh inning and was then denied his first win of 2022 when his replacement, Michael King, coughed up three more runs in the frame. Montgomery's 3.30 ERA and 1.06 WHIP are deserving of much better luck in the win department, but his career-low 19.7 percent strikeout rate suggests some regression might be coming for those ratios as well.

Kirby didn't factor into the decision during Tuesday's 7-5 loss to Oakland, allowing four runs on eight hits with nine strikeouts in five innings.

Kirby was decent Tuesday in striking out an impressive nine batters while allowing four total runs in three different innings. The 24-year-old has shown promise through four starts with a 19:2 K:BB, though he's now surrendered nine runs across his last 10 innings. Kirby will go for his first win early next week against Baltimore.

Kaprielian registered a no-decision during Tuesday's 7-5 victory over Seattle, allowing five runs on seven hits and one walk with three strikeouts in five innings.

After looking good early, Kaprielian struggled the second and third times through the order, allowing two runs in the third and three in the fifth on six baserunners between the two innings. The 28-year-old tossed 50 of 74 pitches for strikes and has now recorded three strikeouts or fewer in three of his five starts. Kaprielien will carry a 5.48 ERA and 1.35 WHIP into his next start, which is projected to come this weekend against Texas.

Dunning (1-3) got the loss Tuesday after he tossed 6.1 innings, surrendering five runs on 11 hits and a walk while striking out eight versus the Angels.

Dunning was unable to keep the Angels off the basepaths Tuesday, giving up a season-high 11 hits. He was able to pitch three scoreless innings before the wheels fell off in the fourth. The final tally against him came in the way of a Jared Walsh solo homer the following inning. Dunning's ERA jumped from 3.38 to 4.32. The only positive from Tuesday's outing: his eight punchouts, a season high. He's tentatively set to pitch again Sunday against the Athletics on the road.