MLB Player News

Sale struck out 10 but allowed five runs on six hits with one walk across six innings during a no-decision against the White Sox on Wednesday.

The 30-year-old continues to rack up the strikeouts, but wins have been harder to come by. While he owns 60 strikeouts in his last six starts, Sale has gone just 2-1 during that stretch. His ERA has improved in the last six outings, but it's still greater than his preseason expectations. Sale is 3-7 with a 3.82 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 148 strikeouts in 101.1 innings this season. He will make his next start at the Blue Jays on Thursday.

Odorizzi did not factor into the decision during Wednesday's win over the Rays, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out seven over 5.1 innings.

Odorizzi had no problem finding the strike zone against his former club, but he did lose command earlier than expected in the sixth inning. A hard-hit groundout, a home run and a walk chased Odorizzi off the mound after he threw 91 pitches. Overall, two homers accounted for all three of his runs allowed. With 10 wins on the season, the 29-year-old remains tied for the AL lead with Justin Verlander and Lucas Giolito. Odorizzi will take a 2.73 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 94:27 K:BB into a showdown Tuesday with Oakland.

Morton (8-2) was charged with the loss against the Twins on Wednesday after surrendering five runs (three earned) on eight hits and a walk while striking out seven through 6.1 innings.

Despite allowing a season high in hits, Morton only surrendered singles. As usual, the right-hander had no problem missing bats, and he looked sharp overall against the potent Twins. Morton has now gone three consecutive outings without a win following a four-game winning streak. Regardless, the 35-year-old still carries an impressive 2.43 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 120:34 K:BB into a favorable matchup against Baltimore on Monday.

Valdez (3-4) was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock after taking the loss Wednesday against the Pirates, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports. He gave up six runs on eight hits across only three innings and had two strikeouts and one walk.

Wednesday's performance made back-to-back poor outings for Valdez, who allowed 11 runs across his last 6.1 innings. The 25-year-old's stint in the starting rotation may have been coming to an end regardless, considering the Astros won't require a fifth starter again until after the All-Star break. Valdez has a 4.57 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 41:19 K:BB over 45.1 major-league innings this season.

Boyd (5-6) allowed four earned runs on five hits and a walk while striking out 11 across seven innings to take the loss Wednesday against the Rangers.

Boyd got off to very strong start, striking out five of the first six batters he faced. While his strikeout pace slowed, Boyd managed an impressive 20 swinging strikes on 96 total pitches. However, he was undone by allowing three home runs -- all solo shots -- and has now surrendered at least one homer in five consecutive outings. Boyd's ERA sits at a season-worst mark of 3.72, which he'll try to correct in his next start, currently scheduled for Tuesday at the White Sox.

Bundy (3-10) took the loss Wednesday as the Orioles were downed 10-5 by the Padres, giving up five runs on six hits and three walks over four-plus innings while striking out four.

The right-hander gave up two more long balls, Nos. 18 and 19 on the year in only 84.1 innings (2.03 HR/9), to set the tone for what ended up being a five-homer afternoon for San Diego hitters. Bundy will carry a 4.91 ERA and 90:30 K:BB into his next start Monday in Tampa Bay.

Ramirez (elbow) has extended his rehab assignment, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Ramirez is working his way back from Tommy John surgery, so this allows the right-hander to extend his rehab assignment by another 30 days. As such, the Angels will not activate Ramirez from the injured list before the end of the month, as was originally expected. It's unclear how many additional rehab appearances Ramirez will make before activation, though a return after the All-Star break now seems likely.

Canning is scheduled to make his next start Thursday at home against the Athletics.

Due to an off day Monday, the Angels had the opportunity to reorder their rotation, but they'll elect to break in a new fifth starter (Jaime Barria) for Wednesday's series finale with the Reds rather than waiting until the weekend to do so. As a result, Canning will return to the hill Thursday on five days' rest instead of his normal four and draw a different opponent than fantasy managers may have anticipated heading into the week. The extra day of rest should at least prove beneficial to Canning, who has surrendered 13 runs in 23.1 innings over his last four starts.

Means (shoulder) will be activated from the injured list Friday to start against the Indians, Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports reports.

As expected, Means has been cleared to rejoin the Orioles this weekend after getting through a bullpen session with no issues Tuesday. It originally wasn't clear which game Means would start, but he'll get the series opener while Andrew Cashner and Gabriel Ynoa start the remaining two games. Prior to landing on the shelf, the southpaw compiled a 2.67 ERA and 1.15 WHIP despite his below-average strikeout rate (20.3 percent).

Carrasco (blood condition) has started playing catch, though the Indians don't yet know when or whether he'll be able to return, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

It's been difficult to get many details on Carrasco's status, as it's a non-baseball medical condition, meaning that the team can't comment on his condition without him disclosing it publicly. He does have a history of heart problems, however, which appear to be connected to his current status.