MLB Player News

Indians starter Justin Masterson put the finishing touches on the first half of his season with another quality start Wednesday at home against Toronto. Unfortunately, Masterson had to settle for a no-decision. In fact, he was on the hook for the loss until his team tied the score in the eighth.

His record remains 10-7 on the season with a 3.72 ERA, as he allowed two earned runs on four hits and five walks over 6 2/3 innings and 120 pitches. He struggled with command but struck out six.

Masterson enters the break without a win over his last two outings, but he pitched a complete-game shutout on June 30 at the White Sox. He's had a solid first half. Masterson will likely see some work during the Midsummer Classic and will have his next start following the break determined by manager Terry Francona. He's likely to pitch during the first series at Minnesota.

The Rangers placed starting pitcher Yu Darvish on the 15-day disabled list Wednesday, retroactive to July 7, with fatigue of his trapezius muscle. He is expected to only miss Thursday's start and the All-Star Game before returning July 22, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Darvish gave up a season-high five earned runs in six innings his last start Saturday. He is 8-4 with a 3.02 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and a league-best 157 strikeouts in 119 1/3 innings.

The Orioles will use Zach Britton and Kevin Gausman as tandem starters at Triple-A Norfolk Sunday.

Both players were demoted Tuesday, but will work as starters in the minors. Gausman only started five games in the majors before shifting to the bullpen. He had a 6.21 ERA in 33 1/3 innings. 

Britton had been used primarily as a starter in the majors. He had a 4.76 ERA in six starts. 

Kevin Gausman's brief brush with popularity in Fantasy ended several weeks ago, and especially with the Orioles' acquisition of Scott Feldman, it's appropriate to give up on the top prospect in most single-season leagues.

Gausman's window of opportunity to get another shot as a major league starter this year is barely open, but between the small remaining possibility of a second chance and his substantial upside, it makes sense to keep him stashed in deeper leagues.

Though the Orioles have ample starting pitching depth in the minors, Gausman could still be considered as the team's sixth or seventh starter, and a strong showing at Triple-A Norfolk could solidify that status.

In the event of one of the Orioles' current starters getting hurt or goes into a deep slump, Gausman just could find his way back into the rotation. With Chris Tillman and Miguel Gonzalez looking like serious regression candidates and Jason Hammel struggling to find consistency, it's not all that far-fetched for the Orioles to give Gausman another try.

Gausman did a good job of handling the Tigers and Red Sox in a pair of June starts, so he has shown the potential for success at the big-league level. That makes the 22-year-old worth stashing if you already own him in a deeper league.

Tigers starter Justin Verlander is in a bit of a rut this season. His ERA (3.71) and WHIP (1.39) are the highest they've been since 2008. He's giving up hits at a higher rate than any year since his rookie campaign and he's walking batters at the highest rate in six seasons.

Additionally, Verlander's velocity (93.6 mph average fastball) is at its lowest point since that disappointing 2008 season. And he's given up five or more runs four times this season; he had done that five times combined over the last two. 

Is it time to worry about Verlander? The drop in velocity is definitely a problem (one we discussed on Fantasy Baseball Today)-- especially considering the accompanying rise in ERA and WHIP. But dropping him in the ranks is a slippery slope. On one hand, there are raw numbers that back up a downgrade. On the other hand -- and this is just pure guesswork -- it may just be a case of Verlander holding back a little bit early in order to be fresh for the playoffs. Still, it becomes a battle of objective stats against a series of logic games, and the stats may win out here. 

I'm downgrading Verlander to fourth overall in my SP ranks -- a pretty large move, considering he was No. 1 overall. There may be more to the velocity drop, and I have to factor that in to his value. But I'm not dramatically sending him out of the top 10, in case he comes back in the second half pitching like his old self. 

The Athletics have called up prospect pitcher Sonny Gray from Triple-A Sacramento, MLB.com reports. Gray entered the season as the club's fifth-best prospect according to Baseball America.

Gray has not disappointed with Sacramento, as he owns a 2.81 ERA and a 3.2 K/BB over 16 starts (102 1/3 innings). Gray is expected to pitch out of the bullpen at first but could work his way into a starting spot depending on the club's health.

White Sox starter Jose Quintana went pitch-for-pitch with Detroit's Justin Verlander Tuesday night at Comerica Park. In the end, it was the 24-year-old Quintana who came out on top.

Quintana (4-2) and Verlander were tied 1-1 after seven innings but both struggled in the eighth. Verlander allowed seven runs and Quintana gave up a two-run homer to Miguel Cabrera.

Quintana, who has a 3.67 ERA, allowed three earned runs on six hits and a walk with seven strikeouts over eight innings. He won for the first time since May 21 against Boston but has allowed just three runs on eight hits in his last two outings spanning 15 innings with 18 strikeouts. Quintana makes his next scheduled start Sunday at Philadelphia.

Tigers starter Justin Verlander allowed a season-high 12 hits in a loss to the White Sox at home Tuesday night. Verlander and Jose Quintana were tied 1-1 through seven innings but the Detroit starter came undone in the eighth.

Verlander allowed four runs in a seven-run eighth inning and took the loss to fall to 9-6. He gave up five earned runs on 12 hits and a walk over seven innings on 112 pitches. He struck out two and allowed two home runs.

The 30-year-old was coming off a sharp outing at Toronto in which he went seven shutout innings for his ninth win. He's 1-2 over his last six outings but had won four straight starts before that.

Verlander makes his next scheduled appearance Sunday against Texas.

The Orioles demoted top pitching prospect Kevin Gausman to Triple-A Norfolk Tuesday following a loss to the Rangers, MLB.com reports. Starter Zach Britton was also optioned and the corresponding roster moves will be announced Wednesday. Wei-Yin Chen is expected to be activated to start as one of the moves. 

The Orioles have been trying to come up with a plan for Gausman. He is likely to remain in the minors through the All-Star break with a chance to get back in the Norfolk rotation. He could return following the break but may not have a rotation spot waiting. 

Rangers starting pitcher Martin Perez allowed a run-scoring single to Brian Roberts in the second, a solo home run to Manny Machado in the third and a two-run single to J.J. Hardy in the fifth inning of an an 8-4 victory Tuesday night against the Orioles.

Perez (3-1) allowed four runs -- two earned -- on six hits and a walk while striking out four over six innings.

Perez is 3-0 with a 1.44 ERA over his last three starts. He has not lost a decision since his season debut May 27. He's scheduled to make his next start Sunday at Detroit.