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Troy Melton SP | DET
Tigers' Troy Melton: Making start Thursday
Melton will start Thursday's game in Cleveland, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Each of Melton's last 10 appearances have come in relief, though he did throw three innings as recently as Sept. 13. The rookie right-hander will be pitching on four days' rest and should be capable of going a few innings for the Tigers, if needed. Keider Montero should be available for bulk out of the bullpen, though it's unclear whether the Tigers intend to use him.
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George Valera LF | CLE
Guardians' George Valera: Swats second homer
Valera went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the Tigers.
The 24-year-old rookie took Jack Flaherty deep in the third inning, giving Cleveland a 2-1 lead the team wouldn't relinquish. Valera has started five of six games against right-handed pitching since being added to the 28-man roster, four at DH and one in right field, and he's gone 8-for-33 (.242) with two doubles, two homers, five runs and five RBI.
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Zebby Matthews SP | MIN
Twins' Zebby Matthews: Won't make another start
Matthews is not scheduled to make a start this weekend in Philadelphia.
Matthews had tentatively lined up to pitch the regular-season finale Sunday, but the Twins have Simeon Woods Richardson scheduled to take the ball that day instead. The righty bounced back from a couple rough outings to throw seven innings of one-run ball versus the Rangers on Tuesday in what turned out to be his final start of the season. Matthews will finish with a 5.56 ERA, 1.49 WHIP and 88:24 K:BB over 79.1 frames covering 16 starts for Minnesota in 2025.
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Mick Abel P | MIN
Twins' Mick Abel: Drawing start Saturday
Abel is scheduled to start Saturday in Philadelphia.
Abel made a four-inning relief appearance after being recalled from Triple-A St. Paul last weekend and will get an opportunity to make a start for the Twins against his former team. The right-hander was knocked around for six runs over three innings versus the White Sox last month in his only start for Minnesota.
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Tanner Bibee SP | CLE
Guardians' Tanner Bibee: Wins third straight
Bibee (12-11) picked up the win in Wednesday's 5-1 victory over the Tigers, allowing one run on five hits and two walks over six innings. He struck out five.
The right-hander extended his win streak to three starts and his quality-start streak to four with another sharp performance, tossing 63 of 105 pitches for strikes. Bibee's produced a 1.30 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and 26:5 K:BB through 27.2 September innings, helping the Guardians make history by overcoming a 15.5-game deficit and catching the Tigers in the AL Central -- they now sit one game up with four to play. Unless he's needed this weekend to help clinch a playoff spot, Bibee will put his 2025 regular season in the books with a 4.24 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 162:54 K:BB through 182.1 innings.
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Jack Flaherty SP | DET
Tigers' Jack Flaherty: Can't stem historic collapse
Flaherty (8-15) took the loss Wednesday, giving up three runs on five hits over 4.1 innings as the Tigers were downed 5-1 by the Guardians. He struck out six without walking a batter.
The veteran righty didn't pitch poorly, tossing 55 of 83 pitches for strikes before getting an early hook, but Detroit's offense stayed quiet. Since an eight-run meltdown Aug. 24, Flaherty has delivered a solid 3.33 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 23:9 K:BB over 24.1 innings in five starts, but that hasn't been enough to stop an epic collapse by the Tigers, who have squandered a 15.5-game lead in the AL Central and now sit one game back of the Guardians with four contests left on the schedule. Unless he's needed over the final weekend in an all-hands-on-deck scenario, Flaherty wraps up his 2025 campaign with a 4.64 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 188:59 K:BB though 161 innings.
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Tyler Soderstrom LF | ATH
Athletics' Tyler Soderstrom: Slugs long ball in victory
Soderstrom went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and two total RBI in Wednesday's 6-0 win against Houston.
Soderstrom and Shea Langeliers each had a double and a homer in the contest as they combined for all four of the Athletics' extra-base hits. Soderstrom's home run was a 395-foot solo shot in the seventh inning that capped the scoring in the contest. The 23-year-old has enjoyed a breakout campaign, slashing .280/.349/.480 with 25 home runs, 74 runs, 93 RBI and eight stolen bases through 154 games.
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Shea Langeliers C | ATH
Athletics' Shea Langeliers: Collects four hits in victory
Langeliers went 4-for-4 with a home run, a double, two total runs and two total RBI in Wednesday's 6-0 win against Houston.
The Astros were unable to get Langeliers out, as he fell a triple shy of the cycle. The talented backstop notched an RBI with a ground-rule double in the fifth inning and later belted a solo homer to left field in the seventh. Langeliers had been struggling a bit coming into the contest, but he's enjoyed a marvelous second half overall, batting .308 with 19 homers, 17 doubles, 43 runs, 39 RBI and three stolen bases over 54 games since the All-Star break.
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Hunter Brown SP | HOU
Astros' Hunter Brown: Takes loss Wednesday
Brown (12-9) took the loss against the Athletics on Wednesday, allowing four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out five batters over five innings.
Brown got through two scoreless innings before giving up a run in the third. He was down just 1-0 entering the fifth frame, but the A's tagged him for three runs in what proved to be his final inning of work. Wednesday marked the first time Brown has given up more than two earned runs since he yielded three against Seattle on July 20 (his first start out of the All-Star break). It remains to be seen if he'll get a chance to pitch in the postseason, as Houston currently sits one game out of the final AL wild-card spot.
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Max Scherzer SP | TOR
Blue Jays' Max Scherzer: Early trouble leads to loss
Scherzer (5-5) took the loss Wednesday against the Red Sox, surrendering four runs on 10 hits and no walks while striking out five over five innings.
The veteran was hit hard from the start, giving up five straight hits in the first inning that plated three runs before later serving up a solo homer to Masataka Yoshida in the fifth. The 10 hits marked a season high allowed for Scherzer, who has now been roughed up for 25 runs in 25 innings across his last six starts. The 41-year-old right-hander has struggled badly down the stretch and will finish the regular season with a 5.19 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 82:23 K:BB across 85 frames.