MLB Player News

Dobbins is slated to start Tuesday's game against the Yankees in New York, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Though they still had five starters in place even after dealing Dustin May to the Brewers on Monday, the Cardinals appear set to at least temporarily expand the rotation to six men with the addition of Dobbins, who was recalled from Triple-A Memphis in the aftermath of the trade deadline. Dobbins has previously made four starts and three relief appearances for St. Louis, going 2-1 with a 3.74 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 32:11 K:BB across 33.2 innings.

Littell is expected to pitch in bulk relief behind opening pitcher Carson Palmquist during Tuesday's game in Philadelphia, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Though he started in his last appearance Wednesday against the Blue Jays and tossed 4.2 scoreless frames, Littell has performed much better as a primary pitcher out of the bullpen throughout the season. Over his eight relief appearances, Littell has logged a 2.79 ERA and 1.11 WHIP across 38.2 frames. Palmquist will likely cover between one and three innings to begin Tuesday's contest before Littell takes over.

Palmquist will serve as the Nationals' opening pitcher for Tuesday's game against the Phillies, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Palmquist hasn't covered more than 3.1 innings in any of his prior five opener assignments, so that workload likely represents the upper range of what he'll handle Tuesday. Zack Littell is slated to pitch in bulk relief behind Palmquist and is the Nationals pitcher most likely to qualify for a win.

Walston (elbow) will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.

Walston is finally rehab to pitch in official games following a long rehab from Tommy John surgery. The left-hander has a chance to contribute for the Diamondbacks in September, though he's not a given to rejoin the major-league roster once his rehab assignment concludes.

Burnes (elbow/teres major) will throw a bullpen session Tuesday, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.

Burnes suffered a teres major strain while throwing to hitters in June, delaying his Tommy John surgery rehab. He resumed throwing on flat ground July 10 and is now ready to get back on a mound again. A plan for Burnes to face hitters again will be mapped out following Tuesday's mound work. Burnes is aiming to rejoin the Diamondbacks by early September, though that might be optimistic given where he's at in his throwing program.

King (6-8) took the loss Monday, allowing three runs on five hits and four walks over five-plus innings against Arizona. He struck out five.

The right-hander was done in by a three-run homer surrendered to Tim Tawa in the fourth inning. King threw 66 of 104 pitches for strikes, issuing four walks for the sixth time this season. Through 130.1 innings (23 starts), the 31-year-old owns a 3.45 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 114:54 K:BB. His next start is tentatively scheduled for Saturday against Houston.

Pfaadt (6-1) earned the win Monday, allowing one unearned run on five hits and a walk over 6.2 innings against the Padres. He struck out three.

Pfaadt kept the Padres offense quiet, with the lone run he surrendered in the seventh inning being unearned. The right-hander has been incredible since being recalled June 30, compiling a 6-0 record with a 1.55 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across seven starts spanning 40.2 innings. Overall, Pfaadt owns a 3.66 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 52:22 K:BB across 78.2 innings (20 appearances, 10 starts) and is tentatively slated to pitch Saturday against the Dodgers.

Lorenzen (3-10) took the loss Monday, allowing seven runs on seven hits and three walks over three innings against the Rays. He did not record a strikeout.

Lorenzen was rocked from the outset, giving up a two-run homer to Junior Caminero in the first inning before surrendering five more runs over the next two frames. The veteran hurler has struggled mightily this season, allowing seven-plus runs in five different outings. With a 6.94 ERA, 1.85 WHIP and 80:43 K:BB across 107.2 innings (24 appearances), the right-hander is tentatively slated to pitch Sunday against the Cardinals.

Lauer is expected to remain in the Dodgers rotation after Emmet Sheehan was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

Lauer's starting role was in jeopardy after Los Angeles acquired star hurler Tarik Skubal via trade Saturday. However, Sheehan's demotion to the minors should salvage Lauer's rotation spot for the time being. Lauer has been great since joining Los Angeles in mid-May, posting a 2.96 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 30:13 K:BB while going 5-0 over nine starts spanning 51.2 innings. With that said, Lauer is likely to be the odd man out when/if the Dodgers are able to eventually get all of their starters back to full health. Shohei Ohtani (knee), Blake Snell (elbow) and Tyler Glasnow (back) are all currently working their way back from injuries.

Wrobleski (11-3) took the loss against the Cubs on Monday, allowing seven runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four batters over 4.1 innings.

The Dodgers' offense gave Wrobleski a nice early cushion, producing three runs in the top of the first inning. However, the left-hander allowed Chicago to quickly close the gap when he surrendered a two-run homer to Carson Kelly in the bottom of the frame. The Cubs went on to crush three more long balls against Wrobleski, marking his second straight start in which he's allowed four home runs. Prior to the pair of outings, Wrobleski had allowed just eight homers across his first 106.2 frames spanning 17 starts, so he's clearly hit a rough patch. According to Jack Harris of the California Post, both Wrobleski and Dave Roberts said after the game that the hurler may be tipping his pitches, and the team is planning to look into whether that's the case. With an 11-3 overall record, a 3.31 ERA and his first career All-Star nod under his belt, Wrobleski has likely earned some leash in terms of holding onto a starting spot through his recent struggles, though Los Angeles' embarrassment of pitching riches means he could be vying with Roki Sasaki for the No. 6 rotation spot when all of Shohei Ohtani (knee), Blake Snell (elbow) and Tyler Glasnow (back) are ready to rejoin Yoshinabu Yamamoto and Tarik Skubal in the rotation.