MLB Player News
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Jesus Luzardo SP | PHI
Phillies' Jesus Luzardo: Outdueled in Los Angeles
Luzardo (14-7) took the loss against the Dodgers on Wednesday, allowing four runs on six hits and one walk while striking out six batters over seven innings.
Luzardo was pretty good in the outing, and he appeared to have a quality start in the bag after tossing seven innings of three-run ball. However, he was allowed to face one final batter -- Shohei Ohtani -- to begin the eighth, and Ohtani took him deep to make the score 4-0. Luzardo did rack up a whopping 19 whiffs, though opposing starter Blake Snell outshined him with 24 whiffs and seven scoreless frames. Luzardo likely has one more regular-season start on tap, which is slated to come at home against Miami next week.
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Blake Snell SP | LAD
Dodgers' Blake Snell: Goes seven scoreless with 12 Ks
Snell (5-4) earned the win over Philadelphia on Wednesday, allowing two hits and issuing two walks while striking out 12 batters over seven scoreless innings.
Snell dominated the Phillies throughout the victory, racking up a massive 24 whiffs to finish with a season-high 12 strikeouts -- one more than he registered in his previous start last Wednesday against Colorado. The veteran lefty did seem to fade a bit near the end of his outing, walking two batters with two outs in the seventh inning, but he convinced manager Dave Roberts -- who had ventured out to the mound -- to let him finish that frame, which he did with a punchout of Otto Kemp. It's been an uneven first season in Los Angeles for Snell, who missed four months earlier in the campaign due to a shoulder issue. However, he seems to be peaking at the right time, posting 13 scoreless innings with a 24:4 K:BB over his past two starts with the playoffs just around the corner.
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Brandon Woodruff SP | MIL
Brewers' Brandon Woodruff: Fans nine in seventh win
Woodruff (7-2) picked up the win Wednesday against the Angels, allowing one run on two hits and no walks in five innings. He struck out nine.
Woodruff found himself in top form Wednesday, recording 17 whiffs en route to falling just one strikeout short of matching his season high. Fantasy managers may be a bit discouraged to see that the veteran right-hander was pulled after throwing just 69 pitches, but the first-place Brewers likely have an eye toward preserving him for the postseason at this stage of the campaign. Next week's scheduled start in San Diego potentially sets up as the final regular-season outing for Woodruff, who sports a 3.20 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 83:14 K:BB across 64.2 frames.
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Luis Gil SP | NYY
Yankees' Luis Gil: Flounders in no-decision
Gil didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against the Twins, allowing five runs (four earned) on nine hits and two walks in 4.2 innings. He struck out two.
It was quite a shaky performance for Gil, who permitted a season-high nine hits and tied a season worst in runs allowed. The hard-throwing right-hander stumbled after entering Wednesday on a streak of seven consecutive starts with at least five innings and two runs or fewer given up, and he's issued multiple walks in all but one of his nine outings this year. Gil has a favorable home matchup against the last-place White Sox lined up for next week, though his 1.50 WHIP and 36:29 K:BB are major causes for concern despite his solid 3.33 ERA through 46 innings.
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Taj Bradley SP | MIN
Twins' Taj Bradley: Thrashed by Yankees in loss
Bradley (6-8) was saddled with the loss Wednesday against the Yankees, allowing seven runs on eight hits and three walks in four innings. He struck out four.
Wednesday marked Bradley's shortest outing since he worked just 1.2 innings in a July 23 start against the White Sox. It was the third time this year that the right-hander yielded seven runs, and he has only one quality start in his last six appearances. Next week's scheduled start in Texas could be Bradley's last of the campaign, and he'll be looking to salvage a disastrous start to his Twins career. Through 25.1 innings for Minnesota, he has a 7.82 ERA, 1.58 WHIP and 23:10 K:BB.
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Bryce Miller SP | SEA
Mariners' Bryce Miller: Plenty of traffic in no-decision
Miller didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against the Royals, allowing three runs on eight hits and two walks in five innings. He struck out four.
Miller added to his so-so results since coming off the injured list in mid-August, as he's now given up multiple runs in each of his last six starts. The right-hander has fanned more than four on just one occasion during that stretch, which occurred in his previous outing with 11 punchouts, and he's worked at least six frames just once. It's been a rough year overall between ineffectiveness and an elbow injury for Miller, who has a 5.58 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 68:31 K:BB in 80.2 innings. However, he'll have a prime opportunity to improve his numbers with a soft home matchup against the last-place Rockies next week.
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Cole Ragans RP | KC
Royals' Cole Ragans: Mixed bag in return
Ragans didn't factor into the decision Wednesday against the Mariners, allowing two runs on one hit and two walks in 3.2 innings. He struck out four.
Ragans was understandably limited in his first major-league start since June 5, throwing just 62 pitches in his return following over three months on the shelf due to a strained rotator cuff. A two-run homer by Eugenio Suarez represented the big blow to the southpaw's ledger, though it was encouraging to see him register 13 whiffs in an abbreviated outing. Ragans should have his workload restrictions loosened a bit in his next scheduled appearance against the Angels. He has a 5.16 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and a strong 80:18 K:BB over 52.1 innings.
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McCade Brown P | COL
Rockies' McCade Brown: Avoids loss in fifth start
Brown completed four innings against Miami on Wednesday, allowing three runs on four hits and four walks while striking out one batter in a no-decision.
This was far from a strong performance by Brown, but he did keep his name out of the loss column for the first time through five major-league starts. Aside from that, it was a grind for the rookie right-hander, as he threw just 44 of 75 pitches for strikes and issued a career-high four free passes. Brown particularly struggled in his fourth and final frame, as he allowed four baserunners -- all with two outs -- while giving up a pair of runs. He's at a 9.17 ERA through 17.2 innings and is projected to face the Mariners in Seattle for his next start.
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Ryan Weathers SP | MIA
Marlins' Ryan Weathers: Labors through four frames
Weathers allowed three runs on eight hits and two walks while striking out two batters over four innings in a no-decision against Colorado on Wednesday.
Weathers yielded a constant stream of traffic, failing to record a clean inning and allowing multiple baserunners in all but one of the frames in which he pitched. That caused him to rack up a high pitch count of 80 pitches through four frames, and he consequently didn't return for the fifth inning. Weathers shined with five scoreless frames in his return from a lengthy IL stint in his previous start, so fantasy managers may not want to hold this shaky outing against him too much given that it was in the altitude of Colorado. However, Weathers is lined up for a tough matchup in Philadelphia next week, so he doesn't make for a great SP option for those in the midst of fantasy playoffs.
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Jacob deGrom SP | TEX
Rangers' Jacob deGrom: Gives up five runs in loss
DeGrom (12-8) took the loss against Houston on Wednesday, allowing five runs on six hits and one walk while striking out six batters over five innings.
DeGrom struggled from the outset, giving up two runs on three hits and a walk in the first inning. The veteran hurler then gave up a two-run homer in the third inning and a solo shot in the fifth, marking the second time in his past three starts that he's yielded multiple long balls. DeGrom did record a decent 11 whiffs and six punchouts, but he continued what has been just a so-so second half. He didn't give up more than four runs in any of his 19 starts prior to the All-Star break, but in the second half he's allowed five runs on three separate occasions through 10 outings. That's brought his ERA up from 2.32 at the break to 3.01 after Wednesday's loss.