MLB Player News

Valdez allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out six over six innings in a no-decision versus the Mariners on Saturday.

Valdez was hampered by a sprained ankle over the last week, but he was able to avoid the injured list and only missed one turn through the rotation. He had a full workload with 105 pitches (66 strikes) in his fourth quality start since the beginning of June. The southpaw is at a 2.51 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 116:26 K:BB through 111 innings over 17 starts this season. He'll likely take the mound in the Astros' three-game road series versus the Angels following his attendance at the All-Star Game.

Toussaint (0-2) took the loss Saturday as the White Sox fell 3-0 to the Cardinals, giving up two runs on five hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out five.

The right-hander kept Chicago in the game, tossing 53 of 81 pitches for strikes before exiting, but the team's hitters couldn't solve Miles Mikolas and the St. Louis bullpen. Toussaint could lose his rotation spot to Michael Kopech (shoulder) immediately after the All-Star break, but in four appearances (two starts) for the White Sox he's posted a respectable 3.60 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 16:9 K:BB over 15 innings.

Manager Kevin Cash said Saturday that Rasmussen (elbow) will undergo an internal brace procedure and won't return until the middle of next season, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Rays had previously hoped that Rasmussen would be able to return late in this season after he hit the 60-day injured list with a right flexor strain in mid-May, but that won't be the case. The righty will avoid undergoing Tommy John surgery for the third time in his career, but not by a wide margin. The internal brace alternative is a similar surgery and carries a recovery time that's at best only somewhat shorter.

Faedo was optioned to Triple-A Toledo following his start against the Blue Jays on Friday.

Faedo wasn't going to pitch again before the break after struggling through 3.2 innings on Friday, so the Tigers didn't need to keep him on the roster. He might not get the chance to reclaim his rotation spot at the start of the second half, however, as his 6.98 ERA through six starts trails Reese Olson's 4.02 ERA by a significant margin. Olson has seemingly secured the Tigers' fifth starter spot, with Faedo likely stuck waiting for an injury to open up another chance.

Blackburn was scratched from his scheduled start Saturday against the Red Sox due to illness.

The fact that Blackburn is dealing with an illness rather than an injury means he's probably not going to miss more than one start, but he'll be down for at least one unless he's healthy enough to pitch Sunday and the A's elect to bump JP Sears. Austin Pruitt will be the first pitcher on the hill Saturday in Blackburn's absence.

Anderson tossed 4.1 innings out of the bullpen Friday against the Dodgers, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out five batters.

Manager Phil Nevin announced earlier in the week that Anderson would be available out of the bullpen until the All-Star break with the team not needing his services as a starter. The southpaw threw more pitches (71) on Friday than starter Griffin Canning (56), and neither hurler was able to contain the Dodgers' offense. Given his workload in the contest, Anderson is unlikely to pitch again until after the Midsummer Classic.

Battenfield (shoulder) struck out three over three scoreless innings in his rehab start Tuesday with Double-A Akron. He scattered one hit and four walks in the 58-pitch outing.

Battenfield's appearance with Akron was his first at any level since the Guardians placed him on the injured list May 19 with right shoulder inflammation. Because he was later transferred to the 60-day IL, Battenfield won't be eligible for activation until after the All-Star break, but Cleveland isn't expected to be in an immediate rush to activate him. Even with Triston McKenzie (elbow) and Cal Quantrill (shoulder) on the injured list, the Guardians still have a trio of impressive rookies (Tanner Bibee, Gavin Williams and Logan Allen) on hand to fill out the back end of their rotation.

Canning (6-4) took the loss against the Dodgers on Friday, allowing four runs on five hits and one walk over 2.2 innings. He didn't strike out any batters.

Canning was knocked around early and often by the Dodgers, surrendering solo home runs in each of the first, second and third innings. He was pulled with two outs in the third after allowing three straight batters to reach with two outs. Canning had been pitching well coming into Friday's collapse, posting a 3.00 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 46:10 K:BB over 42 innings across his previous seven starts. However, he heads into the All-Star break with mostly mediocre overall numbers, including a 4.62 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 8.6 K/9 over 14 starts.

Civale (3-2) picked up the win in Friday's 3-0 victory over the Royals, scattering two hits over seven scoreless innings. He struck out nine without walking a batter.

The right-hander put together his best performance of the season and won for the first time in nearly a month, generating 34 called or swinging strikes over his 100 pitches. Civale has delivered quality starts in three of his last four outings, and since rejoining the rotation at the beginning of June he sports a 2.48 ERA, 1.07 WHIP and 36:14 K:BB through 40 innings.

Lynch (2-4) took the loss Friday, giving up three runs on six hits and a walk over six innings as the Royals fell 3-0 to the Guardians. He struck out three.

The quality start was the third in Lynch's last four outings, but he got no help from a Kansas City offense that managed only two hits all night. The southpaw has a 2.63 ERA and 1.04 WHIP over that four-start stretch, but an 11:7 K:BB in 24 innings puts a damper on his fantasy appeal heading into the second half of the season.