MLB Player News

Baxendale was promoted to Triple-A Rochester. He had a 3.44 ERA and 59:16 K:BB at Double-A Chattanooga.

The 2012 10th-round draft pick has never been viewed as a top prospect, but he's been a productive starter the past two seasons. He may not have the strikeouts (6.5 K/9) to thrive at Triple-A, however.

Gray (3-6) didn't factor in the decision Tuesday against the Brewers. He pitched six innings, allowing two runs (one earned), seven hits and a walk while striking out seven.

The 26-year-old bounced back nicely from a poor outing in his previous start against the Rangers. Gray's seven punchouts matched a season high as he lowered his ERA to 5.20, its best mark since May 3. More noteworthy, Gray walked just one batter for the fourth straight game. Through the first two months of the season, he had a brutal 41:24 K:BB, but he's seemingly got the location issues under control now (19:4 K:BB through four June starts).

Paxton (1-3) allowed four runs on 11 hits and three walks with five strikeouts over 7.2 innings in Tuesday's loss to Detroit.

Paxton appeared to run out of gas, as he threw five shutout innings but gave up one apiece in the sixth and seventh, and two in the eighth as his pitch count rose. He had thrown 110 pitches (71 strikes, 12 swinging) by the time the Mariners finally pulled him, and by that point the damage had been done. Paxton had a streak of three quality starts snapped -- and he would have had a fourth had he not been sent out to try and pitch the eighth inning. He owns a 3.34 ERA with a crisp 34:9 K:BB in just 29.2 innings.

Verlander gave up two runs on six hits and a walk with five strikeouts over seven innings in a no-decision Tuesday against Seattle.

Verlander has gone at least six innings in each of his past nine starts, seven of which have been quality starts. He has an awesome 69:13 K:BB over 65.1 innings over that span with a 2.34 ERA in that span, as he's finally looking like the Cy Young contender he used to be once again.

Sale (12-2) gave up just one run on four hits and a walk and struck out nine over seven innings in a win Tuesday over the Red Sox.

Sale struggled over his past five starts, in which he allowed 20 runs in 29.2 innings (6.07 ERA), but he was still racking up the strikeouts with 31 in that span, so it was only a matter of time before he figured it out. He induced 14 swinging strikes in 111 pitches as he looked as nasty as ever. He's now up to 102 strikeouts in 105 innings, but he's still on pace for his first season with fewer strikeouts than innings pitched since he came up to the majors in 2010.

Despaigne is no longer a candidate to start Wednesday after pitching in relief Tuesday against the Padres.

He was in the mix to start Wednesday's game but that is off the table now that he pitched Tuesday. Ubaldo Jimenez is the leading candidate to take the ball Wednesday, as the Orioles continue to struggle to find a reliable fifth starter.

Kluber (7-7) allowed just three hits and two walks and struck out nine in a complete game shutout victory Tuesday against the Rays.

There's the Cy Young-level performance people have come to expect from Kluber. This marks his second shutout of the season and his second complete game in his past three starts. Kluber's propensity for blowups this season makes him more unreliable than the game's true greats -- he has allowed five runs or more four times in 15 starts this year -- but Tuesday's effort proves he's still capable of the magic of his past two seasons, when he had a 2.95 ERA in 457.2 combined innings.

Snell (0-2) gave up three runs (two earned) on seven hits and three walks with three strikeouts over 6.2 innings in a loss Tuesday to Cleveland.

Snell was much improved over his first start, in which he lasted just 3.1 innings and gave up eight hits and five runs (but just one earned). He was a bit shaky with his control, as he threw just 13 first-pitch strikes to 29 batters and threw 57 strikes against 47 balls. Snell has issued seven walks already in 15 innings, and his 2.40 ERA will be heading north in a hurry if he can't rein it in.

Despaigne could start Wednesday's game against the Padres, the Baltimore Sun's Jon Meoli reports.

The Orioles don't have any good options to slot in for Wednesday's start, but Despaigne may have the best case to get that call. This is the spot in the rotation that Mike Wright vacated when he was optioned to Triple-A, and he can only be recalled to make Wednesday's start if the O's place someone on the disabled list. Ubaldo Jimenez is also an option, but he has been awful as a starter and as a reliever, so the team may want to reserve him for mop up duty for now. Jason Garcia and Jayson Aquino are also options at Double-A Bowie, as they are both on the 40-man roster. Despaigne actually has a better ERA as a starter (4.42) than as a reliever (6.52), although he's still a very low-upside option if he gets the nod Wednesday.

Walker (foot) will not make his scheduled start Friday but the team believes he can avoid a DL stint, the Tacoma News Tribune reports

An MRI on Tuesday revealed Walker's dealing with posterior tibial tendinitis, which is aggravated every time he pushes off the rubber while delivering a pitch. The issue has cut short Walker's last two outings, but the Mariners seem to think that with proper treatment, the right-hander will be able to return to the rotation early next week.