MLB Player News

The Astros announced Sunday that Whitley is out indefinitely after being diagnosed with a right lat strain, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The injury is the latest in a long string of health-related setbacks for the star-crossed Whitley, who has yet to make his MLB debut despite being a fixture on top prospect lists since he was selected by the Astros in the first round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft. Whitley's lat strain comes at an especially inconvenient time for the Astros, as manager Dusty Baker acknowledged that the right-hander was in consideration to join the big club as a potential sixth starter after Houston recently began a stretch of 17 games in as many days, per Lerner. If the Astros do decide to incorporate a sixth starter into the mix, Whitley's Triple-A rotation mate, Ronel Blanco, now looks to be next in line for a call-up.

Medina is scheduled to serve as a bulk reliever behind opening pitcher Ken Waldichuk in Sunday's game against the Astros, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Though Waldichuk has been a member of Oakland's rotation all season, he'll be returning to the mound on only three days' rest Sunday and thus may not be available to cover more than two or three innings before turning the ball over to Medina. With that in mind, Medina is still the Oakland pitcher most likely to factor into any decision, even though his usage as a bulk reliever could limit his pitch count to some degree compared to if he were operating as a traditional starter.

Waldichuk is scheduled to serve as the Athletics' opener in front of primary pitcher Luis Medina in Sunday's game against the Astros, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Waldichuk worked as a bulk reliever in his last appearance Wednesday in Seattle, but he looks like he could be in line for a lighter innings count Sunday while he pitches on three days' rest ahead of Luis Medina, who is making his usual turn through the rotation. The Athletics haven't indicated that Waldichuk's usage as an opener will foreshadow a move to the bullpen, but it could be a possibility for the young left-hander, who has been shelled to the tune of a 7.40 ERA and 1.97 WHIP through his first 10 outings of the season.

The Royals reinstated Lynch (shoulder) from the 15-day injured list ahead of his scheduled start Sunday against the Nationals.

Lynch will be making his 2023 debut for the big club after he missed just under two months to begin the season while recovering from the left shoulder strain he suffered late in the Cactus League slate. The southpaw steadily built up his pitch count over five minor-league rehab outings and delivered his sharpest effort to date in his most recent start with Triple-A Omaha on Tuesday, when he struck out five over six scoreless frames. Lynch tossed 61 pitches in that outing, so he could have a light workload restriction in place as he slots back into the big-league rotation Sunday.

Valdez (5-4) picked up the win Saturday, allowing one run on four hits and three walks over six innings in a 6-3 victory over the A's. He struck out five.

The southpaw won his third straight decision while producing his ninth quality start in 11 trips to the mound this season -- not a surprising performance after he led the majors with 26 quality starts in 2022. Valdez was impressive in May, posting a 2.18 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 40:7 K:BB over 33 innings, and he'll look to stay sharp in his next outing, likely to come at home next week against the Angels.

Kremer (5-2) took the loss Saturday, giving up three runs on five hits and two walks over 6.1 innings as the Orioles fell 5-3 to the Rangers. He struck out five.

The right-hander came through with his fourth quality start of the season but got outdueled by Andrew Heaney. Kremer hasn't been tagged for more than three runs in a start in the entire month of May, posting a 2.45 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 23:8 K:BB through 29.1 innings over that five-start stretch. He'll try to keep up that level of performance to kick off June, with his next start likely coming next weekend in San Francisco.

Heaney (4-3) picked up the win Saturday in a 5-4 victory over the Orioles, allowing one run on four hits and a walk over seven innings. He struck out three.

The veteran southpaw delivered his fourth straight quality start and sixth in his last seven outings in impressive fashion, as he completed seven innings for the first time in 2023. Heaney has posted a 3.40 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 39:14 K:BB through 42.1 innings over that seven-start stretch, and he'll look to keep rolling in his next trip to the mound, likely to come at home next weekend against the Mariners.

Civale (oblique) is slated to make his third rehab start for Triple-A Columbus on Sunday, Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal reports.

Even though Civale was able to get stretched out to 69 pitches in his latest rehab start Tuesday, the Guardians want to have him make one more tune-up outing in the minors before bringing him back from the 15-day injured list, where he's resided since April 10. With Triston McKenzie (shoulder) potentially making his final rehab start Tuesday, the Guardians will soon have some tough decisions to make with the rotation. Hunter Gaddis -- who is starting Sunday versus St. Louis -- will almost certainly lose his spot once either Civale or McKenzie is activated, but unless the Guardians move to a six-man rotation, one of the two high-performing rookie starters -- Tanner Bibee or Logan Allen -- could lose his spot to make room for the two veterans. Assuming Civale navigates his upcoming minor-league outing smoothly, he could be cleared to join the big-league rotation as soon as Friday in Minnesota.

Castillo (4-2) earned the win Saturday, allowing one hit and two walks over six scoreless innings during a 5-0 win over Pittsburgh. He struck out 10.

Castillo completed six scoreless innings for a second straight game and struck out a season-high 10 batters Saturday. Before his dominating two-game stretch, the Mariners' ace allowed 17 earned runs over his previous five starts, so fantasy managers can breathe a sigh of relief, as it appears Castillo has regained his elite form. Despite the tough stretch, the right-hander still sports strong season-long numbers (2.69 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 76:15 K:BB over 63.2 innings) and remains one of the best pitchers in MLB.

Singer did not factor into the decision Saturday, allowing two runs on four hits and three walks over five innings during a 4-2 loss to Washington. He struck out six.

Singer tossed five shutout frames but was pulled with no outs in the sixth after allowing back-to-back hits to lead off the inning. It was a solid bounce-back performance for the right-hander, who served up five runs over 3.2 innings his last time out, but he is still struggling with walks and has allowed multiple free passes in each of his past six starts. During that stretch, Singer sports 7.57 ERA, 1.87 WHIP and 25:17 K:BB over 27.1 innings. The Royals' ace issued 35 walks across 27 outings (153.1 innings) last year, but he already has 23 over 54.1 innings in 2023.