MLB Player News

Lynch (4-6) was charged with the loss against Cleveland on Tuesday after surrendering four runs on four hits and three walks while striking out five across six innings.

Lynch allowed Cleveland to hit hard and hit early. After loading the bases with a pair of walks and a single in the first inning, Lynch earned his first out by sending Franmil Reyes down on strikes, but Yu Chang followed with bases-clearing triple to take a 3-0 lead. The southpaw's final damage of the night came from an Ernie Clement home run in the third. Lynch's first-inning woes are nothing new, as the 24-year-old has given up 19 earned runs in the first frames of his 14 starts. Overall this year, Lynch has compiled a 5.40 ERA and 1.57 WHIP.

Quantrill (7-3) earned the win Tuesday after holding the Royals to one run on seven hits and a pair of walks while striking out six across 6.2 innings.

Quantrill secured his third straight win and his third consecutive quality start with strong command Tuesday. The 26-year-old blanked Kansas City across the first six frames before Hunter Dozier broke through with a solo homer in the seventh. Otherwise, Quantrill was brilliant, pitching into the seventh inning for the sixth outing in a row. The right-hander will carry a 2.82 ERA and 1.18 WHIP into his next turn on the mound.

Manager Bob Melvin announced Tuesday that Kaprielian is no longer slated to start Thursday against Seattle and that the right-hander is likely to move to the bullpen going forward, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Kaprielian was originally scheduled to move to the bullpen last week, but with Daulton Jefferies (elbow) landing on the IL, he remained in the rotation to start Saturday against the Angels. The right-hander posted his strongest outing since late July, allowing just two hits while fanning five across six scoreless innings. While Melvin wouldn't commit 100 percent to him moving to a relief role with Chris Bassitt (face) set to be activated from the IL on Thursday, such a move makes sense considering that Kaprielian has tossed 116 innings this season after failing to reach the 40-inning mark in his previous six professional seasons.

Bassitt (face) will be activated from the 10-day injured list to start Thursday's game against the Mariners, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

James Kaprielian was initially pencilled in to start Thursday's series finale, but manager Bob Melvin announced Tuesday that Bassitt would be activated to toe the rubber instead. The right-hander hasn't pitched since being struck by a comebacker and suffering multiple facial fractures during his start against the White Sox on Aug. 17. He was initially deemed unlikely to return during the regular season, but with him pitching Thursday, he could start as many as three games during Oakland's pivotal 10-game stretch to conclude the season. Per Martin Gallegos of MLB.com, Bassitt's return will probably push Kaprielian to the bullpen, though that decision isn't expected to be made until later in the week. Given his lengthy absence and the fact that he did not go on a minor-league rehab assignment, Bassitt seems near certain to be on a strict pitch count Thursday.

Keuchel gave up two runs on 11 hits and a walk while striking out two across five innings during Tuesday's loss to the Tigers. He did not factor into the decision.

A lack of efficiency hurt Keuchel this time as he needed 95 pitches to complete five innings. Meanwhile, his 11 hits allowed were a season worst. Akil Baddoo was Keuchel's biggest enemy of the day with two RBI singles, accounting for all the damage. The lefty will bring a 5.18 ERA and 1.50 WHIP into his next projected start Sunday at Cleveland.

Bieber (shoulder) will be activated from the 60-day injured list to make a start later this week so long as he doesn't suffer any setbacks following Tuesday's bullpen session, Zack Meisel of The Athletic reports.

The right-hander built up to 57 pitches in his lates rehab outing with Double-A Akron on Sunday, and so long as he's able to complete Tuesday's bullpen without any issues, his next start is expected to come for the big club. While Cleveland has not speculated on a specific game for Bieber to be activated, either Friday or Saturday against the White Sox would seem to make the most sense from a rest standpoint. The reigning American League Cy Young winner is expected to be capped at around 75 pitches if he's indeed able to return over the weekend.

Arihara cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday, Levi Weaver of The Athletic reports.

Arihara was DFA'd on Sunday after posting a 6.64 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 24:13 K:BB across 10 starts with the Rangers. He didn't find any suitors on waivers, so he'll remain with Texas as minor-league depth for the time being. The right-hander signed a two-year, $6.2 million deal in the offseason, so the Rangers will certainly be looking for signs that he can turn things around heading into 2022.

Whitlock (pectoral) was placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Per Bill Koch of The Providence Journal, manager Alex Cora maintained that the pectoral injury isn't thought to be serious, but that the Red Sox "don't feel he's going to be ready in the upcoming days." The move to the IL can be backdated to Monday, so Whitlock will become eligible to be reinstated Sept. 30 against Baltimore. If he progresses as he hopes, the right-hander stands a strong chance to rejoin the Boston bullpen for the last four games of the regular season. Ryan Brasier was recalled from Triple-A Worcester to take his spot on the 28-man roster.

The Rangers list Dunning as their starting pitcher for Tuesday's game against the Yankees.

Dunning will be picking up his first start since Aug. 20, after he spent about two and a half weeks on the COVID-19 injured list before returning in a relief role once he was activated Sept. 10. Because Dunning didn't get fully stretched out for starting duty during the idle period, the Rangers have been having him build up his pitch count over his two appearances out of the bullpen. In his most recent outing Sept. 15, Dunning covered two innings (43 pitches), so he likely won't be asked to work deep into Tuesday's start. Glenn Otto could be an option to piggyback Dunning, if the Rangers elect to go that route.

Rodon (arm) is expected to make his next start Sept. 29 against the Reds, Maddie Lee of NBC Sports Chicago reports.

Rodon is having an excellent season, striking out 35.1 percent of opposing batters en route to a 2.47 ERA and 0.97 WHIP across 23 starts. He's being handled very cautiously down the stretch as the White Sox try to keep him healthy for the playoffs, getting eight and nine days of rest prior to his previous two starts. He exited his start Monday against the Tigers after just three innings due to left arm soreness, and it looks as though the White Sox will give him a similar length of time off before his next trip to the mound. That means he'll make at most one more start before the end of the regular season.