MLB Player News

Indians pitcher Corey Kluber picked up a win Wednesday, giving up two earned runs on four hits and one walk in seven innings while striking out nine in his team's 15-4 win over the Blue Jays.

Kluber (4-3) began the game with four perfect innings, but he saw a run score on a couple doubles in the fifth inning and another run come home in the sixth. He owns a 3.38 ERA and 66:13 K:BB ratio in 58 2/3 innings. Kluber will square off with the Tigers Monday.

Rays pitcher Jake Odorizzi gave up just one hit and two walks in six scoreless innings while striking out seven to earn a win in his team's 2-0 victory over the Mariners Wednesday.

Odorizzi (2-3) lost a no-hitter with two outs in the sixth, and he didn't come back out for the seventh after getting the last out of the previous inning. He's now turned in two straight scoreless starts, giving him a 4.89 ERA and 44:18 K:BB ratio in 38 2/3 innings. Odorizzi is scheduled to face the A's Tuesday.

Rangers pitcher Martin Perez was believed to have avoided a tear in his UCL after an MRI Monday, but after some of the inflammation in the elbow subsided, it revealed a partial tear of the UCL, the Dallas Morning News reports.

Perez and the team haven't decided on a course of recovery yet. One option is to rehab without surgery, with the hope that he'll be able to return in 10 to 12 weeks. The other option is Tommy John surgery, which would sidelined Perez for the remainder of the season and part of next season.

The debut of pitching prospect Kevin Gausman in an Orioles uniform in 2014 didn't go any better than his big-league outings of 2013.

Gausman, who struggled with a 3-5 record and 5.66 ERA last season, was promoted Wednesday and promptly surrendered five earned runs on six hits in just four innings in a loss to Detroit. He walked two and struck out two.

The right-hander retired the first seven batters he faced before giving up six singles, two walks and a sacrifice fly in the third and fourth innings combined. He is sticking with the Orioles for their weekend trip to Kansas City, but his next start has yet to be announced.

The battered Rangers rotation has officially taken another hit with the placement of left-hander Martin Perez on the disabled list with elbow soreness.

The fortunate part is that an MRI had revealed no damage to the ulnar collateral ligament. But the team still decided to shelve him for the time being.

His recent performance indicated a problem. After a string of three consecutive shutout outings, Perez gave up 19 runs on 24 hits in 13 1/3 innings covering four starts. The disastrous stretched raised his ERA from 1.42 to 4.38.

One rotten inning couldn't prevent five good ones from giving Tigers premier right-hander Justin Verlander a win Wednesday afternoon in Baltimore.

Verlander breezed through the first three innings before allowing two baserunners in the fourth. The roof caved in in the fifth as he yielded five runs on three singles, a walk and three-run homer by Nelson Cruz. Verlander recovered to retire the Orioles in order in the sixth and his bullpen blanked them the rest of the way to allow him to raise his record to 5-2.

His numbers didn't look pretty, however. He gave up five earned runs on six hits while walking three and fanning four as his ERA rose to 3.15. Verlander is set to make his next start Monday in Cleveland.

Lloyd McClendon said Mariners rookie starter James Paxton was "close" to launching a minor league rehab stint after a third bullpen session in his recovery from a lat strain. Paxton will throw a simulated game before embarking on the rehab assignment.

He was off to a strong start before going down with a 2-0 record, 2.25 ERA and 13 strikeouts with just six hits given up in 12 innings.

Astros starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel was a featured player in our Waiver Wire column a few weeks back, recommending him as the better long-term Fantasy option over fellow Astros starting pitcher Colin McHugh, who was a hot pickup at the time.

A few weeks later, I still haven't changed my opinion and Keuchel looked awfully good over nine scoreless innings Tuesday against a very good Rangers' lineup. 

Keuchel has been keeping hitters off balance this season thanks to his changeup and slider. In April, his whiff percentage on his changeup was 20.8 and it was 21.2 on his slider, per BrooksBaseball.net. In May, the whiff percentage on his slider is at 32.5, which is an all-time best for the left-handed hurler.

I wrote a few weeks ago I didn't feel Keuchel was going to be a Fantasy savior, but even my outlook is getting more optimistic after Tuesday's performance. He does a good job of keeping hitters off balance with an array of pitches and might have more Fantasy value than perceived.

Rays right-hander Alex Cobb will make a rehab start Saturday for Class A Stone Crabs in Port Charlotte. If the strained oblique that sent him to the disabled list reacts well, he will make his next start with Tampa Bay on May 22 against Oakland, according to the Tampa Bay Times.

Cobb had pitched 15 1/3 shutout innings that covered more than two starts before going down. He had picked up where he left off from a brilliant 2013 season by compiling a 1.89 ERA in three starts.

What was expected is official: Starting pitcher Kevin Gausman has been promoted by the Orioles. He is set to start Wednesday against Detroit.

Gausman has been on a roll at Triple-A Norfolk. He was on a run of 14 2/3 scoreless innings before being called up.