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Easton Lucas RP | TOR
Blue Jays' Easton Lucas: Stifles A's in Saturday's win
Lucas (3-2) picked up the win in Saturday's 8-7 victory over the A's, allowing four hits and a walk over 4.2 scoreless innings of relief. He struck out three.
The southpaw entered the game with one out in the second inning after opener Braydon Fisher coughed up five runs, and Lucas looked like he would have no more success than the right-hander did, quickly loading the bases on three straight singles. Lucas buckled down and escaped the jam, however, and cruised through the next four frames while the Toronto offense took control. This was expected to be just a spot outing in the rotation for the 28-year-old, who tossed 70 pitches (46 strikes), so he could be optioned right back to Triple-A Buffalo to make room for a fresh bullpen arm. If Lucas does stick around, however, Saturday's performance could give him a case to push Eric Lauer for the fifth starter role.
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Michael Wacha SP | KC
Royals' Michael Wacha: Loses no-hitter in seventh
Wacha did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 1-0 win over the Tigers, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out six across seven scoreless innings.
Wacha was locked into a fierce duel with Tigers ace Tarik Skubal on Saturday. Wacha retired 19 of the first 20 batters he faced, but he saw his no-hit bid come to an end in the seventh on a Colt Keith single to center field. Wacha managed to close out the inning without allowing another baserunner, finishing with his fifth quality start and third outing this season in which he yielded zero runs. He has a 2.88 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 50:18 K:BB across 68.2 innings this season. Wacha is lined up to face the White Sox on the road next weekend.
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Walker Buehler SP | SD
Red Sox's Walker Buehler: Allows five runs in loss
Buehler (4-3) took the loss against Atlanta on Saturday, allowing five runs on 10 hits and two walks with six strikeouts over 5.2 innings.
He was primarily hurt by two long balls in the fourth inning, including a two-run blast off the bat of Ronald Acuna. Acuna managed just nine swinging strikes on 106 pitches, snapping a streak of six consecutive starts yielding three earned runs or fewer. The 30-year-old will bring a 4.44 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 42:15 K:BB over 46.2 innings into a tough road matchup with the Yankees next weekend.
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Spencer Schwellenbach P | ATL
Braves' Spencer Schwellenbach: Strikes out 11 in win
Schwellenbach (4-4) earned the win against the Red Sox on Saturday, allowing five hits and no walks while striking out 11 over 6.1 innings.
Schwellenbach generated 16 whiffs on 99 pitches and matched a season high with 11 strikeouts for the second consecutive game. The 25-year-old has pitched into the seventh inning in each of his last four starts and has delivered nine quality starts across 12 outings. He'll take a 3.13 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 71:12 K:BB over 74.2 innings into a road matchup with the Giants next weekend.
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Gunnar Hoglund P | ATH
Athletics' Gunnar Hoglund: Torched in Toronto
Hoglund (1-3) took the loss Saturday, surrendering eight runs on 10 hits -- including four home runs -- and two walks over six innings as the A's fell 8-7 to the Blue Jays. He struck out only one.
Long balls in the first, second, third and fifth innings sent the rookie right-hander to his third defeat in his last four starts, with Hoglund serving up multiple homers in each loss. Through his first 32.1 big-league innings, he's been taken deep 10 times, leading to a 6.40 ERA to go along with a 1.52 WHIP and 23:11 K:BB. It's not clear how much longer the A's will stick with the 25-year-old in the rotation, but he's currently scheduled to make his next start at home next week against the Twins.
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Nick Lodolo SP | CIN
Reds' Nick Lodolo: Blanks Cubs in no-decision
Lodolo came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 2-0 loss to the Cubs, allowing five hits and two walks over six scoreless innings. He struck out five.
The southpaw shut down a dangerous Chicago offense over 94 pitches (56 strikes), but the Cincinnati offense managed just one hit on the afternoon. The quality start was Lodolo's seventh in 12 trips to the mound, and he'll take a 3.10 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 60:14 K:BB through 69.2 innings into his next outing, which lines up to come at home next weekend against the Diamondbacks.
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Ben Brown RP | CHC
Cubs' Ben Brown: Thrives in bulk role Saturday
Brown tossed six scoreless innings but did not factor into the decision Saturday against the Reds. He allowed a hit and a walk, while striking out nine.
Brown followed opener Drew Pomeranz, and the former turned in arguably his best performance of the year, though he couldn't snag the win as the Cubs scored all their runs in the eighth inning after Brown had departed. The righty matched his season high in strikeouts and innings pitched, and he lowered his ERA to 5.72 in the process. Brown still has some work to do with his ERA after allowing a total of 14 runs over his previous two outings, though Saturday's performances was a clear step in the right direction for the 25-year-old. He'll look to carry some momentum into his next scheduled start, which is tentatively penciled in for Friday against a tough Detroit squad.
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Reese Olson SP | DET
Tigers' Reese Olson: Set for another side session
Olson (finger) was scheduled to throw another bullpen session Saturday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.
Olson has now thrown a pair of bullpen sessions within the past four days as he continues to ramp back up after being placed on the injured list May 19 due to right ring finger inflammation. Though the right-hander doesn't look to be in line for an extended stay on the IL, he'll still need to face hitters in live batting practice and potentially complete a brief minor-league rehab assignment prior to being activated.
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Shota Imanaga SP | CHC
Cubs' Shota Imanaga: Throws off mound again
Imanaga (hamstring) completed a bullpen session Saturday, MLB.com reports.
Imanaga has now thrown a pair of side sessions since landing on the injured list May 5, as the Cubs have been working him back slowly from a left hamstring strain. Assuming he's dealing with nothing more than normal soreness following Saturday's session, Imanaga is expected to shift his rehab program to the Cubs' spring training facility in Arizona during the upcoming week. Imanaga will need to face hitters in live batting practice before the Cubs determine whether to send him out on a minor-league rehab assignment or have him build up his pitch count through simulated games before bringing him back from the IL.
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Bryce Miller SP | SEA
Mariners' Bryce Miller: Reinstated from IL ahead of start
The Mariners reinstated Miller (elbow) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his start against the Twins on Saturday.
Miller landed on the 15-day injured list May 12 due to right elbow inflammation, but he progressed enough in his recovery to avoid a rehab assignment and will retake the mound for the Mariners on Saturday. The 26-year-old right-hander gave up 11 earned runs in nine innings across two starts before landing on the IL. In the six prior starts, Miller posted a 3.52 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 31:19 K:BB across 30.2 innings.