MLB Player News

Ramirez gave up three runs (one earned) on five hits and three walks while striking out six over six innings Saturday, picking up the win against the Red Sox.

He outpitched David Price in this one to record his ninth win of the season. Ramirez had been in a bit of a rut, logging a 5.40 ERA and 1.45 WHIP over his last six starts (31.2 innings), so it would have been understandable if a good percentage of his owners left him on the bench for this game. The Angels may take advantage of Monday's off day in order to go with a four-man rotation in the short term, which would result in Ramirez starting Thursday in Cleveland.

Stroman allowed a single run on five hits and five walks while striking out seven over 7.2 innings in Saturday's loss to Cleveland.

Considering Cleveland scored 13 runs in Friday's series opener and boasts a strong offense, this stands as one of Stroman's best starts of the season. He's found a groove of late and has allowed just four earned runs in 34 innings over his last five starts. With a 2.98 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 7.5 K/9 for the campaign, Stroman should continue to be viewed as a go-to asset. He projects to make his next start against Oakland at the Rogers Centre.

Keuchel (neck) built his pitch count up to 62 (48 strikes) in what was likely his final rehab start Saturday for short-season Tri-City, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports. He allowed a run on three hits and zero walks while striking out five in five frames.

Keuchel is expected to rejoin the big-league rotation Friday in Detroit, although given his pitch count in this final rehab outing, it seems unlikely that he will be able to throw more than around 90 pitches in his first start off the DL. The 29-year-old southpaw has a 1.67 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 69 strikeouts in 75.2 innings this season. He is expected to face a Tigers team that has already traded J.D. Martinez and could move another impact bat (Ian Kinsler is being shopped) before Friday's game.

Montas struck out one and allowed two earned runs on a hit and a walk over one inning in Friday's 7-5 loss to the Mets.

Montas' return to the majors was far from smooth, as he surrendered a 360-foot shot to Michael Conforto that extended the Mets' lead to 7-3 at the time. The fire-balling right-hander brings plenty of swing-and-miss upside, but inconsistency has been his biggest drawback, even down at the Triple-A level; the 24-year-old posted four scoreless efforts in his most-recent stint at Nashville, but also gave up 10 earned runs over a late-June/early-July three-appearance stretch.

Blackburn (1-1) struck out one and gave up four earned runs on six hits and a walk over 5.1 innings in Friday's 7-5 loss to the Mets.

The rookie's most glaring mistake was the mammoth two-run homer he surrendered to Michael Conforto in the third. Blackburn was serviceable but somewhat on the inefficient side otherwise, throwing only 43 of 76 pitches for strikes. The 23-year-old has gotten into at least the sixth inning in all four of his starts -- with Friday's being his shortest thus far -- and he still sports a solid 2.88 ERA despite having no strikeout upside (nine whiffs over 25 innings). He'll look to secure his second victory when he faces the Blue Jays on the road next Wednesday.

Nolasco (4-11) lasted just four innings Friday night to take the loss against the Red Sox. He served up six runs on nine hits while striking out just one hitter.

Most of the damage occurred in the first inning, as the Red Sox batted eight men and tallied five runs in the frame. He settled down after that with a pair of 1-2-3 innings, but he ultimately was chased after giving up another run in the fourth. Nolasco's control was on point, as he didn't walk a single batter and 51 of his 77 pitches went for strikes, but his 5.13 ERA overall leaves much to be desired. He'll look to improve that figure in his next start Thursday in Cleveland.

Sale (12-4) fired six innings of scoreless baseball Friday against the Angels, allowing just four hits, walking two and striking out nine en route to the win.

Although it took 112 pitches to get through six frames, 72 of the southpaw's offerings went for strikes. The fact that the Red Sox offense provided five runs in the top of the first certainly helped his cause, but Sale also held his end of the bargain by not letting any Angels get into scoring position until the fifth inning. Sale continues to thrive in his new environment, as his ERA and K/9 improved further to 2.48 and 12.7, respectively. He'll look to continue his winning ways Wednesday in Seattle.

Cobb gave up three runs on five hits while striking out four over eight-plus innings but didn't factor into the decision in Friday's extra-inning loss to the Rangers.

He carries a 3-1 lead into the top of the ninth inning but got the hook after allowing a Joey Gallo double and game-tying home run to Shin-Soo Choo before he could record an out. Cobb has now delivered seven quality starts in his last eight trips to the mound, posting a 2.35 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 32:11 K:BB in 57.1 innings over that stretch. His next outing will come Wednesday at home against the Orioles.

Darvish allowed three runs on five hits and a walk while striking out 12 over eight innings but had to settle for a no-decision in Friday's extra-inning win over the Rays.

All three runs scored on solo shots, and Darvish exited the game on the hook for a loss before the Rangers rallied for two runs in the top of the ninth to tie it up. The 12 Ks were a season high for the right-hander, and if this was his last start in a Texas uniform before getting traded he went out on a high note. For the moment, though, he's still listed as the team's starter for Wednesday's home tilt against the Marlins.

Keuchel (neck) will make Saturday's rehab start with short-season Tri-City, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

It was previously unknown where the ace left-hander would be making his upcoming rehab start. Keuchel will presumably be stretched out to four or five innings in his upcoming start in an effort to get him ready for major-league starts. No word has come as to when he's expected to return, although if this rehab start goes well, Keuchel would be lined up perfectly to make a start July 28 for the series opener in Detroit.