MLB Player News

Suarez (shin) will start in Sunday's game against the Padres at Camden Yards.

Suarez won't be forced to miss a turn through the rotation after his most recent start Tuesday against the Mariners was cut short when he was struck on the right shin by a comebacker in the third inning. The right-hander suffered little more than a bruise to his lower leg and shouldn't face any restrictions Sunday. Suarez has taken losses in four of his last six starts, posting a 6.51 ERA and 1.77 WHIP over that stretch.

Dunning allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out two over three relief innings in Saturday's 7-3 loss to Toronto.

Dunning made his first appearance after being activated off the 15-day injured list Thursday. The right-hander opened the season as part of the Rangers' rotation but has since been moved to the bullpen. His length as a starter likely means he'll be used as a multi-inning reliever, which will come in handy when a starter doesn't get deep. That was the case Saturday when Michael Lorenzen couldn't get out of the first inning.

Cobb (hip/shoulder) struck out four batters and allowed three earned runs on five hits and two walks over two innings in his rehab start Friday with Single-A San Jose.

The Giants might have been hoping for better results from Cobb in the sixth start of his rehab assignment, but assuming he feels fine physically coming out of Friday's outing, he could be cleared to return from the 60-day injured list to make his next start with the big club. Cobb was lifted after 50 pitches (30 strikes) in Friday's rehab appearance, though it's possible that he was able to push up that pitch count with a bullpen session following his exit from the game. The Giants have seemingly already cleared the way for Cobb to rejoin the rotation, as Jordan Hicks was scratched from his anticipated start Sunday versus the Rockies and looks set to work out of the bullpen moving forward, per Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area. Cobb -- who has been out all season while recovering from offseason hip surgery and then experienced shoulder soreness during the rehab process -- tentatively lines up to make his 2024 Giants debut Wednesday versus the Athletics.

Eflin is scheduled to start during Monday's doubleheader against the Blue Jays, and he expects to take the ball in Game 2, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Baltimore hasn't officially announced their starters for the twin bill, but Eflin appears set to pitch in the matinee. The right-hander was officially added to the active roster Sunday after being acquired from Tampa Bay on Friday. The 30-year-old posted a 4.09 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 87:13 K:BB in 110 innings across 19 starts for the Rays prior to being traded.

The Giants optioned Birdsong to Single-A San Jose on Sunday.

San Francisco previously optioned Birdsong to Single-A this past Monday, but the rookie right-hander didn't have to miss a turn through the rotation since the Giants were able to recall him from the minors to have him serve as the 27th man for Saturday's doubleheader with the Rockies. Birdsong took the hill for the second game of the twin bill and spun another gem, striking out eight over five shutout innings while the Giants rolled to a 5-0 win. Now that Birdsong has been optioned to the minors again, the Giants would need to place a player on the injured list in a corresponding move in order for the 22-year-old to be eligible to rejoin the big club in fewer than 15 days. Even though Birdsong holds a 2.97 ERA and 30.2 percent strikeout rate in the majors this season, it's unclear if the Giants will have room for him in their rotation. The Giants returned lefty Robbie Ray from the 60-day injured list this past week, and another starter in right-hander Alex Cobb (hip/shoulder) could be ready to come off the 60-day IL during the upcoming week.

The Rockies optioned Gordon to Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday.

As expected, Gordon was returned to Triple-A after he was called up to the big club to serve as its 27th man in Saturday's doubleheader with the Giants. He started the second game of the twin bill, giving up four earned runs on nine hits and no walks while striking out five over six innings in a 5-0 loss. Gordon has been dealt a loss in each of his first three big-league starts while producing an 8.80 ERA and 1.76 WHIP in those outings.

Hicks, who had been scheduled to start Sunday against the Rockies, is expected to be available out of the bullpen for the series finale with Colorado, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Previous reports had suggested that Hicks was on track to move to the bullpen in the near future in anticipation of Alex Cobb's (hip/shoulder) return from the 60-day injured list. Even though Cobb isn't expected to be activated until around the middle of the upcoming week, the Giants will get a head start on shifting Hicks to the bullpen. Hicks will likely work in bulk relief behind opening pitcher Erik Miller on Sunday, but the right-hander could fill a more versatile multi-inning role out of the bullpen once Cobb is back in the fold. After signing a four-year, $44 million deal with the Giants over the winter and clinching a spot in the Opening Day rotation, Hicks got off to a strong start to the campaign but has faded of late. Over his last five starts, Hicks has gone 0-4 with an 8.18 ERA, 1.95 WHIP and 22:13 K:BB across 22 innings.

The Rays reinstated Springs (elbow) from the 60-day injured list Sunday.

Though Springs has been added back to the Rays' 40-man roster and 26-man active roster, he won't make his season debut with the big club until Tuesday against the Marlins, per Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun. The upcoming outing against the Marlins will be the left-hander's first in the big leagues since undergoing Tommy John surgery in April of 2023. In his last full season in 2022, he went 9-5 over 25 starts with a 2.46 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 144:31 K:BB across 135.1 innings. Springs reached five innings and 82 pitches in his final rehab outing with Triple-A Durham this past Thursday, so he shouldn't face any major restrictions with his workload against Miami.

Curry won't start Sunday's game against the Phillies as previously scheduled, Paul Hoynes of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

The 26-year-old was initially penciled in to start Sunday, but the Guardians have instead called up Joey Cantillo from Triple-A Columbus to make his MLB debut. Curry allowed two runs over 4.1 innings during his previous start and has a 4.98 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 13:4 K:BB across 21.2 big-league innings this season. Matthew Boyd (elbow) is also nearing a return from the injured list, so Curry may not have many opportunities to start going forward and could move to the bullpen on a permanent basis.

Gordon (0-3) was the pitcher of record Saturday in the Rockies' 5-0 loss to the Giants in the second game of a doubleheader. He struck out five and allowing four earned runs on nine hits and no walks over six innings.

Gordon got off on the wrong foot, allowing back-to-back hits in both of the first two innings, leading to two early runs coming across for San Francisco. The right-hander would then cruise through the next two frames before once again surrendering back-to-back hits to open the fifth. The right-hander has now taken losses in all three of his starts this season, allowing at least four runs in each outing. On a positive note, he's managed to go six innings in two of those starts and currently holds a 12:2 K:BB on the campaign. Gordon was serving as the Rockies' 27th man for the doubleheader, so he'll likely be optioned back to Triple-A Albuquerque on Sunday.