MLB Player News

Wacha (1-3) allowed five runs (four earned) on seven hits and no walks while striking out three across four innings to take the loss Tuesday against the Orioles.

Wacha served up two long balls to account for three of his four earned runs. He was regularly in trouble and showed little deceptiveness, racking up only six swinging strikes on 71 total pitches. Wacha has struggled mightily this season and now has a 7.50 ERA across 24 innings. He'll look to get on track in his next outing, currently projected to come Tuesday at Philadelphia.

Martinez (0-2) took the loss in the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Twins, giving up four runs on seven hits and a walk over 3.2 innings. He struck out three.

After tossing a couple of scoreless frames in his first outing since July 28, Martinez hit a wall, serving up a three-run shot to Josh Donaldson in the third and then another run in the fourth before he made his exit. It's still encouraging that he was able to throw 80 pitches (54 strikes) after the long layoff, but as has been the case in recent years, he'll need to be more efficient if he's going to stick in the St. Louis rotation. Martinez lines up to make his next start as part of another twin bill, this one in Milwaukee on Monday.

Kaminsky, who fired a scoreless ninth inning during which he allowed one hit in Monday's loss to the Cubs, has now put together three scoreless, one-inning appearances to open his major-league career.

The southpaw had his share of troubles at Triple-A Memphis last season, posting a 5.11 ERA and 1.65 WHIP across 24.2 innings. However, Kaminsky also generated an impressive and career-high 11.5 K/9 over that span, and although he hasn't been anywhere near as dominant during his small big-league sample (6.0 K/9), the 26-year-old's 13.2 percent swinging-strike rate does hint at the potential for an elevated strikeout rate over time.

Martinez (illness) was activated as expected ahead of his scheduled start in the first half of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Twins.

Martinez was part of the Cardinals' early-season COVID-19 outbreak and hasn't pitched since late July. He's unlikely to approach 100 pitches in his return to the mound, though he threw over 50 pitches in his most recent live batting practice session, so he should be able to throw a handful of innings Tuesday. Dylan Carlson was optioned in a corresponding move.

Fried (back) is expected to return from the injured list when first eligible Sept. 16 or soon after, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

The Braves do not believe that the muscle spasm in Fried's back is particularly serious, and they initially intended to simply delay his next start by a few days before ultimately deciding to skip it entirely. Robbie Erlin appears to be the leading candidate to fill in for him Thursday against the Nationals.

Hamels (triceps) could return during the upcoming series in Baltimore, which begins Monday, Gabe Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Hamels has battled shoulder and triceps issues since spring training, but he's been making good progress of late and completed a live batting practice session Sunday. It doesn't appear that he's close to being ready to handle a starter's workload, but Atlanta may be happy for him to finish the buildup process during big-league games. He could get the opportunity to make a few short starts in the final two weeks of the season.

The Braves recalled Wright from their alternate training site ahead of his scheduled start Tuesday against the Marlins.

Wright will rejoin the rotation as a replacement for Robbie Erlin, who worked in long relief behind starter Ian Anderson in Monday's 5-4 loss in 10 innings. Though the Braves remain high on the 25-year-old's long-term outlook, Wright's early returns at the big-league level haven't been encouraging. Since making his MLB debut in 2019, Wright has posted a 7.52 ERA, 1.97 WHIP and a 35:35 K:BB over 40.2 innings.

The Braves placed Fried on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a left side muscle spasm in his lumbar spine.

Fried's injury is another brutal blow to an already depleted Atlanta rotation, as the Braves' staff ace will now be shut down for at least the next week and a half with the spinal spasm. Atlanta called up Kyle Wright in a corresponding move ahead of his scheduled start Tuesday against the Marlins, but the Braves will still require a replacement in the rotation for Fried in Thursday's series opener versus the Nationals. Fried wasn't reported to be dealing with any injury coming out of his most recent outing over the weekend, but the back/spine issue may explain why his velocity has been noticeably down over his last two starts. Per Brooks Baseball, Fried's four-seam fastball averaged 91.97 miles per hour in his last outing, about a tick and a half below his season average (93.41 mph).

Freeland pitched six scoreless innings, allowing three hits and three walks while striking out six in a no-decision versus the Padres on Monday.

Freeland dueled with Dinelson Lamet for most of the game. It was a good bounce-back effort for Freeland, who had allowed four runs in each of his last two starts. The southpaw lowered his ERA to 3.60 with a 1.36 WHIP and 34:14 K:BB across 50 innings this season. The 27-year-old lines up for his next start versus the Angels on Sunday.

Gausman (3-2) yielded one run on three walks and two hits over six innings Monday, striking out nine and earning the win against the Diamondbacks.

Gausman found himself in a jam during the third inning, loading the bases with just one out, but he managed to escape after allowing just one run. San Francisco's offense tallied four runs in the sixth inning and that was enough support to give the 29-year-old his second straight win. He'll carry a 4.05 ERA into Saturday's road matchup with San Diego.