MLB Player News

Blue Jays starting pitcher Marcus Stroman turned in a strong performance, allowing just one run on six hits, walking one and striking out three over seven innings of 6-1 win against the Red Sox on Friday night.

Stroman (2-0, 3.00 ERA) was making just his second start after coming back from knee surgery, and he looked sharp. He needed just 96 pitches (69 for strikes) to cover the seven innings, and he retired 11 batters on groundballs (no flyball outs), so he making it tough on the Boston hitters. The Blue Jays aren't going to overwork him, but he is likely to remain in the rotation through the end of the season as long as he doesn't encounter any physical problems.

Angels starting pitcher Andrew Heaney is slated to start Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader with the Twins.

With Friday's game rained out, Heaney will simply move back to start Game 1 of Saturday's twin bill. However, he's now set to oppose Kyle Gibson instead of Mike Pelfrey, as Minnesota decided to flip-flop its starters.

Twins starting pitcher Kyle Gibson will start Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader with the Angels, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Friday's game was postponed due to rain, and instead of just moving Mike Pelfrey back to start Game 1 of the twin bill, the Twins will start Gibson in Game 1 and Pelfrey in Game 2.

Angels starting pitcher Andrew Heaney will not make his scheduled start Friday against Minnesota, as the game was postponed due to rain.

The Angels and Twins will play a doubleheader Saturday to make up for the rainout, and Heaney figures to simply move back to start one of the two games.

Red Sox pitcher Rich Hill will start Sunday against the Blue Jays, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.

While Hill held Tampa Bay to just one hit and fanned 10 in seven scoreless innings in his first start of the year, he'll face a much tougher test Sunday in a Blue Jays team that destroys left-handed pitching (.822 combined OPS). To make matters worse, the game is also in Toronto, but Hill still makes for a decent bench stash in deeper formats.

Twins pitcher Ricky Nolasco (ankle) will throw 45 pitches in an intrasquad game Monday, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

General manager Terry Ryan has repeatedly expressed his doubt that Nolasco would be able to pitch again with the major league team this season, but he's scheduled to return to Minnesota Tuesday. At this point it's unclear what his timetable is, but the club should have a clearer picture after Monday's outing.

Yankees pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (elbow) hopes to play catch Monday, Meredith Marakovits of the YES Network reports.

Eovaldi has already officially been ruled out for the remainder of the regular season with inflammation in his right elbow, but throwing would mark a good first step toward returning to the mound. Depending on how far the Yankees advance, the 25-year-old could potentially return at some point during the postseason, though it could come in a bullpen role.

Indians starter Corey Kluber (8-14) allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits across four innings in a losing effort on Thursday against the Royals. He struck out five in the game.

Kluber made just 61 pitches and it's no surprise after suffering a hamstring injury a couple of weeks ago. The record and 3.44 ERA are unfair to the reigning Cy Young winner as all of his peripherals are still elite. The strikeout rate, walk rate, and WHIP are on par with his Cy Young season and the only major difference is the ERA. Kluber is a fantastic bet to bounce back next season and will likely be a nice value on draft day.

Twins starter Tommy Milone was awful Thursday against the Angels, giving up five runs on four hits and three walks while recording only four outs.

He was fortunate to avoid the loss, as opposing starter Hector Santiago was a disaster of his own, giving up five runs while getting just two outs. Nonetheless, Milone has now surrendered a dozen runs in five innings over his last two starts, sending his ERA soaring back over the 4.00 mark. He's a risky roll against the Indians on Wednesday.

Astros starting pitcher Lance McCullers (5-6) gave up three runs on five hits and three walks over six innings Thursday in a sweep-concluding loss to Texas.

The Astros turned to their rookie hurler in an attempt to avoid a four-game embarrassment, but it was not to be. He's still delivered credible work of late, with a 3.19 ERA over his last five outings, through McCullers also hasn't won a game since way back on July 29 against the Angels. It's those Angels whom he'll draw Tuesday in his next start.