MLB Player News

Strider (9-4) earned the win over Colorado on Thursday, allowing two hits and no walks while striking out 16 batters over eight scoreless innings.

Strider overpowered the Rockies in his most impressive performance as a big leaguer, racking up 22 swinging strikes among his 106 pitches. The strikeout total established a new franchise record in a nine-inning game, surpassing the 15 K's recorded by John Smoltz in both 1992 and 2005 and Warren Spahn in 1960. Strider has posted five double-digit strikeout performances across 17 starts this season and ranks ninth in the league with 176 punchouts despite hurling only 114.2 innings. As icing on the cake, he appears to be getting stronger as the season winds down -- over his past four starts, the rookie right-hander has gone 3-0 while registering a 1.08 ERA, 0.72 WHIP and 36:4 K:BB over 25 frames.

Kershaw did not factor into the decision Thursday, allowing one run on one hit and three walks over five innings against the Mets. He struck out six.

Kershaw did not allow an extra-base hit and surrendered his only blemish by walking in a run in the first. After a shaky initial inning following his return from the 15-day injured list (back), the lefty returned to his usual formidable self, turning in four perfect innings before exiting the game. In the five starts prior to his injury, the 34-year-old veteran delivered a spectacular 29:3 K:BB in 29.1 innings.

Bassitt (12-7) earned the win Thursday, allowing two runs on six hits and three walks over six innings against the Dodgers. He struck out four.

Bassitt surrendered both runs on a single from second baseman Chris Taylor in the second to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. The righty is 5-0 in his last seven starts with a 2.38 ERA in 45.1 innings. The 33-year-old has now pitched six innings or more in 12 of his last 13 starts.

Carrasco (oblique) will return from the 15-day injured list to start Sunday against the Nationals, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Carrasco will return without making a rehab start, though he will have gone only roughly three weeks without pitching in games. He did manage a bullpen session and simulated game within the last week but could still face a pitch limit Sunday. David Peterson is likely to get bumped from the rotation, and Tylor Megill (shoulder) appears destined for a relief role once activated.

Megill (shoulder) struck out the side after entering in relief during a rehab outing with Double-A Binghamton on Thursday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

The Mets are set to have a fully healthy rotation shortly, as Carlos Carrasco (oblique) is likely to return during the team's weekend series against the Nationals. That leaves Megill without a spot in the starting five, though he could pitch in high-leverage situations out of the big-league bullpen once activated.

Ashby (shoulder) is expected to begin playing catch in the coming days, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Ashby has been shut down since landing on the injured list, retroactive to Aug. 20. While he'll have more work to do prior to his return, it's a positive step that he'll be able to engage in his first activity since being sidelined.

Nationals manager Dave Martinez said Thursday that Strasburg (ribs) "feels a little bit better" than he did since landing on the injured list June 13, but the right-hander has yet to resume throwing, Matt Weyrich of NBC Sports Washington reports.

Martinez wasn't willing to officially rule Strasburg out for the season, but the 34-year-old's lack of recent throwing activity along with the Nationals' status as a non-contender makes it highly unlikely that the three-time All-Star will pitch again in 2022. At this stage, Martinez noted that Strasburg is focusing on strengthening his shoulder since being diagnosed with a stress reaction of his ribs two and a half months ago, according to Bobby Blanco of MASNSports.com. Since Strasburg won't require another procedure to address his latest injury after he previously underwent thoracic outlet syndrome surgery last July, the Nationals are seemingly optimistic that he'll be a full participant for the start of spring training.

Gonsolin isn't progressing as quickly as the Dodgers had hoped in his recovery from a forearm strain, and manager Dave Roberts said the right-hander will undergo an MRI on Friday, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Roberts was careful to note that Gonsolin hasn't suffered a setback since being placed on the injured list Monday, but the 28-year-old All-Star was unable to do any light throwing over the past couple days as had been originally planned. The MRI should shed more light on a potential return date for Gonsolin, but for the time being, Roberts is optimistic the right-hander will miss only two turns through the rotation, according to Kirsten Watson of SportsNet LA.

Soroka (Achilles) was reinstated from the 60-day injured list and optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett on Thursday.

The 25-year-old made his last rehab start with Gwinnett on Aug. 27 and gave up four runs over 4.2 innings while throwing 75 pitches, and he'll remain with the affiliate now that he's been fully cleared. Soroka figures to make his season debut for Atlanta at some point down the stretch, but for now he'll stick at Triple-A.

The Cubs transferred Miley (shoulder) from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Thursday.

Miley has been on the shelf since June 11 with a strained left shoulder, and because he's already missed more than two months, the transaction won't affect his timeline for a return. After a suffering a setback following an Aug. 16 rehab start, Miley was shut down for about two weeks, but he resumed his minor-league assignment Wednesday with High-A South Bend. Miley struck out two while allowing two earned runs on five hits and no walks over 3.2 innings in Wednesday's outing, and he'll likely require at least one or two more tune-up starts in the minors before potentially slotting back into the Cubs' rotation in the middle of September.