MLB Player News

Cardinals starting pitcher Adam Wainwright had another strong start Tuesday, in a 10-2 win over the Padres.

Wainwright allowed just one run on four hits in the outing, the fourth time in 10 outings that he has allowed one or fewer runs. He struck out six batters and walked just one in 7 1/3 innings, on 100 pitches.

Wainwright pushed his record to 6-3, while lowered his ERA to 2.38. He is scheduled to make his next start Monday against the Royals in Kansas City. 

Nationals pitching prospect Sammy Solis made his first appearance since Tommy John surgery Tuesday, for Class A Potomac. Solis allowed two runs on one walk and three hits in two innings of work in the outing. He worked in the low 90's with his fastball according to MASNSports.com. 

Solis, 24, has not pitched since 2011, when he posted a 2.72 ERA at Potomac. He is a former second-round pick out of the University of San Diego. 

Nothing about Julio Teheran's performance this season merits a demotion, whether to the bullpen or the minor leagues. In fact, he has shown improvement just about every time out, most recently with 8 1/3 strong innings against the Twins. But the fact of the matter is that when Brandon Beachy returns, someone has to go.

Who else would it be? Paul Maholm? If his slide continues, his numbers could end up looking worse than Teheran's. But he doesn't have any bullpen experience, and it's not like he's going to the minors. By the time Beachy gets here, the Braves may prefer to move Teheran to the bullpen strictly to limit his innings.

I'm not saying you should drop Teheran in anticipation of Beachy's return. Someone else could go down between now and then, ending the dilemma. But you should prepare for life without him in Fantasy. My guess is it's rapidly approaching.

Some of the trade scenarios involving the Diamondbacks' Patrick Corbin in Tuesday's Fantasy Baseball Today chat were positively nutty. Yoenis Cespedes for Corbin? Matt Kemp for Corbin? Get real.

Listen, I like Corbin. I picked him up in a few leagues a couple weeks into the season and have been starting him fairly consistently since then. I even moved him up to 43rd in my starting pitcher rankings after his latest masterpiece at Colorado, of all places. And he deserves it. The improvement he's made this season is legitimate. But just because I've enjoyed what he's done for me doesn't mean I've lost all perspective with him.

He's not Clayton Kershaw. He's not even Matt Harvey. He won't be in the Cy Young discussion at season's end. And when his ERA normalizes to something right around 3.00, his limited strikeout potential will make him less than an automatic start.

Check out Wade Miley's numbers on June 24 last year. Much of what people are saying about Corbin now they were saying about Miley then. No, Miley didn't collapse -- and neither will Corbin -- but his numbers did normalize.

With the Cardinals' rotation banged up, fans are clamoring for starting pitcher prospect Michael Wacha, who is dominating at Triple-A Memphis, to be promoted to the majors. However, the Cardinals are taking a cautious approach with the 2012 first-round pick.

"Everybody is focused on the Wacha 'clock,'" general manager John Mozeliak told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, referring to the nickname for big-league service time. "The clock is something that is well-documented and it’s something that we think about."

Mozeliak warned of the dangers of rushing Wacha and having to deal with Stephen Strasburg-esque issues worrying about overstressing a developing arm. Wacha, who is 4-0 with a 1.89 ERA in eight starts for Memphis, has just 68 2/3 pro innings under his belt. For perspective on how the Cardinals have handled prospects in the past who they viewed as ace material, rookie Shelby Miller tossed 383 2/3 innings in the minors before joining the Cardinals' rotation and Adam Wainwright had 793 innings in the minors (the latter split between the Cardinals and Braves organizations).

Diamondbacks starter Patrick Corbin was nothing short of dominant Monday night in Colorado. He didn't care he was pitching at Coors Field -- the Rockies could barely touch him. 

Corbin pitched a complete game as he allowed just one run over 97 pitches in the 5-1 victory. He improved to 7-0 in the process with a pristine 1.44 ERA. The only run he allowed came in the eighth inning on Jordan Pacheco's RBI double. 

The 23-year-old struck out 10 batters and gave up only three hits and a walk for his first career complete game. With 51 Ks over 62 1/3 innings and a seven-game winning streak, Corbin has been fantastic. His next scheduled start comes Sunday against San Diego. 

Reds starter Johnny Cueto returned from the disabled list Monday in New York. He wasn't at his sharpest, but he earned the victory.

Cueto gave up a three-run homer to Marlon Byrd in the third inning, but that was all he allowed. He gave up the three runs on three hits and four walks over five frames and 90 pitches to move to 2-0 on the year.

He struck out eight and his ERA is at 3.22. Cueto was making his first start since suffering an oblique injury at Pittsburgh on April 13. His next scheduled start comes Sunday against the Cubs.

Dodgers starter Clayton Kershaw looked every bit like an ace on Monday in Milwaukee. 

Kershaw pitched a complete-game victory to improve to 5-2 on the year. 

Kershaw gave up just an RBI ground out in the third inning for the only run he allowed. He gave up three hits and a walk over his nine innings, throwing 107 pitches. Kershaw struck out five batters and lowered his ERA to 1.35. 

Kershaw, 25, has picked up consecutive wins with one run allowed over 17 2/3 innings with 16 Ks over that span. He hasn't lost since falling to 2-2 on April 17 against San Diego. Kershaw makes his next start Sunday against the Cardinals. 

Phillies starter Cole Hamels pitched well enough to win Monday in Miami. He simply couldn't get any help from his offense once again.

Hamels hasn't thrown a single pitch with his team holding a lead since April 7, a span of 52 innings. It was the case once again Monday as he dropped to 1-7 on the year with a 4.45 ERA.

Hamels allowed just two earned runs on seven hits and no walks over six innings with 10 strikeouts. He threw 89 pitches.

The 29-year-old has lost four straight starts but has allowed two runs in three of those outings. In fact, Hamels has allowed two or fewer runs in six of his 10 starts. His next outing comes Sunday at Washington.

Braves starter Julio Teheran walked his first batter in a long time Monday at home against the Twins. He still managed to pitch into the ninth inning and come away a winner.

Teheran, who had not walked anyone since April 29 against Washington, threw a career-high 123 pitches and left after allowing his only run on a Josh Willingham solo homer in the ninth. He earned the win to improve to 3-1 on the year.

Fans were on their feet as Teheran came off the mound after 8 1/3 innings. He allowed just five hits and struck out four. His ERA is at 3.99. Teheran makes his next start Sunday in New York versus the Mets.