MLB Player News

Rangers pitcher Yu Darvish is no longer set to return August 25, according to the Dallas Morning News.

Darvish has not thrown in a week, and it appears he'll need more time to recover from elbow soreness. Manager Ron Washington agreed, saying he's "not really thinking about the 25th." He added that he's not sure "what’s going to happen there." The team has not indicated that Darvish's injury is more serious than initially expected. 

The Athletics have altered their rotation for the weekend series against the Angels.

Jason Hammel will be skipped. He was slated to start Friday. The team will now go with Sonny Gray, Jon Lester and Scott Kazmir for the series. Gray will start Friday, Lester will start Saturday and Kazmir will go Sunday. 

The Athletics will skip Jason Hammel's next start, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

Hammel has struggled since joining the A's. In seven starts since joining the club, Hammel has posted a 6.75 ERA. Hammel was slated to start Friday against the Angels. 

Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander was able to throw off flat ground Tuesday, according to mlive.com.

Verlander threw from about 50 feet. It was the first time since he was diagnosed with shoulder soreness that he attempted to throw. Verlander was been sidelined since August 11 due to the injury. 

White Sox pitcher Chris Sale turned in a quality start Monday.

Sale allowed three runs on eight hits over six innings. He struck out eight and walked two during the outing. Home runs proved to be a big issue for Sale during the start. A solo shot by J.J. Hardy opened up the scoring in the second inning. Nelson Cruz would add another run in the sixth on a solo homer. Sale gave up his third run in the fifth, after a single and double drove in Nick Markakis. 

With the loss, Sale dropped to 10-3. He’ll take on the Yankees in his next start. 

Orioles pitcher Kevin Gausman could start Friday, according to MLB.com. 

Manager Buck Showalter said he wasn't 100 percent sure, but he thought Gausman would get the call Friday. If so, Gausman would take on the Cubs. Gausman has a 3.70 ERA over 73 innings. 

Way back in 2011, I liked Carlos Carrasco as a sleeper in Fantasy. He was arguably the top player to come over from the Phillies in the Cliff Lee deal and had just put together a 3.83 ERA over seven starts as a September callup the year before.

Back then, he averaged more than 93 mph on his fastball, according to BrooksBaseball.net, which is impressive in its own right. But in Saturday's start against the Orioles, he averaged 97.1.

That's Yordano Ventura-type stuff, which is as good as it gets among starting pitchers.

Granted, velocity isn't everything, but a pitcher who consistently throws strikes with that kind of stuff will go a long way in this game. In two starts since rejoining the starting rotation, Carrasco has issued zero walks in 12 innings.

He's healthy for once and still has room to grow at age 27. And I need only point to Jake Arrieta as an example of a pitcher who figured it out later in his career. If you've already missed out Mike Fiers in your league, I'd say Carrasco is worth a flier.

Three Rangers have cleared waivers, according to CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman.

Yu Darvish, Adrian Beltre and Shin-Soo Choo are now all eligible to be traded in the coming days. That doesn't seem likely, considering their big contracts and importance to the Rangers franchise. Neal Cotts was also placed on waivers, which are expected to expire tomorrow. There's a higher chance he gets dealt. 

Orioles starting pitcher Kevin Gausman allowed one run in six innings Sunday against the Indians to earn his third win his last four starts. Gausman allowed two hits and four walks, while striking out two during a 4-1 win.

Gausman opened the game with three scoreless frames, but the Indians took a 1-0 lead on a Jason Kipnis RBI single with one out in the fourth inning. The deficit remained 1-0 until Baltimore went ahead for good with a two-run sixth inning.

The four walks tied a season high for Gausman, who lowered his ERA to 3.70. He's expected to make his next start Saturday against the Cubs, but he could be moved up if the Orioles decide to take Ubaldo Jimenez out of the rotation.

Tigers starting pitcher Justin Verlander, who was scratched from his Sunday start against the Mariners due to shoulder inflammation, won't attempt to throw until Tuesday, according to MLive.com.

"From there, it could go in a number of directions," manager Brad Ausmus said. "He could put the ball back down, or he feels OK to throw a bullpen (session) in the next day or two following that Tuesday."

If Verlander shows improvement and avoids a stint on the disabled list, he could start during Saturday's doubleheader against the Twins.