MLB Player News

Burnes (elbow/shoulder) tossed two perfect innings in a rehab start Triple-A Reno on Saturday.

Burnes needed just 17 pitches (10 strikes) to record six outs in the minor-league outing, his first game action at any level since he underwent Tommy John surgery last June. The Diamondbacks plan to evaluate Burnes following Saturday's outing and could opt to bring him back from the 60-day injured list for his next appearance, even though he's not yet fully stretched out for a traditional starter's workload and would likely be limited to a relief role in that scenario.

Manager John Schneider said Tuesday that Yesavage (knee) continues to play catch off flat ground, and the Blue Jays are still hoping the right-hander can return from the 15-day injured list in late September, MLB.com reports.

After undergoing left meniscus surgery Aug. 11, Yesavage was cleared to begin a throwing program about a week later. While he's said to be showing good range of motion with his knee, the Blue Jays haven't yet given him the green light to advance to mound work. Yesavage still has enough time to get cleared for game action before the end of the season, but if he ends up returning in the final week or two of September, he won't be stretched out enough for a full starting role.

Taillon (forearm) is scheduled to throw a side session Tuesday before the Blue Jays determine whether he returns from the 15-day injured list or makes another rehab appearance at Triple-A Buffalo, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Taillon made his first rehab start for Buffalo on Friday, covering 48 pitches over 3.1 innings while yielding four earned runs on three hits and two walks. The veteran right-hander seemed to check out fine physically coming out of that outing, but the Blue Jays will get a closer look at him during the upcoming bullpen session before plotting out his next steps. If Toronto decides to bring Taillon back from the IL to fill the fifth spot in the rotation during next weekend's series in Kansas City, he would likely be operating with a restricted pitch count.

Johnson allowed one run on two hits and five walks while striking out two over five innings in a no-decision versus the Phillies on Saturday.

This outing could have gone much worse for Johnson, but both hits he allowed were singles. He threw just 48 of 88 pitches for strikes, while the five walks matched his season high. The right-hander is at a 5.47 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 52:36 K:BB through 72.1 innings over 17 games (14 starts) this season. The Angels have worked with a six-man rotation over the last week since Yusei Kikuchi came off the injured list, and if that continues, there's room for both Johnson and George Klassen to get starts. Johnson is tentatively lined up for a road start in Pittsburgh next weekend.

Sanchez allowed two hits and one walk while striking out eight over seven scoreless innings in a no-decision versus the Angels on Saturday.

After a small misstep against the Cardinals last Sunday, Sanchez delivered a gem to get himself back on track. This was the first time he's completed seven innings in a start since the All-Star break, but he's also given up just 13 runs (12 earned) over 48 frames across his eight starts in the second half. Sanchez is at an excellent 2.52 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 202:39 K:BB through 175.1 innings over 28 starts this season. He's projected to make his next start at home in a critical matchup against Atlanta.

Baz (5-14) earned the win over the Athletics on Saturday, allowing two runs on five hits and three walks while striking out four batters over 5.2 innings.

Baz breezed through his first five innings, and Baltimore's offense staked him to a 4-0 lead. The righty faded in the sixth, giving up two runs on two hits, two walks and a hit-by-pitch before he was pulled with two outs and the bases loaded. Reliever Alex Hoppe avoided further damage, and Baz went on to record his first victory since June 12. During his 12-start winless stretch, Baz went 0-8, though he pitched to a respectable 3.35 ERA over seven starts at home and a tolerable 4.02 ERA overall during that span. He'll try to build a winning streak his next time out, which is slated to be a matchup in Baltimore against Boston.

Marte allowed one run on three hits and two walks while striking out three over 4.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Diamondbacks in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader.

Marte's major-league debut went well, but he came up an out short of qualifying for the win. He threw 48 of 76 pitches for strikes. Marte has a path to staying in the majors the rest of the way -- entering the doubleheader, the Giants had two holes in their rotation due to recent pitching injuries. Marte has logged a total of 112.1 innings this year, up from 102 last year, so there may be a slight workload restriction in place for the 23-year-old even if he sticks around.

Bratt (1-3) allowed three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out two over 4.1 innings to take the loss in Game 2 of Saturday's doubleheader versus the Giants.

Bratt got the nod for the nightcap, but he threw just 52 pitches (32 strikes), falling short of the five-inning mark for his third start in a row. The Diamondbacks have had to patch some holes in their rotation lately, but it's unclear if Bratt will be part of the pitching plans in the coming week or so before Michael Soroka (shoulder) and Zac Gallen (elbow) would be expected to return. Bratt has a 4.70 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 30:27 K:BB through 44 innings over 10 starts in the majors this season. Considering Bratt was the 27th man for this twin bill, it's more likely he's sent back to Triple-A Reno, though he could be called back up when rosters expand at the start of September.

Kelly (9-12) allowed two hits and four walks while striking out seven over seven scoreless innings to earn the win over the Giants in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader.

Kelly entered the game winless over his last six starts, giving up 22 runs (21 earned) over 31 innings in that span. There was some concern he had been tipping pitches in his previous outing against the Cubs, but if the Giants were able to steal signs, they weren't able to do much with that information Saturday. Control remains a concern for Kelly -- he's walked at least three batters in each of his last six games. He's at a 5.08 ERA, 1.48 WHIP and 95:64 K:BB through 141.2 innings over 25 starts this season, making an effort like the one he had Saturday an anomoly. He's lined up to make his next start at Houston.

Wilkinson (0-2) allowed two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four over six-plus innings, taking the loss in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader versus the Diamondbacks.

While Wilkinson was on the hook for the loss, he was able to earn his first quality start in the majors with this performance. He threw 51 of 90 pitches for strikes in the outing. Through 11.2 innings for the Giants this year, he has a 4.63 ERA and 6:2 K:BB. It's not yet clear if Wilkinson will stick in the rotation beyond this contest, but the Giants do have a couple of openings to fill due to a bad stretch of injuries to starters.