MLB Player News

The Phillies optioned Mercado to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Saturday, Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Mercado was lit up for six earned runs in four innings during his last appearance against Oakland on Sunday, and he'll now head back to Triple-A in order to right the ship. Yunior Marte was recalled from Lehigh Valley to fill the open spot in Philadelphia's bullpen.

Dunning (shoulder) had his rehab assignment transferred to Triple-A Round Rock on Saturday.

Dunning has been on the 15-day injured list since July 5 as a result of right shoulder soreness, but he's now one step closer to his return to the big leagues. The right-hander pitched two scoreless innings in his only rehab start with Double-A Frisco on Sunday and it's possible that Dunning will only need one outing with Round Rock before being activated from the IL.

Hicks was scratched from his scheduled start Sunday against the Rockies, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

The Giants haven't indicated Hicks is dealing with any sort of injury, so it's possible him being scratched from his start indicates a move to the bullpen, or the team may simply want to postpone his next outing. Either way, Hayden Birdsong will start on the mound for San Francisco on Sunday instead.

Marsh appeared out of the bullpen in Friday's 7-1 win over the White Sox, allowing two hits and striking out one over one scoreless inning.

Marsh's last start before the All-Star break was July 10, so this relief appearance was likely just to get him back into his pitching rhythm in a lopsided game. The Royals haven't specified their pitching plans beyond this weekend, but it's safe to assume Marsh will take the hill at some point during their three-game series versus the Diamondbacks that begins Monday. Through 91.2 innings, Marsh has a mediocre 4.52 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 84:29 K:BB across 18 appearances (17 starts).

Brubaker (oblique/elbow) will remain shut down from throwing for 3-to-4 weeks, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reports.

The Yankees pulled Brubaker off his rehab assignment Sunday after he suffered an oblique strain during his latest minor-league start, and the team confirmed Saturday that it will likely be nearly a month before he restarts his throwing program. He remains without a clear timeline for his return, though a better picture may emerge once he's cleared to throw again.

Cabrera came away with a no-decision in Friday's 6-4 win over the Mets, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits and five walks over 4.2 innings. He struck out one.

The right-hander got only 40 of his 81 pitches over the plate, and even though the Marlins staked him to a 4-0 lead by the end of the third inning, Cabrera couldn't stick around long enough to qualify for a win. He had posted an 11:1 K:BB in his last two starts before the All-Star break, but the time off appears to have cost Cabrera his feel for the strike zone. He also got taken deep by Jeff McNeil on Friday, and Cabrera's served up nine homers in only 33 innings this season, contributing to his bloated 7.36 ERA and 1.67 WHIP despite a career-high 28.1 percent strikeout rate. He remains a volatile fantasy option heading into his next start, which is scheduled to come at home next week against the Orioles.

Manaea (6-4) took the loss Friday, coughing up five runs on eight hits and a walk over five innings as the Mets were downed 6-4 by the Marlins. He struck out one.

The southpaw was hit hard even during a 1-2-3 first inning -- one of the outs came when Jeff McNeil robbed Bryan De La Cruz of an extra-base hit at the wall in right field -- and Miami put runners in scoring position against Manaea in every other frame he worked. It was the first time in July that he'd failed to complete at least six innings, and the first time Manaea has given up more than three runs since June 8. He'll take a 3.73 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 97:41 K:BB through 101.1 innings into his next outing, which lines up to come on the road next week against the Yankees.

Bibee (8-4) picked up the win Friday, scattering two hits and three walks over 5.2 innings in a 7-0 victory over the Padres. He struck out three.

San Diego didn't get a runner past second base against Bibee, who got the hook after 102 pitches (67 strikes) just short of his eighth quality start of the season. While this was an encouraging outing after the right-hander gave up eight runs in 11.2 innings over his last two starts before the All-Star break, Bibee has issued multiple walks in three straight trips to the mound, something he hadn't done since April. He'll take a 3.58 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 126:30 K:BB through 110.2 innings into his next start, which is scheduled to come at home next week against the Tigers.

Waldron (5-9) took the loss Friday as the Padres fell 7-0 to the Guardians, allowing one run on six hits over six innings. He struck out five without walking a batter.

The knuckleballer was sharp in his ninth quality start of the season, tossing 66 of 97 pitches for strikes, but he had no margin for error as San Diego's offense was ice cold coming out of the All-Star break. Waldron has worked at least six innings in nine of his last 10 trips to the mound, posting a 2.59 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 47:12 K:BB through 62.2 innings over that stretch. He lines up to make his next outing on the road next week against the Nationals.

Stripling (elbow) gave up two earned runs on eight hits and no walks over five innings in his rehab start Friday with Triple-A Las Vegas. He didn't strike out a batter.

Stripling worked efficiently in the third start of his rehab assignment, needing just 52 pitches (37 strikes) to record 15 outs. Unless Stripling padded his pitch count in a bullpen session after exiting Friday's game, the Athletics will likely want to see Stripling reach around 70 pitches in another rehab start before bringing him back from the 15-day injured list. Stripling has been on the shelf since May 25 with a right elbow flexor strain.