MLB Player News

Rodriguez, who allowed 10 baserunners in 4.2 innings Saturday against the Twins, showed some improvement despite his lack of command, the Providence Journal reports.

Rodriguez struggled to command his fastball once again and allowed the worst offensive team in baseball to chase him before qualifying for a win. Through three starts, the left-hander has allowed 11 runs in 16.1 innings while walking as many as he's struck out. The results aren't good, but there are signs of improvement as he works his way back from a knee injury. The fastball, once a concern when it was sitting at 92 mph, touched 97 on Saturday and sat at 94. And, after relying heavily on the fastball in his previous start, he was more confident in his secondary offerings. The stuff is improving even if the results weren't. The Red Sox feel the command is more fixable than if his stuff hadn't returned since his injury.

Paxton (0-2) scattered six hits over 6.1 scoreless innings, but didn't factor in the decision against the Rangers on Saturday night. He walked to and struck out seven.

The left-hander has been the unfortunately recipient of terrible support. He allowed one run over six innings in his last start - a loss to the Indians - and did even better this time around, however he still remains winless through three starts. Paxton has struck out seven-plus in each of his games, and sports an impressive 24:2 K:BB through 16 innings.

Rodriguez did not factor in the decision against the Twins on Saturday, and surrendered six hits, four earned runs and four walks over 4.2 innings. He struck out four.

The 23-year-old southpaw has taken a step back after notching a victory in his first appearance of the season on May 31, as he's surrendered nine earned runs over the 10 innings encompassing his subsequent pair of starts. Saturday, Rodriguez labored through his four-plus innings, throwing 93 pitches over that span. He did show marked improvement in terms of keeping the ball in the yard, surrendering only a three-run homer to Kurt Suzuki after giving up four gopher balls to the Blue Jays in his previous start. Rodriguez turned in a solid rookie season, so his recent struggles may simply be a case of a younger player getting reacclimated. He'll look for a better showing next Thursday versus the Orioles.

Darvish will miss Monday's scheduled start due to shoulder tightness and will return to Dallas for an MRI, the Dallas Morning News reports. "I have heard it's common for players that have had Tommy John surgery to have issues like this," Darvish said. "Right now I don't want to push it and make it worse. It's a precaution, we hope it's nothing serious and that I can be back soon."

It's not clear who will start Monday as Cesar Ramos could be an option or Darvish could land on the DL and Texas could call a pitcher up from the minors. After leaving Wednesday's game due to shoulder tightness, he threw Thursday and Friday without any issues. However, he experienced issues throwing Saturday. We should know more about his injury after an MRI on Sunday.

Gibson (0-4) (shoulder) received a rude welcome upon his return from the DL on Saturday, as he was touched up for seven hits, five earned runs and a walk over 5.2 innings in a 15-4 loss to the Red Sox. He struck out two.

Gibson managed to only throw 56 of 94 pitches for strikes, and induced only six swinging strikes overall. The 28-year-old righty picked up where he left off before his injury, which isn't a good thing. He'd been battered by the Nationals for seven earned runs over three innings back on April 22, and had the misfortune of drawing one of the most dangerous offenses in baseball in the form of the Red Sox in his first start back. Gibson got into early trouble by yielding an RBI double to Xander Bogaerts and a three-run homer to Jackie Bradley, Jr. in the first inning, but left the game in the sixth with the Twins trailing only 5-4. He'll try once more for his first win of the season against the Yankees next Thursday.

Verlander (6-5) picked up the win Saturday against the Yankees. He pitched 6.2 innings, allowing one run, five hits and one walk while striking out five.

The 13th-year veteran failed to complete the seventh inning for the first time since May 3, a run that stretched across his last six starts. However, Verlander allowed five hits or less for the fourth straight outing while lowering his ERA to a season-best 3.77. The right-hander had issued two or more free passes in his first 10 starts of the year, but has only allowed a total of two over his last three. Verlander has a sweet 94:24 K:BB, and he's on pace to challenge 250 strikeouts, the number of whiffs he amassed in 2011 when he won the MVP award.

Quintana (5-7) managed to strike out 10 Royals over eight innings, but surrendered six hits--three of them solo homers--in Saturday's 4-1 loss.

Despite putting on a solid showing almost any time he takes the mound, the 27-year-old has now dropped six straight decisions. He uncharacteristically was done in by the long ball on a day when the bats seemed to have some extra pop in the Windy City, as the three homers he surrendered were the most he'd given up in any start this season. Quintana was otherwise typically sharp, throwing 77 of 109 pitches for strikes, and inducing 13 swings-and-misses. The 10 whiffs also equaled a season best, and despite the defeat, his ERA remains a very strong 2.66. Tellingly, the southpaw has only received a combined eight runs of support over his aforementioned six-start losing streak, a trend he hopes will finally be reversed when faces off against the Indians next Friday.

Rodon (neck) will start Sunday against the Royals, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Manager Robin Ventura had left himself some wiggle room, previously labeling Rodon as "likely" to start Sunday, but the skipper did away with any doubt as to Rodon's status after Saturday's game. Rodon was skipped one time through the rotation due to neck discomfort. He's had the Royals' number in two starts against them so far this season (three earned runs in 11.2 innings).

Kluber (6-6) allowed two runs on three hits and a walk while striking out eight in a complete game against the Angels on Friday.

Kluber has struck out eight or more batters in six straight starts and appears to be rounding into form after some uneven starts earlier in the season.

Meyer's second opinion confirmed inflammation in his shoulder and he'll be shut down through at least the rest of June, Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press reports.

Meyer landed on the 7-day disabled list last week, but his shoulder has been problematic since early May. While it's encouraging that he's still only dealing with shoulder inflammation rather than a more serious structural issue, it's frustrating that he won't be able to pick up a baseball for at least three more weeks. Once he's cleared to throw, it could take him a while to rebuild strength in his arm given that he'll have been on the shelf for a minimum of two months by that time.