MLB Player News

Mariners starting pitcher James Paxton heads into Tuesday's start against the Angels coming off a very promising start against the Astros.

Paxton had a few rough outings after a strong performance in his first start April 7 against the Angels, but manager Lloyd McClendon feels Paxton is on the right track after missing time during the spring due to a forearm injury.

"I feel like he's been building since the injury in spring training. I feel real good about where he is right now," McClendon said, per MLB Network Radio.

The lefty pitcher is 2-2 with a 2.67 ERA and 0.82 WHIP in five career starts against the Angels.

Astros starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel allowed one run on five hits, striking out eight while walking one, for a no-decision Monday against the Rangers.

Keuchel's ERA actually went up slightly with the strong performance, going from 0.73 to 0.80.

The left hander carried a shutout into the eighth inning before giving up an RBI single to Jake Smolinski.

On the season, Keuchel has given up four runs in 45 innings with 30 strike outs and 13 walks.

Keuchel's next start is scheduled for Saturday in Los Angeles against the Angels.

Rays starting pitcher Jake Odorizzi (3-2) gave up one run on seven hits and struck out six in seven innings of work on Monday to defeat the Red Sox.

The one run allowed came in the second inning when he served up back-to-back triples to Brock Holt and Xander Bogaerts.

Odorizzi did not allow a home run in his sixth straight start, matching a Rays' club record.

Odorizzi lowered his ERA to 2.21 with the outing.

Odorizzi's next start is set for Saturday against the Rangers.

Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander will undergo his latest MRI on his strained triceps muscle Tuesday, FOX Sports reports.

Verlander suffered the injury in his final spring training start and has yet to pitch in the regular season. He reported no discomfort after a light toss session Thursday but was still in line for an MRI this week.

Rays pitcher Alex Cobb suffered a setback in his injury rehab, manager Kevin Cash told the media on Monday.

Cobb is on the 15-day disabled list with a forearm injury. He had been throwing bullpen sessions and worked on offspeed pitches off of flat ground on Sunday. 

"He had a little bit of a setback," Cash said, per TampaBay.com. "He didn't feel as good as he hoped."

The setback means that Cobb will cease the throwing program and get reevaluated by medical staff. 

Before the Red Sox ended up acquiring starting pitcher Wade Miley in the offseason, one other team thought the left-hander might be a good fit for the AL East, according to WEEI.com. The Blue Jays also had siginificant interest in trading for Miley, a major-league source said.

However, the Blue Jays opted not to make the deal when the Diamondbacks asked for starting pitcher Daniel Norris -- who is considered the team's top prospect by Baseball America and MLB.com -- in return.

The Diamondbacks traded Miley to the Red Sox on Dec. 12 for Rubby De La Rosa, Allen Webster and Raymel Flores. Miley is 1-3 with a 7.15 ERA in his first five starts with Boston.

Rays starting pitcher Alex Cobb (forearm) will throw offspeed pitches during his next throwing session, which will be off flat ground, manager Kevin Cash said Sunday, per The Tampa Tribune.

Cobb has been on the disabled list all season. He continues to rehab without a timetable for his return.

Athletics starter Sonny Gray continued his strong start to the 2015 season, striking out 10 batters to lead Oakland to a 7-1 triumph over the Rangers on Sunday. 

Gray moved to 4-0 on the year with relative ease, going 6 2/3 innings and allowing just two hits. He did battle with wildness, however, walking seven batters, which raised his pitch total to 119. 

"Sonny doesn't have anything, he's still one of the best pitchers in baseball," said catcher Stephen Vogtt to MLB.com. "He did not feel good today, and that's an understatement. He was not himself. The ball wasn't moving like it normally does. Didn't have a sinker. Didn't have a fastball, for that matter. Kinda just threw whatever he was throwing. He's just so good at manipulating the ball and making it move when he doesn't feel good."

Gray lowered his ERA on the season to 1.67, which is good for sixth in the AL, and his four wins are tied for the top spot in the league. 

Mariners starter Taijuan Walker has been inconsistent in recent starts. After allowing an unearned run in seven innings on Monday, he gave up seven runs in three innings on Saturday. 

"It's not going to happen overnight," manager Lloyd McClendon said Sunday, per MLB.com. "You see flashes of him being brilliant almost. Then you see the youngster in him. ... It's going to take time, but in the end, I think he's going to be pretty good."

"Going into that game, he had 69 career innings in the big leagues," McClendon said. "We're always in a hurry with young players, but they all struggle. I had an old skipper tell us, Barry Bonds had to have his first at-bat at some point. In his first year, he was hitting .166 in June and he turned out to be a pretty good player. The point is, you have to start somewhere. Along the way, he's not always going to look good. But in the end, he'll be a pretty good finished product." 

Indians starter Corey Kluber hasn't looked like the pitcher that won last season's Cy Young Award. Part of the reason may be the other half of the battery.

Catcher Yan Gomes has been on the disabled list with a knee injury, and Kluber is still adjusting to work with Roberto Perez. 

"There's obviously a difference," Kluber said, per MLB.com. "Whether it be myself with Yan, or somebody that gets traded, for example, there's always a period where you've got to work to know what each other wants to do. I think that's normal for any player to go through. It's not just Roberto and myself."

"There's no secret how comfortable Klubes and Gomer were," manager Terry Francona said. "That was a pretty special relationship that you want. ... When a guy like Gomes goes down, you don't have a Gomes sitting on the bench. I think we're pretty fortunate where we are, but they're not going to have that same sync. It's impossible."