MLB Player News

Gray (groin) plans to start Friday's game against the Cubs, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Gray has been on the injured list since June 9 due to a right groin strain, but he made a rehab start for Triple-A Louisville on Saturday and allowed one hit and three walks while striking out four in three scoreless innings. He's slated to return to the majors to pitch on five day's rest in Friday's series opener against the Cubs, but it's not yet clear whether he could be on a pitch count following his brief rehab assignment.

Atlanta manager Brian Snitker said Wednesday that Ynoa (hand) has resumed playing catch and taking part in long-toss throwing, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

The 23-year-old remains without a clear timeline for a return after fracturing his pitching hand May 17, but his ability to begin a throwing program offers hope that he'll be ready to come off the 60-day injured list at some point in August. Before suffering the untimely injury, Ynoa had surprisingly emerged as one of the more reliable members of the Atlanta rotation. Over his eight starts, Ynoa compiled a 3.09 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 50:11 K:BB in 43.2 innings.

Seijas (undisclosed) returned from the 7-day injured list Friday for Double-A Springfield, retiring one of the two hitters he faced in relief.

Seijas had been sidelined for a month with the unspecified injury. The 22-year-old had been working as a starter prior to landing on the IL, but the Cardinals may keep him in a relief role for the time being while he builds up his pitch count coming off the prolonged shutdown.

Lauer (2-3) secured his second win of the season Sunday against the Rockies after tossing six shutout innings while allowing two hits, two walks and striking out six.

Lauer was in peak form Sunday as he blanked the Rockies while allowing just four baserunners over six innings. The only real scoring threat they had was bases-loaded in the second but Lauer was able to escape after striking out Chi Chi Gonzalez. All six of his strikeouts and all 12 of his total whiffs came via his fastball. Lauer lowered his ERA to 4.50 and has a 47:16 K:BB over 44 innings. He has another favorable matchup on tap against the Pirates later in the week.

Oviedo (0-4) was tagged with the loss Sunday against the Pirates after allowing five runs on six hits and four walks across four innings. He struck out five.

Oviedo has failed to complete five innings in all but two of his appearances this season and had another below-average outing on the mound, as he dropped a second straight decision while showing a severe lack of control. In addition to his four walks, he also tossed 39 of his 90 pitches outside the strike zone. The right-hander owns a woeful 5.23 ERA while posting a 35:25 K:BB across 43 innings (nine starts) this season.

Kershaw (9-7) allowed one earned run on four hits and a walk while striking out 13 across eight innings, earning the win over the Cubs on Sunday.

Kershaw struck out a season-high 13 batters in his longest start of the campaign. He induced 22 swinging strikes on his slider, tied for the highest mark on the pitch in his career. The lone run he allowed came on a fourth-inning solo shot by Javier Baez. The future Hall of Famer is third in baseball with 102.1 innings pitched, showing that he is still very reliable and capable of a quality performance each time he steps on the mound. He has pitched at least six innings in each of his last nine starts. The 33-year-old has a 3.25 ERA and a 0.98 WHIP with a 10.9 K/9 in 2021.

Mahle (7-3) allowed four runs on six hits and a walk over six innings Sunday, striking out seven and taking a loss against Atlanta.

Mahle allowed a pair of runs in the third inning and then served up solo homers to Ronald Acuna and Austin Riley in the fifth and sixth. He had won his previous five decisions and hadn't taken a loss since May 20. The 26-year-old righty saw his ERA climb to 3.74 alongside a 105:27 K:BB through 84.1 frames. Mahle is lined up to face the Cubs at home next weekend.

Muller (1-1) fired five shutout innings Sunday, yielding just one hit and two walks while earning a win over the Reds. He struck out nine batters.

Muller was outstanding in his third big-league appearance, mowing through Cincinnati's lineup on the way to his first career win. He allowed just three base runners and worked himself out of a small jam with two on and one out in the third inning. The 6-foot-7 rookie now owns a 13:4 K:BB alongside a 2.70 ERA through 10 frames. Muller is projected to face the Marlins at home next weekend assuming he gets another turn in the rotation.

Durvish allowed one earned run on six hits and a walk while striking out seven across six innings in the win over the Diamondbacks on Sunday. He did not factor into the decision.

Darvish's only run allowed came in the fourth inning when Pavin Smith scored on a wild pitch. The 34-year-old made easy work of the Diamondbacks despite not getting the win. He has allowed just one run in each of his last two starts. On the season, Darvish has a 2.44 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP with a 10.8 K/9 in 96 innings.

Gallen allowed two earned runs on six hits and three walks while striking out three across 4.2 innings against the Padres on Sunday. He did not factor into the decision.

Gallen allowed both of his runs in the first inning, one of which came on a leadoff home run by Tommy Pham. He was relieved with two outs in the fifth inning after running into more trouble, but Ryan Buchter was able to retire the last batter with no further damage. Gallen hasn't pitched more than five innings since returning from his elbow injury. The 25-year-old has a 3.69 ERA and a 10.6 K/9 in 39 innings.