MLB Player News

Kluber (18-7) picked up the win Wednesday against the Royals, allowing one run on two hits and one walk across 6.2 innings. He struck out 10.

It was business as usual for Kluber, who allowed just two hits all evening while keeping the bases clear for five of the seven innings he appeared in. His 10 strikeouts were the most he's recorded in a start since May 30, and he's now primed to surpass 200 strikeouts for a fifth consecutive season. He'll carry a shiny 2.75 ERA into his next start, which will come on the road against the Rays.

Bassitt is listed as the starter for Friday's game against the Rangers, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

Bassitt will be eligible to rejoin the A's on Thursday after being optioned to Triple-A Nashville on Aug. 27. Daniel Mengden is unavailable to start Friday after working 4.2 innings in relief Tuesday, so Bassitt will slide into the rotation to make a spot start, though it's unclear if the 29-year-old righty will stick in the rotation beyond then. He owns a 3.19 ERA and 1.34 WHIP with 28 strikeouts through 36.2 innings (seven starts) with the A's this season.

McGuire was called up from Triple-A Salt Lake on Wednesday, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

McGuire will rejoin the big-league team after shuttling back and forth between Los Angeles and the minors throughout the past month. Across 16 appearances in the majors this year, he's logged a rough 6.47 ERA and 1.62 WHIP with a 27:20 K:BB in 32 innings. He will likely be deployed in low-leverage spots.

McCullers threw from the slope of the mound Tuesday and may throw a regular bullpen session this weekend in Boston, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

This represents a significant step forward for the right-hander as manager A.J. Hinch previously said that McCullers wouldn't throw off a mound "any time soon" when asked about his status during the final week of August. The right-hander's timetable remains murky, but more should be known following this weekend.

Morton (shoulder) will be reinstated from the 10-day DL ahead of Saturday's outing versus Boston, Jake Kaplan of The Athletic reports.

Morton will return to the fold this weekend after tossing a pain-free bullpen session Tuesday. As expected, he will only wind up missing one turn through the rotation, but it wouldn't come as a surprise if Morton was on some sort of pitch count Saturday, especially considering the Astros have a wealth of reserve arms now that rosters have expanded. Across 26 starts this year, Morton has posted a 3.14 ERA and 1.18 WHIP.

Manager John Gibbons said Wednesday that Stroman (finger) will not take the hill against Cleveland on Sunday and may not return again this season, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Gibbons stated that the club has yet to determine the course of action for Stroman at this point in time, but things aren't looking positive for the right-hander after he aggravated a blister on his pitching hand during Monday's outing. Prior to that start, Stroman was on the DL for a few weeks due to the blister issue, and the organization isn't going to put him back in harms way with the Blue Jays out of postseason contention. In his absence, Thomas Pannone will likely toe the rubber Sunday.

Montas isn't eligible to be recalled from Triple-A Nashville until 10 days after his Aug. 31 demotion to the Sounds due to a clause in the collective bargaining agreement, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The Athletics overlooked the provision -- which requires a team to wait 10 days before recalling a player that's been optioned to the minors, even if the minor-league team's season is over -- and had originally planned on having Montas back with them to serve as the long reliever in Tuesday's bullpen day against the Yankees. Instead, they'll have to wait until early next week to get the right-hander back in the fold.

Bassitt isn't eligible to be recalled from Triple-A Nashville until 10 days after his Aug. 27 demotion to the Sounds due to a clause in the collective bargaining agreement, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The Athletics overlooked the provision -- which requires a team to wait 10 days before recalling a player that's been optioned to the minors, even if the minor-league team's season is over -- and had originally planned on having Bassitt back with them Tuesday. The right-hander could serve in a variety of roles upon his return.

Lively was claimed off waivers by the Royals on Wednesday.

Lively will head straight to the major-league roster, though it's unclear if he'll be a member of the rotation or the bullpen down the stretch. The 26-year-old made 20 starts for the Phillies over the last two seasons, posting a 4.81 ERA. He's been good at avoiding walks, posting just a 7.0 percent walk rate, but he doesn't strike out enough batters (15.2 percent strikeout rate) to be anything more than a back-end starter at best.

Whitley (lat) was activated from the minor-league disabled list Wednesday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Whitley's lat discomfort wasn't expected to be a serious issue, and he'll wind up missing less than two weeks. He'll return in time to pitch for Double-A Corpus Christi in the playoffs and will then head to the Arizona Fall League. The highly rated 20-year-old needs all the innings he can get, as he's thrown just 26.1 so far this year while battling two injuries and a suspension.