MLB Player News

Wheeler (forearm) played catch Thursday for the second time since he was briefly shut down from throwing earlier this week, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

Wheeler had been in consideration to come off the 15-day injured list to start Tuesday against the Marlins, but he had his return date pushed back after his forearm flared up again. He's expected to play catch again Friday from 120 feet before stepping back on the mound for a side session later in the weekend. If Wheeler's forearm responds well to the activity, it's possible he could return from the IL next week without requiring a rehab start in the minors.

Oviedo (2-2) took the loss in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Mets, surrendering four runs on one hit and five walks over 1.2 innings. He struck out two.

The 24-year-old couldn't get the ball over the plate with any consistency, and he needed 57 pitches (only 30 strikes) to record his five outs before getting the hook. Oviedo has issued eight free passes in 4.2 innings since joining the rotation at the beginning of the month, and the Pirates may not be inclined to give him another turn even as part of a bullpen day or in tandem with another pitcher.

DeGrom (5-1) picked up the win in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Pirates, allowing three hits and a walk over seven scoreless innings. He struck out eight.

Chris Bassitt fanned 10 batters while giving up just one run in the matinee as the Mets swept the twin bill, and deGrom answered with a dominant start of his own in the nightcap. The two-time Cy Young Award winner fired 59 of 91 pitches for strikes and let only one Pittsburgh baserunner get into scoring position en route to his fifth straight quality start. Since making his season debut at the beginning of August, deGrom boasts a 1.66 ERA, 0.55 WHIP and 63:4 K:BB through 43.1 innings.

Bassitt (13-7) picked up the win in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Pirates, allowing one run on five hits and a walk over seven innings. He struck out 10.

The right-hander fired 69 of 101 pitches for strikes in a masterful performance. Bassitt has won six straight decisions since the beginning of August, posting a 1.75 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 36:9 K:BB through 46.1 innings and delivering five quality starts in seven outings over that impressive stretch.

Cobb did not factor into the decision Wednesday, allowing three runs on seven hits and three walks over 4.1 innings against the Dodgers. He struck out four.

Cobb surrendered a three-run homer to Justin Turner with nobody out in the fifth to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead, though the Giants came back to get Cobb off the hook for the loss. This was only the fourth home run allowed by the 34-year-old in 80.2 innings during his last 14 starts. The righty is drastically better at home with a 2.57 ERA and 1.11 WHIP over 70 innings compared to a 5.16 ERA and 1.53 WHIP over 52.1 innings away from San Francisco.

Kershaw did not factor into the decision Wednesday, allowing two runs on five hits over six innings in a 7-3 victory over San Francisco. He struck out eight.

Kershaw surrendered just one extra-base hit in the form of a two-run homer from David Villar to open the scoring in the fifth inning. This was just the third home run allowed by the lefty in his last eight starts, and he has a 2.28 ERA and 0.82 WHIP over 47.1 innings during that span. Despite that success, the 34-year-old veteran has pitched six innings or more in just one of his last five outings.

Rogers (4-11) took the loss against Philadelphia on Wednesday, allowing three runs on five hits and no walks while striking out eight batters over six innings.

Though he suffered his 11th loss of the campaign, the outing was another positive one for Rogers, as he posted his second straight quality start since returning from a month-long stint on the injured list. The southpaw tied a season high with eight punchouts and allowed only five hits, though four of those went for extra bases. This is the first time in 2022 that Rogers has completed six innings in consecutive appearances, so he's looking more like the hurler who enjoyed a breakout campaign last season.

Falter (4-3) earned the win over Miami on Wednesday, allowing two runs on seven hits and no walks while striking out three batters over 5.1 innings.

Falter departed his previous start with a right groin injury, but he didn't end up missing a turn in the rotation and was able to stick around for 74 pitches Wednesday. The left-handed hurler had his four-game streak of quality starts snapped, but he was able to extend his winning streak to four. Falter has been impressive during that span, posting a 2.66 ERA and 18:2 K:BB over 23.2 innings. He's likely to stick in the rotation at least until Zack Wheeler (forearm) is ready to return.

Freeland (8-9) allowed one earned run on two hits and a walk while striking out eight across six innings to earn the win Wednesday against the Brewers.

Freeland's only run allowed came after Keston Hiura led off the fifth inning with a triple. He otherwise kept the Brewers off the scoreboard by inducing eight groundball outs in addition to his eight strikeouts that were backed by 15 swinging strikes on 85 total pitches. Freeland has now turned in three consecutive starts with two or fewer earned runs allowed, though this was his first outing in that span at home. For the season, Freeland owns a 4.63 ERA with a 112:46 K:BB across 153.2 innings.

Henry (3-4) allowed five runs on seven hits, a walk and a hit batsman while striking out two over 4.1 innings, taking the loss Wednesday versus the Padres.

Henry was tagged for three home runs, which accounted for four of the five runs he gave up. He was done for the night after a Josh Bell RBI single in the fifth inning. Henry hadn't yielded multiple homers in any of his first six major-league starts, but he's been inconsistent since his debut Aug. 3. The southpaw now owns a 5.50 ERA, 1.53 WHIP and 25:17 K:BB through 36 innings. He's tentatively projected for a difficult home start versus the Dodgers next week, though he'll avoid making an appearance at Coors Field in this weekend's series in Colorado.