MLB Player News

Darvish (shoulder) could progress to throwing a bullpen session Saturday, but he won't be ready for a simulated game for another week, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Darvish has been making progress towards a return from some shoulder tightness, and it seems that a major step forward could be on the horizon with a bullpen possibly in the offing. Still, expectations should be tempered a bit as Darvish remains at least a week away from facing live batters, whether it's in a simulated game or in a minor league rehab game. A further update on Darvish's progress figures to be made available later in the week if he is indeed able to throw a bullpen.

Manager Scott Servais said Wednesday that he believes Walker (foot) will be ready to go next week, Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

This echoes the team's sentiment from earlier in the week that, despite Walker being scratched from Friday's start, he should be able to avoid the disabled list. Walker is dealing with posterior tibial tendinitis, which stems from the right-hander having extremely flat feet, and the issue is aggravated every time he pushes off the pitching rubber.

Worley (groin) remains on track to return from the disabled list when he's eligible on Jun. 28, Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun reports.

The long reliever has already begun throwing bullpen sessions and he is set to throw another Thursday. According to MASN's Roch Kubatko, Worley could set out for a brief rehab assignment in the coming days, but the plan is still to have him activated by June 28 provided he doesn't suffer a setback.

Hill (groin) will make a rehab start at High-A Stockton on Monday, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

If everything goes smoothly, Hill could rejoin the Oakland rotation for his next start. The 36-year-old owns a 2.25 ERA and 1.13 WHIP through 11 starts this season and will look to help improve the A's pitching staff, which ranks 27th in the MLB with a 4.65 ERA, upon his return. More information regarding his timetable for return should be released following his start.

Aiken pitched two scoreless innings, allowing no hits and striking out three in his professional baseball debut for the ALZ Indians on Monday.

The long-awaited debut for the left-hander Aiken was a success as he continues on his road to recovery from Tommy John surgery. Aiken, the 17th overall pick in the 2015 draft, will be brought back slowly by the Indians' organization. Look for him to spend most of his time in the Arizona League for the remainder of the 2016 season.

Baxendale was promoted to Triple-A Rochester. He had a 3.44 ERA and 59:16 K:BB at Double-A Chattanooga.

The 2012 10th-round draft pick has never been viewed as a top prospect, but he's been a productive starter the past two seasons. He may not have the strikeouts (6.5 K/9) to thrive at Triple-A, however.

Gray (3-6) didn't factor in the decision Tuesday against the Brewers. He pitched six innings, allowing two runs (one earned), seven hits and a walk while striking out seven.

The 26-year-old bounced back nicely from a poor outing in his previous start against the Rangers. Gray's seven punchouts matched a season high as he lowered his ERA to 5.20, its best mark since May 3. More noteworthy, Gray walked just one batter for the fourth straight game. Through the first two months of the season, he had a brutal 41:24 K:BB, but he's seemingly got the location issues under control now (19:4 K:BB through four June starts).

Paxton (1-3) allowed four runs on 11 hits and three walks with five strikeouts over 7.2 innings in Tuesday's loss to Detroit.

Paxton appeared to run out of gas, as he threw five shutout innings but gave up one apiece in the sixth and seventh, and two in the eighth as his pitch count rose. He had thrown 110 pitches (71 strikes, 12 swinging) by the time the Mariners finally pulled him, and by that point the damage had been done. Paxton had a streak of three quality starts snapped -- and he would have had a fourth had he not been sent out to try and pitch the eighth inning. He owns a 3.34 ERA with a crisp 34:9 K:BB in just 29.2 innings.

Verlander gave up two runs on six hits and a walk with five strikeouts over seven innings in a no-decision Tuesday against Seattle.

Verlander has gone at least six innings in each of his past nine starts, seven of which have been quality starts. He has an awesome 69:13 K:BB over 65.1 innings over that span with a 2.34 ERA in that span, as he's finally looking like the Cy Young contender he used to be once again.

Sale (12-2) gave up just one run on four hits and a walk and struck out nine over seven innings in a win Tuesday over the Red Sox.

Sale struggled over his past five starts, in which he allowed 20 runs in 29.2 innings (6.07 ERA), but he was still racking up the strikeouts with 31 in that span, so it was only a matter of time before he figured it out. He induced 14 swinging strikes in 111 pitches as he looked as nasty as ever. He's now up to 102 strikeouts in 105 innings, but he's still on pace for his first season with fewer strikeouts than innings pitched since he came up to the majors in 2010.