MLB Player News

The Cardinals traded Flaherty to Baltimore on Tuesday in exchange for Cesar Prieto and Drew Rom, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

After putting up a 4.43 ERA and 1.55 WHIP through 109.2 innings across 20 starts with the Cardinals, Flaherty will provide a boost to an Orioles rotation that has been without John Means (elbow/back) all season. Flaherty was scheduled to make his next start Wednesday, though it's unclear when he will debut for the Orioles.

McKendry was traded from the Rays to the Brewers on Tuesday in exchange for Alex Jackson, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

A 25-year-old righty who has not reached the big leagues yet, McKendry logged a 4.00 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 95 strikeouts in 96.2 innings this year for Triple-A Durham. He projects as a swing man or long reliever in the short term.

Canning was placed on the 15-day injured list Tuesday, retroactive to July 29, with right calf tightness.

The right-hander was scratched from his scheduled start Monday in Atlanta due to the injury and will be sidelined for at least the next couple weeks. Canning isn't overly concerned about the injury, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, and believes he'll be able to return from the injured list when first eligible in mid-August.

Lorenzen will make his first start for the Phillies on Thursday at Miami, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

Lorenzen was acquired earlier Tuesday from the Tigers, for whom he had delivered a 3.58 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 83:27 K:BB through 105.2 innings (18 starts) this season. Philadelphia is going to roll with a six-man rotation for the time being, per Zolecki, but Ranger Suarez or Cristopher Sanchez could eventually be pushed to the bullpen.

Eder was traded from the Marlins to the White Sox on Tuesday in exchange for Jake Burger, Craig Mish of the Miami Herald reports.

Eder is coming off his best start of the year for Double-A Pensacola, in which he struck out 10 batters and allowed one earned run in 5.2 innings. He underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2021 and has a 3.94 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 38 strikeouts in 29.2 innings across six starts at Double-A, although his fastball velocity has been more in the low-90s, rather than his pre-surgery mid-90s fastball. Eder's best pitch is a plus slider, and improving his changeup and command will be of focus over the coming seasons. He could reach the majors sooner with the White Sox than he would have in Miami, given the depth of both organizations.

Megill will likely be called up from Triple-A Syracuse to take Justin Verlander's spot in the Mets' rotation, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

David Peterson is set to take over for Max Scherzer, who was dealt to the Rangers this past Saturday, and the Mets will probably then turn to Megill as their other fill-in starter after moving Verlander to Houston on Tuesday afternoon. Megill, 28, carries an ugly 5.17 ERA, 1.67 WHIP and 58:39 K:BB in 71.1 innings (15 starts) this season at the major-league level.

The Phillies acquired Lorenzen from the Tigers on Tuesday in exchange for Hao-Yu Lee, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Shortly after Justin Verlander's move back to Houston, another domino fell with Lorenzen being shipped to Philadelphia. A surprise All-Star this year, Lorenzen pitched to a 3.58 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 105.2 innings with the Tigers (already his second-most innings in a major-league season). He will presumably step into the rotation for the Phillies, pushing Ranger Suarez or Cristopher Sanchez to the bullpen unless the team decides to move to a six-man rotation.

The Astros acquired Verlander from the Mets on Tuesday, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Verlander returns to Houston, where he claimed the AL Cy Young Award in both 2019 and 2022 while working to an overall 2.26 ERA, 0.83 WHIP and 825:114 K:BB in 102 starts (652 innings) during his first stint with the organization. He signed a two-year, $86.67 million contract with the Mets this past winter which also carries a $35 million vesting option for 2025. New York will presumably eat some of that cash in order to improve the level of prospects that will be heading over from the Astros' farm system. Those prospects have since been identified as Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford.

Barco (elbow) began a rehab assignment in the rookie-level Florida Complex League on July 20 and has turned in a 1.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP and 12:2 K:BB across nine innings over his first three appearances.

Barco is technically on Triple-A Indianapolis' 60-day injured list, but once he's activated, he'll likely remain in the FCL or head to Single-A Bradenton. The 44th overall pick in the 2022 First-Year Player Draft, Barco didn't make his professional debut last season while he recovered from Tommy John surgery.

Wacha (shoulder) faced live hitters Monday, tossing two simulated innings to minor-leaguers in San Diego, Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

This was the first time Wacha has faced live hitters since he went on the injured list with right shoulder fatigue July 4. Padres manager Bob Melvin said the right-handed hurler "felt good" after the session and indicated that Wacha's next steps will be discussed after seeing how he feels Tuesday. Acee reports that San Diego hopes to slot Wacha back into the rotation during a stretch of 13 straight games without an off day that begins Aug. 11.