MLB Player News

Houck (2-3) was charged with the loss Sunday against the White Sox after surrendering three runs on four hits with two strikeouts and zero walks over 2.2 innings.

The 25-year-old was pressed into starting duty with Michael Wacha (side) a late scratch, and he was pitching on two days' rest after throwing 56 pitches Thursday. Manager Alex Cora recently indicated that Houck would be working out of the bullpen for the foreseeable future, but Houck could move back into the rotation with Wacha on the 15-day injured list and Rich Hill (illness) on the COVID-19 IL.

Keuchel (2-3) picked up the win Sunday against the Red Sox after allowing two runs on eight hits with five strikeouts and one walk over six innings.

The left-hander walked five batters in each of his past two outings, but he showed much better control Sunday and produced his best performance of the season. Keuchel started off with five scoreless innings, but Boston was able to scratch across a pair of runs during the sixth. The 34-year-old will need more than one solid outing to get back on the fantasy radar, and he lines up for a tough matchup with the Yankees next weekend.

Dunning allowed a run on two hits and three walks while striking out five in six innings during the loss to the Yankees in the first game of Sunday's doubleheader. He didn't factor into the decision.

Dunning earned his first win of 2022 during his last start, and he posted a second consecutive quality start Sunday despite having his outing pushed back a few days due to inclement weather. The right-hander made a career-high 25 starts last year and logged a 4.51 ERA and 1.44 WHIP, but he's been more effective over his first six starts in 2022. He now has a 3.38 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 32 innings this season but has been rewarded with just one win. Dunning will attempt to continue his hot streak when he tentatively lines up to face the Red Sox at home Friday.

Astros general manager James Click said Sunday that McCullers (forearm) is beginning to increase the intensity, distance and frequency of his throwing routine, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Click noted that McCullers has been playing catch off flat ground from 60 feet for a while, so the right-hander looks like he'll continue to gradually stretch out that distance in the days to come before advancing to bullpen sessions in the "next couple weeks." From there, McCullers will still have to graduate to throwing live batting practice before heading out on a multi-start rehab assignment, so he's realistically more than a month away from returning from the 60-day injured list.

Faedo, who was optioned to Triple-A Toledo on Thursday, is expected to be recalled from Toledo to start the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Athletics in Detroit, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

The Tigers plan to designated Faedo as their 27th man for the twin bill, just as they did for their doubleheader last Wednesday against the Pirates. Faedo made his MLB debut in the second game that day versus Pittsburgh, taking a no-decision after working five innings and giving up two runs on eight hits and a walk. Assuming he gets another starting nod against Oakland, Faedo will likely be sent back to Toledo immediately after the outing.

Odorizzi (3-2) yielded one hit and two walks over five shutout innings Sunday, striking out five and earning a win over the Tigers.

The only danger that Odorizzi faced in the victory came during the fourth inning; after two walks and a wild pitch, he had two runners in scoring position with one out but escaped the jam unscathed. The veteran righty has allowed just one run over 17.2 frames during his three-start winning streak after giving up 12 runs (nine earned) in his first three outings. Odorizzi will carry a 3.38 ERA into next week's projected start in Washington.

Manning (shoulder) tossed three scoreless innings Sunday in his first rehab start at Triple-A Toledo. He struck out four and allowed one hit and issued no walks in the 36-pitch outing.

The outing marked Manning's first at any level since he exited his second start of the season with the Tigers on April 16 with right shoulder tightness. Though Manning was about as impressive as possible in the rehab outing and efficiently retired nine of the 10 hitters he faced, he's expected to make one or two more rehab starts before slotting back into the Detroit rotation, according to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press.

Javier was credited with a hold after striking out five and allowing no hits and a walk over three scoreless innings out of the bullpen Sunday in the Astros' 5-0 win over the Tigers.

After securing his second win of the season five days earlier when he delivered 5.1 scoreless innings in his start against the Mariners, Javier continued to aid fantasy managers' ratios in his second appearance of the week. He ended up piggybacking starter Jake Odorizzi, who worked the first five innings of the game. The Astros have an off day Monday, so the team will likely reorder its six-man rotation and move Javier to the back of the line. He projects to make his next start May 15 in Washington, unless the Astros opt to have Javier piggyback Odorizzi again.

Paddack's early exit from his start in Sunday's game against the Athletics was due to right elbow inflammation, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Paddack recorded four strikeouts and was charged with three runs on five hits and no walks before he departed with one out in the third inning. The diagnosis of inflammation rather than tightness or a strain bodes well for Paddack's chances of avoiding an extended absence, though the injury could still be significant enough to force him to the IL. The Twins should have a better idea regarding the severity of his elbow issue after evaluating him in the next day or two.

The Twins removed Paddack from his start Sunday against the Athletics due to an apparent injury. He struck out four over 2.1 innings and allowed one run on five hits and left two runners on base before exiting.

Expect Minnesota to provide an update on Paddack's health later in the day after he was pulled from the contest following a visit to the mound from a team trainer. If Paddack is forced to miss time due to an injury, the Twins could condense from a six-man to five-man rotation rather than finding a replacement for him in the rotation.