MLB Player News

Sale allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks while striking out six over seven innings in Tuesday's 7-6 loss to the Royals in extra innings.

Sale wasn't at his best -- he also hit two batters -- but as usual kept the game close despite some sketchy defense behind him and departed with a lead. The win escaped him when Craig Kimbrel blew his first save since last August, serving up an over-the-plate fastball that Alex Gordon drilled for a game-tying home run. Sale has yet to allow more than three runs in any of the seven games started so far, but has just two wins to show for his good work. His next start comes Sunday on the road against Texas.

White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said Kopech is not yet ready for a promotion to the majors, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Kopech, who was named the organization's Pitcher of the Month for April, made his fifth start at Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits and two walks while striking out six. Command was one area of focus for Kopech, who has dropped his walk rate to a serviceable 3.0 BB/9, but Hahn wants to see the young right-hander incorporate more changeups. In his previous start, Kopech threw just seven changeups, one for a strike. The GM also mentioned a less measurable skill -- mound composure -- as an area of improvement. "He's making progress in both those areas," Hahn said. "We want to see more effective use of the changeup in the coming starts as well as ideally going deeper in ballgames over the next several and we'll continue evaluating." So, while the fans are anticipating Kopech's arrival, the decision makers remain patient. All the while, the White Sox's rotation needs to perform better. After Tuesday's loss to the Indians, Chicago's starters are 4-13 with a 5.27 ERA (27th in MLB).

Cobb allowed two runs on seven hits and a pair of walks while striking out two over six innings in Tuesday's loss to the Angels. He did not factor into the decision.

After getting shelled each of his first three times out, it was reassuring to see Cobb finally settle down and start to resemble his former self. The lack of strikeouts remain a bit of a concern -- he now has just six in 17.2 innings -- but after allowing 10 hits and at least five runs in every start prior to Tuesday, any sign of improvement is a welcome sight. Despite the much improved outing, the 30-year-old isn't out of the woods yet; he's still sporting an ugly 9.68 ERA and remains in search of his first win. He'll get another crack at that Sunday against the Athletics.

Gibson struck out six and walked two in a no-decision against the Blue Jays on Tuesday, allowing two runs on five hits in five innings.

Gibson shut out the Blue Jays into the fifth, but allowed a home run to Kendrys Morales and an RBI single to Justin Smoak to tie up the game. Gibson has tallied a decision in only two of his six starts so far, but holds a respectable 3.38 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. The strikeout numbers have been a pleasant surprise from the 30-year-old, as he's currently sporting a 10.1 K/9, well above his career mark of 6.4 K/9. It remains to be seen if Gibson can maintain those numbers over the long haul. His next start will come against the White Sox in Chicago.

Verlander struck out 14 in eight scoreless innings Tuesday, issuing no walks and three hits in a no-decision.

Verlander was dominant Tuesday and still hasn't lost since joining Houston last year, going 9-0 across 12 starts with a 1.10 ERA. The 14 strikeouts were a season high, and it marked the second time this year Verlander recorded double-digit strikeouts. He'll look for his fifth win of the year when he takes on the Diamondbacks in Arizona for his next start.

Sale (2-1) allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and two walks over seven innings in Tuesday's loss to the Royals. He struck out six.

Sale didn't rack up a whole lot of strikeouts against an exploitable Royals' lineup, but the ace did put together another strong performance and has worked his ERA down to a shiny 2.14 mark. He was in line to pick up his third win of the season, but closer Craig Kimbrel gave up a solo shot to Alex Gordon in the ninth, sending the game to extra innings. Fantasy owners' only concern with Sale could be the fact that he has tallied a double-digit strikeout total in just one of his first seven starts this season, whereas he had already accumulated six such games in his first seven outings in 2017. The strikeouts will likely begin piling up sooner than later.

German could start Sunday's game against the Indians if Jordan Montgomery (elbow) is placed on the disabled list, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Jordan Montgomery exited Tuesday's game against the Astros after one inning with left elbow tightness. German came on in relief and tossed four shutout innings, allowing four hits and a walk while striking out four. After the game, manager Aaron Boone announced that German would be the most likely candidate to fill Montgomery's spot in the rotation if his injury requires a trip to the disabled list. Montgomery is scheduled to undergo further testing on his elbow Wednesday.

Clevinger (2-0) did not factor into the decision during Tuesday's loss to the Rangers. He allowed three runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out seven over 6.2 innings.

Clevinger was able to work around three hits and a walk in the first four innings to keep the Rangers off the scoreboard but struggled in the fifth inning, allowing a home run to Delino DeShields followed by back-to-back doubles from Shin-Soo Choo and Jurickson Profar. The 27-year-old has allowed seven total runs in his last two starts but still owns an impressive 2.82 ERA. Things won't get easier for Clevinger in his next start, as he travels to New York to take on the Yankees on Sunday.

Boyd (1-2) picked up the win Tuesday against the Rays, allowing just one run over six innings. He gave up seven hits and a walk while striking out seven.

This was a good rebound effort for Boyd, who gave up four runs across 3.2 innings in his last start. Tampa Bay ace Chris Archer gave up just two runs in his six innings of work, but Boyd was sharper in this one as he lowered his season ERA to a stellar 2.48. The seven strikeouts were also a season high. The 27-year-old will look to build on this strong start his next time out Sunday against the Royals, which projects to be another good matchup.

Montgomery exited Tuesday's game against the Astros early with left elbow tightness, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.

Montgomery suffered the injury during his tidy seven-pitch first inning Tuesday. He'll return to New York on Wednesday to undergo further testing on his irritated elbow. A more concrete diagnosis of his injury should become available following those tests.