MLB Player News

Promising Cardinals starter Carlos Martinez was rolling merrily along for four starts, but he has been rolling not-so-merrily backward since.

Martinez was mashed in a second straight outing Saturday night in Pittsburgh. He fell behind 3-0, then blew a 5-3 lead. He finished having surrendered seven runs on seven hits with four walks and seven strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.

The right-hander allowed a walk, wild pitch and two doubles in a three-run second. He settled down before giving up a solo homer to Neil Walker in the fifth and two walks and a single in the sixth. All three of those baserunners scored, resulting in his first loss in four decisions.

"Sometimes (Martinez) gets feeling good and wants to turn it another gear," Mike Matheny told The Associated Press. "The other gear really doesn't play well for him. Turns into bad counts, turns into walks, turns into runs."

Martinez has yielded 14 runs on 16 hits and 11 walks in his last nine innings pitched. His ERA has zoomed from 1.73 to 4.89. He will try to right the ship next Friday against tough Detroit.

Reds starting pitcher Johnny Cueto (3-3) pitched into the ninth inning Saturday, allowing four runs on six hits and fanning seven to defeat the White Sox in Game 1 of their doubleheader. 

Cueto carried a shutout into the seventh inning but shortstop Alexei Ramirez put the White Sox on the board with a solo home run. 

"He had a lot of stuff. He throws hard, he has good offspeed stuff and he has gamesmanship too," White Sox manager Robin Ventura said of Cueto. "He kind of sped up his delivery and [started] getting ahead real quick. I think he just kind of has that feel for it."

Cueto rebounded from his previous start where he surrendered five runs in six innings for a loss. 

Cueto returns to the mound for his next start Thursday against the Giants.

Braves starting pitcher Julio Teheran was roughed up for six earned runs on 10 hits in six innings of work Saturday but was bailed out by a late rally to take a no-decision. 

Jose Lobaton delivered a two-run homer of Teheran in the second inning and Ryan Zimmerman knocked a three-run shot in the fifth. 

"I was making pitches, and obviously they're very hot right now," Teheran said to MLB.com. "They're having good at-bats against us, and there were two mistakes I made in those two innings and they cost us a couple of runs."

Teheran fanned six and walked three in the defeat. 

"It was a tough outing for him," said catcher Christian Bethancourt. "He made some really good pitches, he was getting the ball down, he was pounding the zone, and they were just hitting the ball. They've been hitting the ball really hot, and basically we can't do anything about it. We just have to keep executing pitches, stay positive, don't give up."

Teheran will look to get back on track in his start that's scheduled for Friday in Miami.

The Dodgers and Rockies game Saturday in Colorado has been postponed with no make up date set, the teams announced.

With poor weather conditions in the area throughout the weekend, the two teams were only able to complete six innings of Friday's game, which became an official final. Los Angeles' scheduled starter Clayton Kershaw will start Sunday's game and Colorado's starter Jorge De La Rosa will also throw on Sunday.

Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg revealed after his bullpen session Saturday that the issue with his shoulder, which led to his early exit from Tuesday's start, was caused by ankle pain, forcing him to change his mechanics and, subsequently, triggering an alignment issue beneath his shoulder blade, per MASN.com.

Strasburg remains questionable for scheduled May 11 start at Arizona.

Nationals starter Stephen Strasburg threw a bullpen session on Saturday, testing the injury that forced him out of Tuesday's start.

Strasburg left after three innings on Tuesday with what he called "an alignment issue" beneath his shoulder blade. 

After his bullpen session, Strasburg declared himself good enough to pitch either Monday or Tuesday, per the Washington Post. He said he thought the issue was caused by overcompensation after he injured his ankle in spring training. After adjusting his mechanics, he said he's ready to go. 

Manager Matt Williams said that they'll evaluate how Strasburg feels on Sunday before scheduling his next start.

Pirates pitcher Charlie Morton began a rehab assignment with Double-A Altoona Friday, allowing just two hits and two walks in seven scoreless innings while striking out five.

"I don't want to come here and just ease back into it," Morton said Saturday, per the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "I want to come back and be the best pitcher I can be."

Morton is working his way back from September labrum surgery.

Phillies pitcher Sean O'Sullivan began a rehab assignment with Class A Lakewood Thursday, allowing one earned run on five hits and one walk in 4 1/3 innings while striking out five.

O'Sullivan is on the disabled list with a knee injury. He's 0-1 with a 4.91 ERA and 7:3 K:BB ratio in 11 innings.

Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel allowed two runs on five hits over seven innings of work to earn his third win of the season during Friday's 7-6 win over the Brewers.

Hammel struck out eight batters and walked three during the outing. His biggest mistake was serving up a solo home run to Khris Davis in the sixth inning. The eight strikeouts were a season high for Hammel.

Hammel (3-1) has not allowed more than three runs in five of his six starts this season and his ERA now stands at 3.52. His next expected start is scheduled for Wednesday against the Mets.

Cardinals pitcher Michael Wacha earned his fifth win of the season during Friday's 8-5 win over the Pirates.

Wacha allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits over six innings of work. He also struck out one batter and walked none.

Wacha is now 5-0 with a 2.09 ERA on the season. He has not allowed more than four runs in any of his six starts this season. His next scheduled start is expected to be Thursday at Cleveland.