MLB Player News

Perez didn't factor into the decision in Wednesday's 9-7 loss to Cleveland, giving up five runs (two earned) on six hits and two walks over 4.2 innings while striking out one.

A throwing error by Miguel Sano and a passed ball by Jason Castro helped soften the blow to his ERA, but Perez didn't have his best stuff in this one, throwing 56 of 92 pitches for strikes while generating only four swinging strikes. The left-hander hasn't lasted more than five innings in any of his last three starts, and with an off day coming Monday, the Twins may elect to skip Perez entirely rather than giving the rest of the rotation an extra day of rest.

Morton (7-0) picked up the win Wednesday, allowing five hits over seven scoreless innings while striking out eight as the Rays handed the Tigers a 4-0 defeat.

The right-hander hasn't been on the losing end of a decision since last August, when he was still a member of the Astros. Morton has now delivered three straight quality starts and seven on the season, and he'll take a 2.30 ERA and 91:27 K:BB through 74.1 innings into his next outing Monday, at home against the A's.

Means allowed four hits and one walk while striking out five across six innings Wednesday against the Rangers. He did not factor into the decision.

Means allowed his only run of the game in the first frame, holding the Rangers to just two hits across his next five innings of work. He effectively pounded the strike zone, throwing 70 of his 108 pitches for strikes -- though 29 came from foul balls. Encouragingly, Means completed six innings for the second consecutive outing after doing so on only two occasions in his first eight starts of the season. Means now has a 2.80 ERA and 1.10 WHIP with 45 strikeouts across 54.2 innings for the campaign. He'll look to keep things going in his next start, currently scheduled for Tuesday against Toronto.

Paxton lasted 4.2 innings against the Blue Jays on Wednesday and allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits and three walks. He struck out four and did not factor in the decision.

Paxton threw a first-pitch strike to 18 of the 21 batters he faced Wednesday but struggled to put hitters away. The 30-year-old was limited to 66 pitches in his previous start fresh off the injured list, and he upped his pitch count to 83 versus the Blue Jays. The lefty has a 3.11 ERA and 1.17 WHIP through nine starts and is in line to face the Mets on Monday.

Turnbull (3-5) allowed three runs on five hits and three walks over five innings to take the loss Wednesday against the Rays. He struck out four.

Turnbull was decent but got no run support, as Charlie Morton and Oliver Drake combined to shut out the Tigers. The 26-year-old righty has been mostly solid this year, posting a 3.01 ERA and 68 strikeouts across 71.2 innings of work. However, Detroit's anemic offense caps Turnbull's potential. He'll look for a little more run support and his fourth win in his next start Tuesday against the Royals.

Sale (2-7) recorded 12 strikeouts and allowed only three hits in a complete-game shutout of the Royals on Wednesday.

Sale was electric, inducing 14 swinging strikes and delivering his first complete-game shutout. In the eighth inning, the left-hander retired the Royals on nine pitches, becoming the only pitcher since Lefty Grove to have two immaculate innings in a season. The 30-year-old continues to dominate, posting a 15.0 K/9 in his last nine starts on the strength of double-digit strikeouts in seven of those outings. Sale will make his next start Monday against the Rangers at Fenway Park.

Kikuchi will start Saturday against the Angels, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Kikuchi will rejoin the rotation over the weekend after having his previous start skipped for maintenance purposes. The southpaw owns a 4.43 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 50:17 K:BB in 67 innings (13 starts) this season.

Carrasco was placed on the 10-day injured list with a non-baseball medical condition Wednesday.

Carrasco and the Indians have not released the exact details of the problem, but the team's statement indicated that he's been diagnosed with some sort of blood condition after feeling lethargic for several weeks. Carrasco will take some time away from baseball to figure out his treatment plan. It's not clear when he'll be able to return to action, but the Indians expect him back at some point this year. His replacement in the rotation has not yet been announced.

Blackburn is expected to be promoted from Triple-A Las Vegas to start one game of the Athletics' doubleheader Saturday against the Rangers, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Since Blackburn is already on the 40-man roster and would be available Saturday on five days' rest, he makes for the most logical candidate to serve as the Athletics' 26th man for the twin bill. Over 16 starts with the big club in parts of the past two seasons, Blackburn didn't turn in exciting fantasy production, posting a 4.48 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and an 11.5 K%. His numbers at Triple-A this season (4.55 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 19 K%) don't provide much reason to hope for better results if he's summoned for a spot start Saturday.

Ramirez (elbow) will move his rehab to Triple-A Salt Lake on Wednesday.

Ramirez is now almost 14 months removed from Tommy John surgery and appears to be closing in on a return to big-league action within a typical timeline. He's made a single rehab appearance thus far (three earned runs over 1.2 innings), so he'll need several more outings before he's deemed ready to go.