MLB Player News

Carrasco (7-3) picked up the win against the Twins on Friday, allowing one earned run over 6.1 innings. He struck out seven and walked three.

A sixth-inning home run from Eddie Rosario served as the only blemish on Carrasco's line Friday night. He usually struggles with Minnesota, as evidenced by his 3-7 lifetime record against the Twins. The right-hander lowered his ERA to 3.21 on the season and has won his last two starts.

Quintana (3-8) allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out five batters through seven innings during Friday's win over Toronto.

The veteran lefty owned a career 3.41 ERA and 1.24 WHIP through 1,025.2 innings entering this season, and he left Friday's outing with a 5.07 ERA and 1.37 WHIP for 2017. To say it's been a disappointing campaign would be an understatement, and this was just the sixth start of the year that Quintana has allowed two runs or fewer. While he's currently difficult to trust, the potential is there, and a rebound stretch could be right around the corner. He projects to make his next start on the road against the Twins.

Paxton (5-2) coughed up seven runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four over 3.2 innings in Friday's 10-4 loss to the Rangers.

He threw only 52 of 91 pitches for strikes, and the left-hander has now walked exactly three batters and given up at least three runs in each of his last three starts, sending his ERA soaring to a still-strong 3.23. Paxton will look to turn things around Wednesday at home against the Tigers.

Gausman (3-6) surrendered five runs on nine hits and three walks while striking out seven batters over 5.2 innings during Friday's loss to St. Louis.

Gausman has now allowed 16 runs over 15.2 innings through his past three starts, and he's up to a ratio-killing 6.60 ERA and 1.92 WHIP for the campaign. Those are crippling fantasy numbers, and despite showing flashes this year and owning plenty of pedigree, Gausman currently cannot be viewed as a reliable starter against the majority of opponents. He projects to make a home start against Cleveland next.

Bassitt (elbow) will throw off a mound Saturday, Joe Stiglich of NBC Sports California reports.

This is big news, as it marks the first time he'll hit a mound since he was shut down in mid-May. It's unclear how much throwing Bassitt will do in Saturday's session, although if all goes well, he could head back out on his rehab assignment in the next week or two.

Smyly (elbow) threw a 40-pitch bullpen session Friday, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

The best news from this development is that 10 of the tosses were offspeed pitches. Smyly seems to be ramping up the intensity of his workouts at a good pace, and if all goes well, he could begin throwing simulated games after just one more bullpen session.

Mejia will start the second game of the Twins' doubleheader with the Indians on Saturday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Mejia was clobbered for nine runs (eight earned) in his last start, but with Hector Santiago (shoulder) on the shelf and a doubleheader on tap, he'll remain in the rotation for Minnesota. The 23-year-old will face off with Mike Clevinger in the nightcap of Saturday's twin bill, with Adam Wilk and Ryan Merritt throwing in the afternoon bout.

Clevinger will start Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader against the Twins, MLB.com's Jordan Bastian reports.

It's been expected for over a week that Clevinger would get to start one installment of Saturday's scheduled doubleheader, and pitching coach Mickey Callaway has now confirmed it. Clevinger had an effective three-start stretch in May in which he went 18.2 innings with 21 strikeouts and a 3.38 ERA before being derailed by a tough outing at Coors Field. He'll get another chance to make an impression Saturday, but it's unclear how long he'll stick with the big-league club.

Keuchel (neck) is expected to throw sometime in the next couple days, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

This is consistent with prior reports, as it seems like the Astros' ace just needed some time off to let his neck heal properly. It's unclear how long Keuchel will need to rehab before rejoining the rotation, although more information should come forth once he's able to ramp up his throwing over the weekend. If he improves quickly enough, he could get back into action in time for his scheduled start Wednesday against the Athletics.

Asher will settle back into a role out of the Baltimore bullpen, MASN's Roch Kubatko reports.

After another rough outing in Tuesday's loss to the White Sox, Asher officially lost his spot in the rotation for the time being. He was shelled for six earned runs over 5.0 innings, marking his third outing out of the last four with at least five earned runs allowed. Asher has actually posted strong numbers when used as a reliever this season with a 1.62 ERA along with a 1.20 WHIP across 16.2 innings.