MLB Player News

The Rangers will recall Leiter from Triple-A Round Rock to start Wednesday versus the White Sox and "intend to give him some runway" in the rotation during September, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

The Rangers are essentially turning the page to next season at this point and want to gauge Leiter's readiness for a rotation spot in 2025. Leiter's first three starts at the major-league level have not gone well (16.39 ERA), but the 24-year-old has had an excellent season at Round Rock and has pitched particularly well of late with a 2.37 ERA and 30:6 K:BB over 19 frames covering his last four outings.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Tuesday that it's "going to take a while" for Scherzer (shoulder) to be built back up after he resumes throwing, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

A scheduled rehab start for Scherzer last Friday was pushed back indefinitely, and the pitcher was re-evaluated by team orthopedist Dr. Keith Meister earlier this week. While nothing overly concerning was found during that exam, Scherzer hasn't resumed throwing yet, and it's unclear when that might happen. The Rangers and Scherzer aren't dismissing him returning from the 10-day injured list before the end of the season, but the 40-year-old doesn't look poised to be activated anytime soon. Scherzer has been out since early August with right shoulder fatigue.

Crochet threw four pitches in his start Tuesday against the Rangers before the game was suspended due to inclement weather.

The White Sox and Rangers will resume the suspended game as part of a doubleheader Wednesday, but Crochet isn't expected to be available for either contest after he went through a full warmup before Tuesday's contest was called in the top of the first inning. Per LaMond Pope of the Chicago Tribune, Chris Flexen is slated to "start" in the resumption of the suspended game Wednesday, while the White Sox are likely to treat the originally scheduled game as a bullpen day. The White Sox haven't revealed when Crochet might pitch next, but assuming he sticks to his usual four-day rest schedule, he would tentatively line up to make his next start Sunday versus the Mets. Crochet has now covered four innings or less in each of his last nine starts, making it difficult to extract much fantasy value from him.

Flexen will be the de facto starter Wednesday for the resumption of Tuesday's suspended game versus the Rangers, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Tuesday's starter, Garrett Crochet, threw only four pitches in the top of the first inning before the game was delayed and eventually suspended. Flexen had been slated to start the regularly scheduled contest Wednesday, but he will now be the first to take the ball in the suspended game and the White Sox will go with a host of relievers in the nightcap.

Maeda is expected to be used as a bulk reliever behind opening pitcher Mason Englert in Wednesday's game against the Angels, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Maeda hasn't made a start since July 9, but he's essentially maintained a spot in the rotation since the All-Star break while working as a bulk reliever. He's turned in a 4.55 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 26:2 K:BB over 29.2 innings across his seven relief appearances, with his ERA inflated by a rough showing this past Thursday against the Cubs in which he coughed up six runs across five frames. After Wednesday's appearance, Maeda could move into more a flexible multi-inning role out of the bullpen with the Tigers having recently added Triple-A Toledo call-up Ty Madden to the rotation. Additionally, Casey Mize (hamstring) appears poised to return from the 60-day injured list this weekend to give the Tigers another rotation option.

Canning is scheduled to start Wednesday's game against the Tigers at Comerica Park.

For the first time all season, Canning didn't start in his most recent appearance Thursday in Toronto, as he instead worked as a bulk reliever behind opening pitcher Brock Burke. Though Canning struck out six over six scoreless innings out of the bullpen Thursday, the Angels won't use an opener in front of Canning in Detroit and will instead return him to his normal starting role. Canning enters Wednesday's contest with a 4-11 record, 5.18 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 102:48 K:BB through 139 innings on the season.

Woods Richardson came away with a no-decision in Tuesday's 8-6 extra-inning loss to Atlanta, giving up four runs on three hits and three walks over 4.2 innings. He struck out three.

The right-hander tossed only 55 of 91 pitches for strikes and exited the mound with the Twins in a 4-0 hole, but his offense got him off the hook for the loss. Woods Richardson has failed to last longer than five innings in five of his last six starts, stumbling to a 5.59 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 26:13 K:BB in 29 innings over that stretch. He'll look for a better result in his next outing, which is scheduled to come on the road early next week in Tampa Bay.

Criswell came away with a no-decision in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Blue Jays, allowing one run on five hits and three walks over 3.1 innings. He failed to strike out a batter.

He needed 72 pitches (46 strikes) to record 10 outs, and Criswell benefitted from some sloppy baserunning by Toronto just to do that well. The right-hander has thrown more than 70 pitches in three straight outings but has failed to last five innings in any of them, posting a 6.35 ERA, 2.29 WHIP and 5:8 K:BB in 11.1 frames over that rough stretch. The Red Sox have fallen four games back of the Twins for the final wild-card spot in the AL, and Criswell could have a very short leash in the rotation as a result. He currently lines up to make his next start on the road this weekend in Detroit.

Rodriguez (1-6) took the loss Tuesday, coughing up six runs on eight hits and a walk over five innings as the Blue Jays were downed 6-3 by the Red Sox. He struck out three.

Half of the hits off the right-hander went for extra bases, including a leadoff homer by Jarren Duran. Rodriguez had served up just one home run in his first 30 innings since coming off the IL in late June, but over his last four trips to the mound he's been taken deep six times, leading to a 7.20 ERA in 20 frames over that stretch. He'll try to turn things around in his next outing, which currently lines up to come on the road this weekend in Minnesota.

Williams (2-7) took the loss Tuesday against the Royals, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks over five innings. He struck out six.

The Cleveland right-hander's run of tough luck continues, as he took his third consecutive loss in this rain-shortened, 83-pitch outing. However, the only blemish on this particular night was a two-run homer allowed to Paul DeJong in the second inning. The 25-year-old Williams has now pitched to a 4.99 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 58:21 K:BB across 52.1 innings this season. He currently lines up to make his next appearance against the Pirates at home this weekend.