MLB Player News

Verlander (neck) threw 25 pitches in a bullpen session Sunday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Verlander used his entire arsenal in the session and finished the bullpen without incident, per McTaggart. He had originally been expected to toss 10-to-15 pitches, so all signs are that he's trending in a positive direction. A timeframe for Verlander's return isn't yet clear, but it is possible that he could rejoin Houston's rotation before the end of July.

Medina, who was placed on the injured list Saturday with a right elbow sprain, is expected to miss "significant time" according to manager Mark Kotsay, MLB.com reports.

Kotsay added the team will likely seek a second opinion on the elbow after the All-Star break, but Medina's absence looks as though it could stretch well into August, if not longer. For the time being, the right-hander is expected to be shut down from any throwing for multiple weeks.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Sunday that Brubaker (elbow) suffered an oblique strain during his most recent rehab start Thursday for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and and has been shut down from baseball activities, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Brubaker appeared to be close to completing his recovery from October 2022 Tommy John surgery, as he had been expected to come off the 60-day injured list before the end of July. It's not yet clear how far back the oblique issue will set his return timeline, but it's now doubtful that the right-hander will be able to join the Yankees before the end of the month. Brubaker had taken part in five minor-league rehab appearances prior to injuring his oblique, posting a 3.29 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 7:8 K:BB over 13.2 innings.

Arrighetti came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 2-1 extra-inning loss to the Rangers, allowing one run on two hits and three walks over six innings. He struck out seven.

The rookie right-hander needed 85 pitches (53 strikes) to produce his third quality start of the season as he got locked in a pitchers' duel with Nathan Eovaldi. Arrighetti has had his moments, but he's been very erratic this season, and since the beginning of June he has only one win in eight outings with a 5.20 ERA, 1.54 WHIP and 42:21 K:BB through 36.1 innings. Those numbers are good enough to keep him in the rotation coming out of the All-Star break, but Arrighetti could eventually lose his spot if Houston adds significant reinforcements to its staff, either from the injured list or at the trade deadline.

Eovaldi came away with a no-decision in Saturday's 2-1 extra-inning win over the Astros, allowing one run on eight hits over seven innings. He struck out seven without walking a batter.

The veteran righty was outstanding, firing 68 of 95 pitches for strikes en route to his third straight quality start and eighth of the year, but Eovaldi got little run support. He's lasted at least six innings in five straight trips to the mound, going 3-0 over that stretch and giving the Rangers bullpen a break while posting a 2.65 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and dazzling 28:2 K:BB over 34 innings.

Maeda is expected to serve as a bulk reliever behind starter Beau Brieske in Sunday's game against the Dodgers, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

After Maeda delivered a 7.26 ERA and 1.58 WHiP through his first 16 starts of the season, manager A.J. Hinch announced Thursday that the veteran right-hander will work out of the bullpen "for the foreseeable future." Before being moved to the bullpen Maeda had been lined up to start Sunday's series finale, but the Tigers haven't yet added a formal replacement in the rotation for the 36-year-old. Triple- A Toledo pitcher Matt Manning could eventually step in as the Tigers' new No. 5 starter after the All-Star break, but Detroit will first rely on its bullpen to get through the final game of the first half. Brieske hasn't covered more than three innings in any of his 31 outings between the majors and Triple-A this season, so he'll likely be on a short leash before turning the ball over to Maeda at some point. Maeda hasn't been used since his last start Tuesday versus the Guardians, so he's the freshest arm in the Detroit bullpen.

Littell allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits and two walks while striking out three batters over six innings in a no-decision against the Guardians on Saturday.

Littell got through four scoreless frames before serving up a solo homer to Angel Martinez in the fifth inning. A catcher's interference call on batterymate David Fry led to a second Cleveland run in the frame, which tied the score and took Littell out of line for a victory. The right-hander ended his outing on a high note, retiring the side in order in the sixth to notch his first quality start since June 9. Littell will finish the first half of the campaign with a 4.26 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 94:19 K:BB over 101.1 innings.

Williams allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks while striking out two batters over five innings in a no-decision against Tampa Bay on Saturday.

Cleveland scored twice in the top of the fifth frame to give Williams a 2-1 lead, but the righty hurler surrendered a leadoff triple in the bottom of the inning, which the Rays turned into the tying run on an ensuing Guardians error. Williams completed that frame without further damage but couldn't go any deeper, as he racked up 94 pitches. Among his offerings, only six were swinging strikes, and Williams punched out only two batters, but he was successful in keeping Cleveland in the game. After yielding five runs over four frames in his season debut July 3, Williams has surrendered just one earned run across his ensuing two appearances covering 10.1 innings.

Berrios (8-7) took the loss Saturday versus the Diamondbacks, allowing five runs on seven hits and four walks over four innings. He did not record a strikeout.

Berrios enters the All-Star break on a bit of a skid, having allowing 14 runs over his last 15 innings. The one bright side to his start Saturday was that he didn't give up a home run, the first time he's kept the ball in the yard since May 31. The veteran right-hander is at a 4.01 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 87:33 K:BB over 119 innings through 20 starts this season.

Clevinger (elbow) will make another rehab start with Triple-A Charlotte on Sunday, MLB.com reports.

The White Sox had considered bringing Clevinger back before he was fully built up, though they'll opt to give him a second start on his most recent rehab assignment. He'll remain on the injured list through the All-Star break at least, and the team has not committed to immediately activating him when games start back up.