MLB Player News

McCullers left Saturday night's start just before the start of the fifth inning after throwing a few warmup pitches, gesturing to his elbow.

McCullers had been cruising against the Dodgers, too, shutting them out over the first four innings. Later replays on the Dodgers' telecast showed him flexing his right elbow between pitches during the fourth inning. Brad Peacock replaced him in the game.

Blackburn (elbow) has yet to resume throwing after being shut down in early July, Eric He of MLB.com reports.

Blackburn has already been confirmed to have no structural damage, but that apparently hasn't made his recovery any quicker. The reliever will likely need a relatively lengthy rehab assignment whenever he's healthy enough to embark on one, a timeline that remains very murky at this point.

Nicasio (knee), who went on the disabled list Friday, doesn't have a firm timetable for his return, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports. "I don't know," manager Scott Servais said of a potential return. "Juan is frustrated. He hasn't felt good and wants to make it right. I certainly think he could come back and impact this year down the stretch, but I don't know."

Servais went as far as speculating that Nicasio may not return during the regular season. The veteran reliever's right knee has been problematic prior to his current DL stint, as it put him on the shelf for 10 days back in June. Nicasio's first Seattle season has been somewhat of a mixed bag, as he's managed to generate an unlikely combination of a 6.00 ERA and 53:5 K:BB over 46 appearances.

Kluber (14-6) allowed three hits and one walk while striking out seven in a complete game shutout to earn the win Saturday against the Angels.

Kluber needed only 98 pitches to record his first complete-game shutout of the season. Though he turned in several uncharacteristic starts that he blamed on a knee injury, it appears that Kluber is back on track after allowing only one earned run across 16.1 innings in his last two starts. His strikeout rate has taken a precipitous fall to 8.5 K/9, but he continues to post excellent ratios, carrying a 2.63 ERA and 0.92 WHIP through 154 innings.

McGuire is likely to be called up Sunday to make a spot start in Cleveland in place of Tyler Skaggs (adductor), Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Skaggs is only expected to miss one start, so McGuire will likely not be up long. The 29-year-old has a 6.12 ERA in 25 major-league innings this season, leaving little reason to believe he'll be a capable fantasy fill-in.

Snell (shoulder) was officially activated as expected ahead of his scheduled start against the White Sox on Saturday, MLB.com reports.

Snell, who has been battling shoulder fatigue, hasn't pitched in a game since before the All-Star break. He did not make a rehab start and is expected to be on a pitch count for his first start back.

Manager Kevin Cash said Snell (shoulder) will be on a pitch count for Saturday's start versus the White Sox, Marc Topkin of The Tampa Bay Times reports.

Cash failed to specify the limitation for Snell, but added that the left-hander won't come close to 100 pitches after being sidelined with a shoulder injury since appearing in the All-Star Game. Snell will be activated from the 10-day DL in the coming hours.

Odorizzi didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 6-4 win over the Royals, allowing two runs on four hits over 3.1 innings while striking out two.

The right-hander threw 75 pitches (49 strikes) and left the game with a 3-2 lead, but he got denied a chance for his fifth win of the season by a 91-minute rain delay in the top of the fourth inning. Odorizzi will take a 4.60 ERA into his next start Wednesday in Cleveland.

Severino (14-5) took the loss Friday as the Yankees fell 4-1 to the Red Sox, giving up four runs on seven hits and three walks over 5.2 innings while striking out two.

The right-hander's July swoon has now extended into August. Over his last five outings, Severino has a brutal 8.28 ERA, 1.88 WHIP and 21:7 K:BB in 25 innings, failing to complete six frames in any of those starts. He'll get an opportunity to turn things around in his next start Wednesday on the road against the White Sox.

Gonzales (12-6) took the loss against Toronto on Friday, allowing four earned runs on seven hits while striking out seven across seven innings.

This marked the first time since June 24 -- against a vaunted Red Sox lineup -- that Gonzales failed to record a quality start, and it also happened to snap his five-game winning streak. Since that outing against Boston, he's compiled an impressive 2.18 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 8.3 K/9. Gonzales is lined up to face the Rangers in Arlington next Wednesday.