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Jose Urena SP | LAA
Rockies' Jose Urena: Pitches well in no-decision
Urena did not factor in the decision against the Dodgers on Monday, allowing one run on five hits and no walks while striking out four batters over six innings.
The Dodgers have wrapped up MLB's best regular-season record, but that didn't intimidate Urena as he logged one of his best starts of the campaign. The right-hander gave up only one run (on a Trayce Thompson solo homer) and didn't walk any batters for just the second time this season. It was the culmination of a nice late-season turnaround for Urena, who had a 6.13 ERA after a poor start Sept. 4 but has since lowered that to 5.01 by giving up just seven earned runs over 28 innings across his subsequent five starts.
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Joe Musgrove SP | SD
Padres' Joe Musgrove: Outstanding in postseason tuneup
Musgrove pitched six scoreless innings against San Francisco on Monday, allowing two hits and two walks while striking out seven batters. He did not factor in the decision.
Musgrove got no offensive support while he was in the contest -- all seven of San Diego's runs came in the eighth inning, after the starter departed -- but he was nonetheless in fine form in his final start of the regular season. The right-hander finished the campaign with a flourish, giving up just one earned run while posting a 27:8 K:BB across 22 innings over his final four starts. Musgrove's second campaign in San Diego was even better than his first, as he compiled a career-best 2.93 ERA and 1.08 WHIP along with 10 wins and a 184:42 K:BB over 181 frames. He'll likely get Game 3 (if necessary) in the Padres' upcoming wild-card series.
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Miles Mikolas RP | WAS
Cardinals' Miles Mikolas: Yields run as piggyback reliever
Mikolas allowed a run on three hits over three innings and did not factor into the decision in Monday's 3-2 loss to the Pirates.
Mikolas followed starter Jose Quintana, who began the game with three innings of one-hit ball. This was Mikolas' last scheduled appearance of the regular season, and he'll end with a 3.29 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 153:39 K:BB in a career-high 202.1 innings. He was sharp over his last six outings, giving up nine runs (eight earned) over 34 innings while logging four quality starts in that span. The right-hander will likely be included in the Cardinals' postseason rotation.
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Tommy Henry SP | ARI
Diamondbacks' Tommy Henry: Pitches into seventh
Henry tossed 6.1 innings, surrendering one run on three hits and a walk while striking out five in Monday's extra-inning loss to the Brewers.
Henry gave up a solo homer to Christian Yelich in the bottom of the second, accounting for the only blemish on his line Monday. The outing was his second quality start of the season over nine outings and the first time he'd allowed less than five runs since Aug. 26. Henry had an up-and-down campaign, producing a 5.36 ERA and 1.45 WHIP with 36 punchouts over 47 innings in nine starts.
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Brandon Woodruff SP | MIL
Brewers' Brandon Woodruff: Quality start versus Diamondbacks
Woodruff tossed six innings, giving up two runs on two hits and a walk while striking out seven in Monday's extra-inning win over the Diamondbacks. He did not factor into the decision.
Woodruff surrendered a solo homer to Cooper Hummel in the top of the third inning before a Sergio Alcantara sacrifice fly in the fifth frame drove in the final tally on his line. The right-hander was able to toss a scoreless sixth inning and post his sixth consecutive quality start. Woodruff finished the regular season on a hot streak, producing a 1.62 ERA and 0.79 WHIP with 54 strikeouts over 39 innings in his final six outings.
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Hunter Greene SP | CIN
Reds' Hunter Greene: Dominates in final start
Greene (5-13) allowed two hits and a walk over six shutout frames Monday, striking out eight and earning a win over the Cubs.
Greene fired 65 of 90 pitches for strikes and forced 14 whiffs in the strong outing. The hard-throwing righty finished his 2022 rookie season on an absolute tear; he registered a 1.02 ERA with a 51:7 K:BB over his final six starts dating back to July 26. However, it was a rookie campaign filled with ups and downs, as he recorded a 4.44 ERA through 125.2 total innings.
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Mitch Keller SP | PIT
Pirates' Mitch Keller: Yields two runs
Keller allowed two runs on six hits and two walks over five innings against the Cardinals on Monday. He struck out five and did not factor in the decision.
Keller fired five shutout frames before coughing up a two-run homer to Albert Pujols in the sixth. The 26-year-old righty finally showed promise at the big league level in 2022 after struggling in his first three MLB seasons. Keller finished the season with a 3.91 ERA and a 138:60 K:BB through 159 frames. After posting a 6.61 ERA through his first seven appearances, he recorded a 3.21 ERA over his next 126.1 innings. Keller's impressive summer likely secured his spot in Pittsburgh's rotation for 2023.
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Zach Eflin SP | BAL
Phillies' Zach Eflin: Clinches wild card with save
Eflin picked up the save with a clean inning in Monday's 3-0 win over the Astros. He did not strike out a batter.
In his first career save opportunity, Eflin got the job done, retiring the Astros in order in the ninth inning and securing the Phillies' spot in the playoffs, which will be the team's first postseason appearance since 2011. Eflin has been working out of the bullpen since returning from the 60-day injured list Sept. 11, allowing just one run over 7.2 innings with nine strikeouts, one save and two holds. Eflin was less effective as a starter, albeit in a larger sample, going 3-5 with a 4.37 ERA through 68 innings before being shut down with injury.
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Aaron Nola SP | PHI
Phillies' Aaron Nola: Perfection spoiled in seventh
Nola (11-13) earned the win against the Astros on Monday, allowing no runs on two hits and no walks with nine strikeouts over 6.2 innings.
After retiring the first 20 batters of the game, Nola allowed back-to-back singles to Yordan Alvarez and David Hensley with two out in the seventh inning. Interim manager Rob Thomson then pulled Nola with 88 pitches in favor of the L/L matchup between Kyle Tucker and reliever Jose Alvarado, who won the matchup with a punchout to position Nola to earn his 11th victory. Nola closes the regular season currently fourth in the majors with 235 strikeouts to go along with a 3.25 ERA through 205 innings.
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Hayden Wesneski SP | HOU
Cubs' Hayden Wesneski: Drops pitcher's duel
Wesneski (3-2) allowed just two runs (one earned) across six innings but took the loss Monday against the Reds. He gave up four hits and a walk, while striking out six.
Wesneski pitched well, but Hunter Greene was better in the 3-1 Cincinnati win. The former looked good in six starts for the Cubs, allowing three earned runs or fewer in each outing, which left him with a 2.18 ERA overall across 33 innings. That should wrap up Wesneski's rookie season, and he's put himself into a strong position to compete for an Opening Day rotation spot in 2023.