MLB Player News

Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg (neck) kicked off a rehab assignment with Double-A Harrisburg on Wednesday. The right-hander allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits and no walks in five innings.

Strasburg struck out six batters, while throwing 48 of 71 pitches for strikes.

"I feel really good and I feel strong. Definitely could’ve gone back out there for a few," Strasburg said, per MASNsports.com. 

Strasburg threw more pitches in the bullpen after his outing. He also said he wasn't sure what the team's plans are for him after Wednesday's start.

"Not sure. Just taking it one day at a time. Get back with the team and get ready for the next start wherever it is," he said. "It’s always tough when you’re part of a team that’s grinding through a season so hopefully I can get back and contribute soon.

"Obviously what I was doing wasn’t really working to my standards and now there’s something to shoot for, something to strive for."

After watching ace Julio Teheran allow six runs on a career-high 13 hits during a 9-4 loss Tuesday against the Red Sox, Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez sat down with pitching coach Roger McDowell to talk about the right-hander's struggles.

"We need to do something against the left-handed hitters," Gonzalez said, per MLB.com. "They're just wearing him out. I don't know if he's just leaving balls all over the plate, the execution. Roger and I have been here talking about that for a while. We got carried away. We need to do something to equalize [the splits] a little bit."

Left-handers on Tuesday went 6 for 15 with a walk against Teheran. This season, lefty hitters are batting .326 with a .546 slugging percentage and .945 OPS against Teheran.

"They still got to him last year a little bit, but it wasn't at the pace they're doing right now," Gonzalez said. "Whether it's pitch selection or command. Looking at the video through the course on the Jumbotron, it's balls right down the middle. It's balls down the middle of the plate that we need to locate."

Teheran has also had his issues on the road in 2015. He is 1-3 with a 7.17 ERA in eight road starts, as opposed to 3-0 with a 2.77 ERA in six home starts. 

"We just got to figure out getting back the old Julio Teheran," Gonzalez said.

Despite undergoing surgery in late April to repair a torn Achilles, Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright said he has not ruled out returning this season, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

"I know that I'm working toward the end of the season," he said. "I don't know if that will [happen], but we'll see."

Wainwright added that the injury is progressing nicely, but he still needs a walking boot. He recently stopped using crutches to get around.

When asked if there was a chance if he could pitch in September or October, Wainwright was confident he could.

"Absolutely," he said.

Pirates pitcher Charlie Morton did not allow a run over seven innings of work to help lead the Pirates to a 3-0 win over the White Sox on Tuesday.

Morton received his fifth win of the season for his effort and he is now 5-0 with a 1.62 ERA on the season. He allowed four hits while striking out three and walking one during the outing.

Morton has not surrendered a run in last two starts and he has allowed a total of seven hits over his last 14 1/3 innings. His next expected start is scheduled for Sunday at Washington.

Reds starter Michael Lorenzen evened his record at 2-2 with a win over Detroit. 

Lorenzen allowed two runs, one earned, over six innings. He walked three and struck out one.

Lorenzen has walked at least three batters in his last seven starts. His next start is Sunday, against Miami. 

Braves starter Julio Teheran suffered his second straight loss, Tuesday against Boston. Teheran has earned one win since May 9. 

Teheran gave up six runs on 13 hits over 6 1/3 innings. He walked one, struck out three and surrendered a home run. 

"Seems like always one or two bad innings are Teheran’s downfall," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "I think he settled down after giving up a couple of runs in the first inning." 

Teheran's next start will be Sunday, against the Mets. 

Cardinals right-hander Michael Wacha was solid through 6 1/3 innings on Tuesday, as he picked up his ninth win of the season. Wacha limited the Twins to two runs on three hits, while walking one and striking out five.

Wacha gave up a run in the first inning, but settled in from there. He then surrendered a second run in the seventh, before a 47-minute rain delay forced him from the game after throwing just 86 pitches on the afternoon.

He has now alternated wins and losses over his last four starts, but still sports a very fine 9-2 record and a 2.48 ERA.

He'll look to keep it up in his next start, scheduled for Sunday in Philadelphia.

Braves starting pitcher Alex Wood was hit in the head by a baseball while in the outfield fielding flyballs during batting practice Tuesday, according to 680 The Fan. He checked out fine after being evaulated by the medical staff and will make his start Wednesday against the Red Sox.

Wood has lost his last two starts. He is 4-4 with a 3.56 ERA in 12 starts this season.

Cardinals right-hander Lance Lynn, on the disabled list with a forearm injury, played catch on Tuesday. It's the first time that Lynn has thrown since landing on the DL on Friday. 

He's expected to continue throwing this week, and will stay in St. Louis while the team heads to Minnesota. He will then re-join the Cardinals on Friday in Philadelphia and plans to throw a bullpen session. Lynn and manager Mike Matheny are hopeful the right-hander will be able to return when first eligible on June 23 for a start against the Marlins in Miami.

"Instead of [the tightness] being ahead of us, hopefully this will give us a chance for us to stay ahead or right along with it," Lynn said, per MLB.com. "Seven days off of throwing isn't really going to make a difference. But for me, I'm just trying to make sure everything feels right going forward. That's probably going to make the biggest difference."

Diamondbacks pitcher Robbie Ray did not allow an earned run during his appearance in Monday night’s 7-3 win over the Angels.

Ray went seven innings and only gave up two hits and two walks. Ray struck out three batters.

Ray has been impressive in the four starts he’s had thus far. In 24 2/3 innings Ray has only surrendered a total of three earned runs and 17 hits. Ray now holds an ERA of 1.09 and a record of 2-1 this season.

His next start is scheduled for Saturday against the Padres.