MLB Player News

Athletics pitcher Sonny Gray had a successful test of his sore right ankle on Tuesday. 

Gray was forced to leave Sunday's start after five innings when he suffered a right ankle contusion after being hit by a comebacker to the mound. 

Gray threw a bullpen session, and his ankle held up well, per Comcast Sports Net. 

Tigers starter Justin Verlander threw a simulated game on Tuesday. It's the first time he faced hitters since landing on the disabled list with a triceps injury during spring training. 

Verlander pitched four shutout innings, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out eight. He threw 70 pitches on the afternoon, mixing in changeups and breaking pitches.

"It went really well," said Verlander, per MLive.com. "But first and foremost, the most important thing, I felt really good."

Manager Brad Ausmus said Verlander looked "very good" in the simulated game, and he's likely to make a rehab start in five days. 

"I'm actually not anxious," Ausmus said. "I think he's going to be fine, quite frankly. But me thinking that doesn't mean he will be."

With an off-day Thursday, the Astros made a slight change to their rotation.

Lance McCullers will still start the series opener Friday against the White Sox, but Dallas Keuchel is being moved up to Saturday to pitch on regular rest and Roberto Hernandez is being pushed back to Sunday.

White Sox rookie pitcher Carlos Rodon will rejoin the rotation Friday at Houston, the team announced Tuesday. It will be his first appearance since May 20.

Rodon is 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA in three starts. He is 0-0 with a 2.84 ERA in three relief appearances.

Rays pitcher Jake Odorizzi allowed two runs — one earned — in Monday night's 4-1 loss to the Mariners. 

Odorizzi had a good game, going seven innings and allowing five hits. He struck out seven batters and walked two. His season total for strikeouts is now at 53. 

Odorizzi now has an ERA of 2.31 this season. His next start is projected for Sunday against the Orioles. 

Twins pitcher Ricky Nolasco earned a win on Monday, giving up two earned runs on seven hits in 7 2/3 innings while striking out five and walking none in his team's 7-2 victory over the Red Sox.

"Normally, you go out there and challenge [hitters], but I tried that the past couple of starts, with so-so results," Nolasco said, per the StarTribune. "I know the scouting report on me is [to] swing early because I'm going to be throwing a lot of strikes."

Nolasco (5-1) was handed a 7-0 lead after two innings, and though he gave up a pair of runs in the top of the third, he was able to shut the Red Sox down over the remainder of the outing for his fifth straight win.

Nolasco owns a 5.12 ERA and 27:10 K:BB ratio in 31 2/3 innings. He's slated to face the Blue Jays on Sunday.

Yankees pitcher Nathan Eovaldi earned a win on Monday, giving up one earned run on eight hits and one walk in seven innings while striking out four in his team's 14-1 victory over the Royals.

Eovaldi (4-1) had plenty of room for error, as the offense rung up eight runs on three first-inning homers and added three more runs on another homer with no outs in the second. The Yankees starter was able to limit the Royals to an RBI single in the fifth inning.

"(Early run support) allows you to attack hitters a lot more," Eovaldi said to The Journal News. “You don’t have to be as perfect. Guys were swinging the bat well, playing good defense. It was a good win for us, get us back on track."

Eovaldi owns a 4.27 ERA and 40:14 K:BB ratio in 52 2/3 innings. He's scheduled to face the A's on Saturday.

"I thought he used his curveball effectively, I thought he got some strikeouts with his split, I just thought he mixed his pitches really well today," manager Joe Girardi said. "You know, we've talked about Evo a lot, in a sense, when he has his offspeed, he can throw it for strikes, he’s really effective."

Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel was stuck with a complete-game loss on Monday, allowing four earned runs on six hits and one walk in eight innings while striking out three in his team's 4-3 defeat against the Orioles.

Keuchel (6-1) surrendered a two-run homer in the second inning to fall behind, but his offense was able to take a 3-2 lead in the fifth. That score didn't hold, as the Orioles managed another two-run homer in the seventh.

"I came out pretty, pretty bad," Keuchel said, per the Houston Chronicle. "The wind was a factor early on and the two-seam was kind of just diving down. But, I made some adjustments and I felt like I hit a stride. But I mean, anything’s possible, and that’s a very dangerous lineup over there. They haven’t been playing relatively good ball offensively. But that’s what happens. Homecooking, and I just didn’t get it done today."

Though it's Keuchel's first loss, it's the third time in his last four starts that he's allowed four earned runs after surrendering just four runs combined over his first six starts.

Keuchel owns a 1.98 ERA and 49:21 K:BB ratio in 72 2/3 innings. He's in line to face the White Sox on Sunday.

Orioles pitcher Kevin Gausman, who has been sidelined since the start of the month with shoulder tendinitis, is tentatively scheduled to throw a simulated game on June 2, per MASNSports.com. 

It's all part of a carefully calculated rehab plan by the Orioles, who will have Gausman throw a bullpen session Tuesday and face live hitters on Friday, setting the stage for the two-inning sim game. He will then likely head to Triple-A Norfolk to stretch his arm out. 

Gausman is 1-0 with a 4.50 ERA in eight games this season. 

White Sox pitcher Jose Quintana allowed seven runs, six earned, on seven hits in Chicago's 8-1 loss to the Twins on Sunday.

Quintana, who also struck out five with just one walk, got off to a sour note in the first inning when he allowed a solo home run to Brian Dozier. Things got worse in the fourth when Quintana allowed four runs on four hits, while his teammates committed two errors. 

Quintana, now 2-5, moved his ERA to 4.43 in 54 innings of work this season. He will look to get back on track Friday against the Astros.