MLB Player News

McClanahan (forearm) will be placed on the 15-day injured list Thursday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

McClanahan was lifted from his start Wednesday against the Yankees after experiencing left forearm tightness in the bottom of the fourth inning. There is no exact diagnosis yet, but the 26-year-old ace is headed for imaging scans and is expected to seek out multiple opinions in an effort to get to the root of the issue. He'll be sidelined through at least mid-August, and perhaps far longer. More should be known in the coming days.

Urquidy (shoulder) is tentatively scheduled to return from the 60-day injured list to start Sunday versus the Yankees, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Urquidy first has to make it through one final bullpen session, but he's knocking on the door for a return after missing all of May, June and July because of shoulder inflammation. The 28-year-old right-hander struggled in his fourth and final rehab start last weekend at Triple-A Sugar Land, yielding five earned runs on nine hits over five innings, but he threw 76 pitches in that outing and 56 of them went for strikes. He could touch 90 pitches in his first start back with Houston.

Astros manager Dusty Baker said Verlander is lined up to start Saturday against the Yankees, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Acquired from the Mets just ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline in exchange for prospects Drew Gilbert and Ryan Clifford, the veteran right-hander is all set to go ring chasing again in an Astros uniform. It sounds like Jose Urquidy (shoulder) will come off the 60-day injured list and follow Verlander in Sunday's series finale at Yankee Stadium.

The Twins selected Keuchel's contract from Triple-A St. Paul on Thursday, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Keuchel exercised the opt-out in his minor-league contract with Minnesota on Tuesday, but the Twins suddenly need him as a replacement for Joe Ryan, who has landed on the 15-day injured list because of a groin strain. Keuchel, 35, had registered a stellar 1.13 ERA in 32 innings (six starts) with St. Paul and is back in the majors for the first time since September of 2022.

Ryan was placed on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a left groin strain, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Ryan was excellent in the first half of the season, but he got hammered by the Cardinals on Wednesday night in St. Louis and has stumbled to an 8.63 ERA across his last seven starts covering 32.1 innings. He'll be sidelined through at least Aug. 18. Dallas Keuchel is joining the Twins in a corresponding roster move and will presumably slide into the rotation.

Cortes (shoulder) is set to return from the 60-day injured list to start Saturday against the Astros, Greg Joyce of the New York Post reports.

The lefty cut short his minor-league rehab assignment and will step in this weekend as a replacement for Domingo German, who is out for the remainder of the season as he undergoes treatment for alcohol abuse. Cortes is expected to be limited to around 60 pitches in his first start back against a tough Houston offense, and he tentatively lines up to face the Marlins his next time through. The 28-year-old left-hander has been sidelined since late May because of a shoulder strain.

Battenfield (shoulder) made the fifth start of his rehab assignment Sunday with Triple-A Columbus, striking out one over 7.1 innings while allowing seven earned runs on seven hits and five walks.

Between stops at Columbus and Double-A Akron over the past month, Battenfield has steadily built up his innings and pitch counts, but the results haven't been especially impressive. He's covered 24.2 innings in total, giving up eight home runs over that stretch while pitching to a 5.47 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 14:11 K:BB. With his 30-day rehab window nearing its end, the Guardians will have to activate him, and he looks like a candidate to fill the vacant fifth spot in the Cleveland rotation after Aaron Civale was traded to Tampa Bay earlier this week. The Guardians have yet to announce a starter for Saturday's game against the White Sox, so Battenfield could end up taking the hill that day.

Perez was moved to the bullpen Thursday, Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News reports.

The 32-year-old lefty is the odd man out in the Rangers' rotation after the club acquired both Max Scherzer and Jordan Montgomery ahead of Tuesday's trade deadline. Perez was excellent for Texas in 2022, even earning his first career All-Star nod, but he's struggled to a 4.98 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 69:41 K:BB through 108.1 innings (20 starts) this season.

Kikuchi (9-3) picked up the win in Wednesday's 4-1 victory over the Orioles, allowing one run on six hits and a walk over six innings. He struck out three.

The southpaw tossed 60 of 91 pitches for strikes in his second straight quality start. Kikuchi has an impressive 1.23 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 23:7 K:BB through 22 innings since the All-Star break, and his current form should allow him to retain a rotation spot even after Toronto cuts back down to a five-man unit later this month. He'll try to stay efficient and effective in his next outing, likely to come early next week in Cleveland.

Twins manager Rocco Baldelli suggested late Wednesday that Ryan might get extra rest before his next start, Bobby Nightengale of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Ryan struggled again in a loss at St. Louis on Wednesday, yielding seven runs on nine hits, including four homers, over just four innings. He's given up 17 home runs across his last seven starts, the most of any Twins pitcher over a seven-start stretch in franchise history. Ryan currently lines up to work Monday's series opener at Detroit, but the Twins could push him back to a later date in that four-game set as he works on some mechanical tweaks.