MLB Player News

Bridwell (7-1) turned in six innings in a 4-2 win over Seattle on Sunday, allowing a single earned run on four hits while walking one and striking out two.

The 26-year-old sophomore hasn't lost since June 30, going 5-0 with a 30:7 K:BB over that span. Bridwell's affinity for the win column -- as well as his attractive 2.88 ERA -- make him a sneaky starting option for the suddenly surging Angels.

Kluber (11-3) allowed three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out nine over seven innings to earn the win over Tampa Bay on Sunday.

Kluber wasn't as dominant Sunday as he's been in recent outings, but the 31-year-old still managed to toss a quality start and earn his third straight win. He also managed to rack up more than eight strikeouts for a ridiculous 14th consecutive start. Cleveland's ace has dazzled since coming off the disabled list at the beginning of June, compiling an 8-1 record with a shiny 1.85 ERA and 151:17 K:BB across 14 starts (102.1 innings). He'll look to keep things rolling against the Royals on Friday.

Boyd (5-6) recorded a no-decision in Sunday's loss to the Twins. He gave up four earned runs on six hits and three walks over 5.2 innings, while striking out five.

Boyd pitched better than his last start, when he gave up six runs (five earned) on nine hits in just four innings. The young left-hander was victimized by the long ball, as he gave up a home run to Brian Dozier to lead off the game, then allowed a two-run bomb to Miguel Sano in the third inning. Boyd will look to improve upon this effort in his next scheduled start Saturday, though he's got a tough assignment against the Dodgers.

Montgomery (head) has been confirmed as the starting pitcher for Sunday's game against the Red Sox, Pete Caldera of The Record reports.

As expected, Montgomery is good to go after being struck in the head by a foul ball during batting practice Saturday. The 24-year-old southpaw, who owns a 4.05 ERA and 111:35 K:BB through 21 starts this season, will face a tough Red Sox team as he fills in for CC Sabathia (knee) in the rotation.

Heaney (elbow) tossed seven innings of one-run ball in Saturday's rehab start with Triple-A Salt Lake and his next start may come in the majors, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

The 26-year-old has posted a 2.60 ERA over 27.2 innings during his six-appearance rehab stint, so he appears ready to rejoin the Angels' rotation after undergoing Tommy John surgery just over a year ago. It is an impressive feat that Heaney is slated to make a return after the Angels announced that he would not pitch in 2017, but they also probably didn't envision their club to be contending for a playoff spot this deep into the season either. The southpaw's largest sample size was when he posted a 3.49 ERA and modest 2.8 K/BB ratio over 105.2 innings in 2015, numbers that would translate to a middle- to back-rotation starter depending on the size of a fantasy league. Anything Heaney shows us this year will likely have more utility as a barometer to value him next season, but there is certainly some potentially helpful output to be had down the stretch if he can continue the success he has experienced during his rehab stint.

Groome allowed two runs on seven hits while striking out seven over five innings for Low-A Greenville on Saturday.

Groome's first full season of professional baseball got off to a rocky start when he strained a latissimus muscle during his first start of the season at Greenville. After a long rehab, he's back with the Drive and, after a three-game losing streak, made his third straight strong start Saturday. The left-hander has a 1.13 ERA, striking out 21 and walking three, over his last 16 innings.

Keuchel said his in-between-starts work heading into Sunday's start is the best he's had since the first couple of months of the season, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports. "This is probably the best three or four days in between (starts) since the first couple months (of the season)," he said on Saturday. "So I have no doubt that tomorrow's going to be a lot different than the first three."

The great mystery in Houston is where is the version of Keuchel that showed up for the first 11 starts, when the left-hander posted a 1.67 ERA over 75.2 innings before going on the disabled list with a neck injury. In the three starts since his return from the DL, Keuchel has allowed as many earned runs (14) as he did over the first 11 starts. Manager A.J. Hinch said Keuchel hasn't been controlling contact on the ground over these last three starts, implying that he's been leaving the sinker up.

Ramirez gave up three runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out four over five innings Saturday against the Mariners. He did not factor into the decision.

Ramirez has proven himself to be a capable back-of-the-rotation starter, as he is dependably mediocre. He has struck out fewer than six batters in nine of his last 10 starts. His next start will come next weekend in Baltimore.

Bundy gave up three runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out 10 over six frames en route to picking up his 12th win Saturday in Oakland.

Bundy struggled for most of June and July, but he seems to be on a roll now. He has given up five runs while striking out 25 over his last 21 innings (three starts) and has struck out 10 in back-to-back starts. Increased usage of his slider has been linked to his success of late, so perhaps Bundy has figured something out that will allow him to continue to impress down the stretch. He lines up to make his next start next weekend against the Angels.

Bundy's second-half success is due in large part to an increased usage of his slider, Jon Meoli of The Baltimore Sun reports.

The right-hander started 2017 off with three wins and a sterling 1.65 ERA in five April starts while using his slider on 25.8 percent of his deliveries. He got away from the pitch -- throwing it just 16 percent of the time -- during an awful stretch from May through July. However, Bundy has recently returned to his roots -- hurling his most dominant pitch 24.2 percent of the time since the break -- to notch three quality starts in his last four outings. The 24-year-old is not going to win you a fantasy championship, but Bundy can make a solid contribution down the stretch if deployed judiciously.