MLB Player News

The Rockies optioned Palmquist to Triple-A Albuquerque on Thursday.

Palmquist struggled in his first five starts at the major-league level, collecting a 7.77 ERA and 16:13 K:BB across 22 innings of work. The left-hander's demotion to Albuquerque suggests that Austin Gomber (shoulder) could be ready to return from the 60-day injured list to take the hill the next time a fifth starter is needed Sunday in Atlanta.

Civale requested a trade from the Brewers after manager Pat Murphy informed the right-hander Wednesday that he would be moved to the bullpen, Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic report.

Civale is the odd man out of the rotation to accommodate the arrival of top prospect Jacob Misiorowski, who will be called up from Triple-A Nashville to start Thursday versus the Cardinals. However, Civale's agent, Jack Toffey, has formally made a request to Brewers general manager Matt Arnold that his client be traded to a team where he can continue being used as a starting pitcher. The Brewers are under no obligation to honor the request, but there should be interest in Civale if the club decides a trade is best for both parties. Civale has been limited to five starts this season due to a strained hamstring, posting a 4.91 ERA and 19:7 K:BB over 22 innings. The 30-year-old is making $8 million this season and is set to become a free agent this offseason.

Kremer won't start Thursday's game against the Tigers but could work in bulk relief behind opening pitcher Keegan Akin, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.

The Orioles haven't officially confirmed that Kremer is on track to pitch Thursday, but he was previously listed as the team's scheduled starter and hasn't been reported to be dealing with an injury, so the belief is that he'll enter the contest after Akin covers the first inning or two. Kremer has made all but one of his 108 career MLB appearances as a starter, but the Orioles may be looking to see if working in bulk relief helps enhance his performance. The right-hander is coming off a rough start Friday against the Athletics in which he gave up five earned runs on eight hits and one walk over 5.1 innings.

Stroman (knee) covered 3.1 innings and struck out four batters while allowing one earned run on one hit and two walks in his first rehab start Wednesday with Double-A Somerset.

Considering Stroman hadn't pitched in a game since April 11 after being shut down due to left knee inflammation, his performance in Wednesday's outing with Somerset was about as good as the Yankees could have expected following a lengthy layoff. The right-hander faced 13 batters in the start and pumped in 27 of his 46 pitches for strikes. The Yankees are letting Stroman build back up as a starter, but he'll likely need to continue to find success over his subsequent rehab outings in order to unseat Ryan Yarbrough in the rotation once he's activated from the 15-day injured list. Since stepping in as the Yankees' No. 5 starter May 3, Yarbrough owns a respectable 4.20 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 30 innings over his six starts.

Verlander (pectoral) threw 65 pitches in a simulated game at Coors Field on Wednesday and could rejoin the Giants during their series against the Guardians which begins Tuesday, per MLB.com.

Verlander is seemingly nearing a return to game action after being placed on the 15-day injured list May 22 due to a right pec strain. The veteran right-hander has thrown two simulated games, the first which came last Friday, during which he threw 35-40 pitches at Oracle Park. Before landing on the shelf, Verlander posted a 4.33 ERA, 1.40 WHIP and 41:21 K:BB across 52 innings this season, going 0-3 across 10 starts.

Morris could be the top candidate to be called up if the Twins have another opening in the rotation, Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports.

Morris' numbers at Triple-A St. Paul aren't overly impressive (3.86 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, 12.3 K-BB%), but the Twins lack a clear standout pitcher in the minors who would leapfrog the 23-year-old right-hander if a rotation spots open up. With recent injuries to Pablo Lopez (shoulder) and Zebby Matthews (shoulder), the Twins have already plugged David Festa and Simeon Woods Richardson into the rotation.

Spiers (shoulder) threw a second bullpen session Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Spiers has been sidelined with a right shoulder impingement since mid-April and began a throwing program three weeks ago. The next step should be a rehab assignment, although the Reds haven't indicated when that may begin.

Lowder (forearm/oblique) reported to the Reds' complex in Goodyear (Ariz.) on Wednesday to begin a rehab program, MLB.com reports.

Lowder, who was rehabbing a forearm injury, had a rehab assignment paused when he incurred an oblique injury. The focus of his rehab is now on the oblique.

Freeland finished with a no-decision Wednesday against San Francisco, allowing three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out five batters over six innings.

Freeland pitched pretty well and held a three-run lead at the time of his departure. However, Colorado's bullpen imploded, allowing the Giants to score seven times over the final two frames, halting the southpaw's bid at a second straight victory. Freeland did, however, manage to notch a third straight quality start, and he's pitched to a 2.95 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 13:2 K:BB across 18.1 innings during that stretch. He'll try to extend the run of quality starts in his next outing, which is expected to come on the road in Washington.

Ray allowed four runs (two earned) on six hits and two walks while striking out five batters over four innings in a no-decision against Colorado on Wednesday.

Ray entered Wednesday having recorded a quality start in each of his previous eight outings, but that streak came to an end in the thin air of Colorado. All four runs the Rockies scored against the southpaw came in the third inning, though an error resulted in only two of the runs being earned. Ray completed the fourth frame without further damage, but he ended that inning at 93 pitches and didn't come out for the fifth. It wasn't all bad for the veteran hurler, as he racked up 15 whiffs and extended his streak of striking out at least five batters to nine contests. Ray is tied for 11th in the league with 92 punchouts this season, and he's added a strong 2.55 ERA and 1.12 WHIP across 81.1 innings.