MLB Player News

Stroman (knee) covered 3.1 innings and struck out four batters while allowing one earned run on one hit and two walks in his first rehab start Wednesday with Double-A Somerset.

Considering Stroman hadn't pitched in a game since April 11 after being shut down due to left knee inflammation, his performance in Wednesday's outing with Somerset was about as good as the Yankees could have expected following a lengthy layoff. The right-hander faced 13 batters in the start and pumped in 27 of his 46 pitches for strikes. The Yankees are letting Stroman build back up as a starter, but he'll likely need to continue to find success over his subsequent rehab outings in order to unseat Ryan Yarbrough in the rotation once he's activated from the 15-day injured list. Since stepping in as the Yankees' No. 5 starter May 3, Yarbrough owns a respectable 4.20 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 30 innings over his six starts.

Morris could be the top candidate to be called up if the Twins have another opening in the rotation, Matthew Leach of MLB.com reports.

Morris' numbers at Triple-A St. Paul aren't overly impressive (3.86 ERA, 1.62 WHIP, 12.3 K-BB%), but the Twins lack a clear standout pitcher in the minors who would leapfrog the 23-year-old right-hander if a rotation spots open up. With recent injuries to Pablo Lopez (shoulder) and Zebby Matthews (shoulder), the Twins have already plugged David Festa and Simeon Woods Richardson into the rotation.

Burke (3-7) took the loss against Houston on Wednesday, allowing seven runs on eight hits and one walk while striking out four batters over 3.2 innings.

Burke fell behind quickly, giving up three runs in the first frame (two of which came on a Christian Walker homer). Things didn't get much better for the right-hander from there, and he ended up surrendering a career-worst seven runs in the defeat. It was a sharp downturn after Burke rolled off a quality start in each of his previous three appearances entering Wednesday and gave up just five runs with a 17:5 K:BB over 19 frames during that span. He'll look to get back on track in what's projected to be a home start against St. Louis his next time out.

Gusto (4-3) earned the win over the White Sox on Wednesday, allowing two runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out seven batters over six innings.

Gusto got plenty of run support, as Houston held a 7-0 lead through four innings. The right-hander gave up a pair of runs in the fifth, but he capped his outing with a scoreless sixth to record his first career quality start. Gusto also racked up a career-high seven strikeouts and notched 11 whiffs. He's settled into a rotation spot with several Houston starters dealing with injuries, and Gusto's next start is projected to be a road matchup against the Athletics.

Bubic (5-4) was charged with the loss Wednesday against the Yankees after giving up five runs on six hits and four walks in five innings. He struck out three.

It was the shortest outing of the year for Bubic, who yielded a season-high five runs. The 27-year-old left-hander also matched season worsts with four walks and three punchouts, and his six hits allowed were one short of his season high. Bubic's ERA still stands at an outstanding 1.92 along with a 1.07 WHIP and 82:26 K:BB across 79.2 innings, and he'll look to get back on track his next time out against a Rangers team that has an abysmal .542 OPS versus southpaws since the beginning of May.

Schmidt (3-3) tallied the win Wednesday against the Royals after giving up two hits and three walks in six shutout innings. He struck out seven.

It was Schmidt's second scoreless start in his last three outings, and he's now thrown at least six frames in five of his last seven appearances. The 29-year-old right-hander scattered two singles, and he came one strikeout shy of tying his season high. Schmidt holds a quality 3.60 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 57:24 K:BB across 55 innings, and he'll remain worth deploying in the vast majority of fantasy formats versus the Angels in his next scheduled start.

Buehler (5-4) tallied the win Wednesday against the Rays after giving up three runs on six hits and one walk in seven innings. He struck out seven.

It was an encouraging bounce-back performance for Buehler, who was crushed for a season-high seven runs in his previous start against the Yankees. The 30-year-old right-hander tied his second-highest strikeout total of the year, and he fired a season-high seven frames for his fourth quality start of the campaign. Buehler will look to further improve on his 5.01 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 51:18 K:BB over 55.2 innings in his next outing, which is set to come at pitcher-friendly T-Mobile Park against a Mariners club that has a .600 OPS at home since May 1.

Littell (6-6) was charged with the loss Wednesday against the Red Sox after giving up four runs on eight hits and no walks in six innings. He struck out six.

Littell's control remained nearly impeccable, as he issued one walk or fewer in his 10th straight start, but his struggles containing the long ball resurfaced. The 29-year-old right-hander served up a whopping four homers for the second time already this year, and he now inauspiciously leads the majors in homers allowed (21). Littell still owns a steady 3.84 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 58:11 K:BB across 86.2 innings, and he'll aim to reduce the hard contact the next time he's scheduled to take the hill, likely next week versus the Orioles.

Leiter (4-3) took the loss against Minnesota on Wednesday, allowing four runs on five hits and four walks while striking out three batters over four-plus innings.

Leiter gave up a three-run homer to Byron Buxton in the third inning to account for most of the damage against him. The right-hander also struggled with his control, throwing just 51 of 87 pitches for strikes and issuing four free passes. Leiter had been pitching well entering Wednesday, posting a 2.20 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over five starts since his previous loss May 8, so he has earned himself a lengthy leash in terms of the security of his rotation spot. He'll look to get back on track in his next start, which is projected to be a matchup at home versus Kansas City.

Festa (1-1) earned the win over Texas on Wednesday, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four batters over six innings.

Festa finally picked up a victory in his fifth start of the season and also notched his first quality start. In fact, Wednesday marked the first time over his five outings that the right-hander has completed more than 4.2 frames. It was certainly a promising turnaround after Festa surrendered eight runs across 3.2 innings against the A's in his previous start. Festa has an opportunity to lock down a rotation spot with Pablo Lopez (shoulder) and Zebby Matthews (shoulder) both out for an extended period, and Festa's performance Wednesday could go a long way toward achieving that goal. He'll try to take another positive step the next time he takes the mound, which tentatively lines up to be on the road against Cincinnati.