MLB Player News

Royals starting pitcher Johnny Cueto turned in a strong outing against the Tigers on Friday night, allowing two runs on eight hits, walking one and striking out four over seven-plus innings, but came away with a no-decision.

Cueto got off to a good start after coming over to Kansas City, but has struggled lately. He had lost five straight, compiling an ugly 9.57 ERA over that span, but was sharp in this one. Unfortunately, he was up against an equally sharp Justin Verlander, left the game with the score tied, and was in line for another loss when the bullpen allowed the runner he left on base to score.

Tigers starting pitcher Justin Verlander allowed two runs on five hits, walking one and striking out seven over 8.2 innings, but came away with a no-decision against the Royals on Friday night.

Verlander was spectacular, carrying a 3-1 lead into the ninth inning. Unfortunately, the bullpen gave the lead away and the Tigers wouldn't close it out until the 12th inning. He's had his ups and downs this year, but his second half performance suggests he is getting more comfortable pitching as more of a finesse pitcher after years of being a top power arm. Many really good ones make the adjustment.

White Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale struggled again Friday night, allowing seven runs (one earned) on eight hits, walking three and striking out nine over seven innings of a 12-1 loss to Cleveland.

Sale (12-10, 3.47 ERA) pitched very well with the exception of the third inning where he gave up six runs. Thankfully for his fantasy owners, a Carlos Sanchez error made all six of those runs unearned, but Sale has not been as dominant lately as he was earlier in the year. He needed 116 pitches (75 for strikes) to cover the seven innings, and he wasn't consistently hitting his spots. He is still piling up strikeouts because his stuff is still dazzling, but he'll have to try and recapture his command to be the true ace he can be at his best.

Rays starting pitcher Drew Smyly allowed five runs on four hits, walking three and striking out six over 5.2 innings of an 8-6 win against the Orioles on Friday night.

Smyly (3-2, 3.64 ERA) picked up a win and did notch the six strikeouts, but it was another weak performance where he needed 107 pitches (69 strikes) and didn't make it out of the sixth inning. He pitched well early in the season, but was shut down in early May with a tear in his labrum (shoulder). He hasn't been the same since returning from the DL in mid-August, and is not recommended at this point in the season.

Mariners starting pitcher James Paxton didn't factor into the decision during Friday's win over Texas, giving up one run on six hits and four walks while striking out six over 4.1 innings.

Poor control was Paxton's Achilles heel as he weaved in and out of trouble on Friday, with 42 of his 88 pitches missing the strike zone. Paxton has walked seven batters in 7.1 innings since returning from a finger injury that cost him virtually the entire summer - a continuation of his poor command from earlier this season. In 12 starts this season, Paxton has a horrific 3.97 BB/9 ratio.

Blue Jays starting pitcher Marcus Stroman turned in a strong performance, allowing just one run on six hits, walking one and striking out three over seven innings of 6-1 win against the Red Sox on Friday night.

Stroman (2-0, 3.00 ERA) was making just his second start after coming back from knee surgery, and he looked sharp. He needed just 96 pitches (69 for strikes) to cover the seven innings, and he retired 11 batters on groundballs (no flyball outs), so he making it tough on the Boston hitters. The Blue Jays aren't going to overwork him, but he is likely to remain in the rotation through the end of the season as long as he doesn't encounter any physical problems.

Angels starting pitcher Andrew Heaney is slated to start Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader with the Twins.

With Friday's game rained out, Heaney will simply move back to start Game 1 of Saturday's twin bill. However, he's now set to oppose Kyle Gibson instead of Mike Pelfrey, as Minnesota decided to flip-flop its starters.

Twins starting pitcher Kyle Gibson will start Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader with the Angels, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Friday's game was postponed due to rain, and instead of just moving Mike Pelfrey back to start Game 1 of the twin bill, the Twins will start Gibson in Game 1 and Pelfrey in Game 2.

Angels starting pitcher Andrew Heaney will not make his scheduled start Friday against Minnesota, as the game was postponed due to rain.

The Angels and Twins will play a doubleheader Saturday to make up for the rainout, and Heaney figures to simply move back to start one of the two games.

Red Sox pitcher Rich Hill will start Sunday against the Blue Jays, Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe reports.

While Hill held Tampa Bay to just one hit and fanned 10 in seven scoreless innings in his first start of the year, he'll face a much tougher test Sunday in a Blue Jays team that destroys left-handed pitching (.822 combined OPS). To make matters worse, the game is also in Toronto, but Hill still makes for a decent bench stash in deeper formats.