MLB Player News

Hamels (oblique) is set to throw another bullpen session Saturday with a batting practice session coming next week, Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Hamels threw 21 pitches during his previous bullpen this past Sunday, and will likely go a bit longer during his second session since heading to the disabled list in early May. The southpaw is progressing nicely and could be able to return in the beginning of July, barring any setbacks.

Bergman (3-3) gave up two runs (one earned) on four hits and two walks over five innings in Thursday's 2-1 loss to the Twins. He struck out six.

The young right-hander continues to impress, with Thursday's outing standing as his third consecutive start in which he gave up two runs or less. That stretch followed his only disastrous start of the season, an outing in which he gave up 10 earned runs over four innings against the Nationals. Bergman has lowered his ERA from 6.30 to 4.03 since that appearance and has been missing more bats as of late, notching 13 swinging strikes over his five frames against the Twins and racking up six strikeouts for a second straight start. He'll look to keep his impressive performances going in a rematch with Minnesota at Target Field next Tuesday.

Verlander (groin) is expected to take the mound for Saturday's contest against the Red Sox, Jon Morosi of Fox Sports reports.

Verlander and the Tigers have been optimistic that he will be set to pitch all week, and it now appears as though he will be good to go for Saturday's battle against Chris Sale and Boston. The right-hander threw a side session Thursday without suffering any setbacks, appearing ready for action after leaving Sunday's affair with tightness in his groin. If anything changes before game time Saturday, Drew VerHagen would likely be called upon in his stead.

Hammel (2-6) was dominant Thursday against Houston, allowing just one run on four hits and no walks while striking out four, but did not factor into the decision.

Lance McCullers matched Hammel pitch for pitch over his own impressive seven-inning outing, stopping the latter from picking up consecutive wins. On the bright side, Thursday was Hammel's strongest performance of the season, and the second straight game in which he did not allow a free pass (something he hadn't done coming into June). The 34-year-old veteran will look to carry his momentum into Wednesday's start against the Giants.

Gibson gave up one run over six innings to improve to 3-4 in Thursday's win over Seattle. He had four strikeouts and three walks.

Gibson has started to turn his season around as he's allowed just five earned runs over 17 innings in his last three starts. He has a 15:10 K:BB over that span, so walks continue to be an issue. However, he's bounced back well enough from allowing an 8.20 ERA in his first six starts to remain in the rotation for the near term.

Odorizzi (4-3) pitched 6.2 innings of three-run ball, striking out eight and walking one, Thursday against the White Sox in a 7-5 win.

Odorizzi had pitched five scoreless before Avisail Garcia's three-run blast in the sixth. The right-hander had gone six innings or deeper in four consecutive starts in May before allowing five runs over his next two starts, which spanned a combined eight innings. Thursday's performance was a positive sign for the 27-year-old.

Asher (2-4) allowed five runs over four innings with six strikeouts and four walks Thursday in Baltimore's 6-0 loss to Washington.

Prior to Thursday, Asher had only one poor outing in a starter's role, but his performance against the Nationals was pretty subpar. He came into the game with three quality starts, as the 25-year-old had been between various bullpen roles and spot starts all season before being recently inserted into the starting rotation. It will be interesting to see if the Orioles keep him there, while other potential options include Ubaldo Jimenez.

McCullers allowed one run on two hits and two walks while striking out eight over seven innings in Thursday's 6-1 win over the Royals.

McCullers had all of his pitches working and had a no-hitter through 6.1 innings before a Lorenzo Cain triple which eventually led to his only run allowed. An effort like this, in front of one of the baseball's more powerful offenses, would normally make him a winner, but the Astros were shut down by Kansas City's Jason Hammel. McCullers lowered his ERA to 2.58 (sixth in MLB) as he enters his next start Tuesday at home against Texas.

Smyly (elbow) will throw a bullpen session Saturday, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports.

This news comes after Smyly took another step forward Thursday by throwing off a mound. Saturday will be another significant step for Smyly as he'll log a full bullpen session. Given the length of Smyly's absence, he'll likely need a couple additional bullpen sessions before the Mariners map out a rehab assignment for the left-hander.

Musgrove (shoulder) will return to the rotation Monday against the Rangers, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The 24-year-old was originally targeting a Sunday return, but he'll wait an extra day to be activated in order to allow David Paulino to make one more start in the big leagues. Due to this, Musgrove will face off with Rangers' ace Yu Darvish to open up the home series with Texas.