MLB Player News

Astros starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel held the Angels to two earned runs on six hits and no walks while striking out four in seven innings Friday to earn his second win.

Making his fifth start since joining the rotation, Kuechel made it through seven innings for the first time this season. He was coming off a six-run loss to Oakland Sunday. He'll face the Orioles at home Wednesday.

Indians starting pitcher Corey Kluber threw two innings Friday against the Rays due to a long weather delay. He allowed no hits and a walk, striking out three without allowing a run.

Kluber was coming off a 10-strikeout game against the Red Sox and looked like he could have another high-strikeout game before inclement weather took over. He'll face the Yankees in New York Wednesday.

Rays starting pitcher Alex Cobb told reporters Friday his finger is healing well and he feels confident he will be able to make his scheduled start Tuesday against the Tigers.

Cobb was scratched from his scheduled start Friday due to a cut between his nail and finger, but he looks likely to return. 

Rays pitcher Alex Cobb, who was scratched from his scheduled start Friday with a fingernail issue, will likely start Tuesday, the Tampa Bay Times reports. Cobb is 6-2 with a 2.66 ERA.

Indians starter Justin Masterson played his role as ace to a tee Wednesday at home against the Reds. Masterson gave up just one run in a victory.

The starter lasted six innings as he threw 105 pitches to allow one run on four hits and four walks with seven strikeouts. He was spotless after allowing a first-inning homer to Joey Votto. His ERA is at 3.07 on the year and his record runs to 8-3.

Masterson had allowed five earned runs his last time out in Boston, but rebounded nicely Wednesday. He's earned dominant wins in four of his last five outings, however, with 83 Ks over 82 innings. Masterson makes his next start Monday in New York against the Yankees.

Rays starter Alex Cobb has a problem with his fingernail, the Tampa Bay Times reports Wednesday night. Cobb has a small cut between his nail and his finger and it started bleeding during his last start. 

Cobb was scheduled to start Friday at Cleveland, but instead his start is up in the air. Alex Colome, just called up, will start Thursday at Miami with Matt Moore moving to Friday. 

Cobb won his last time out and is 6-2 on the year with a 2.66 ERA and 62 Ks over 67 2/3 innings. 

Rain postponed the Rangers game against the Diamondbacks Wednesday night and it has everyone in the Texas rotation pushed back a game, FOX Sports reports.

Derek Holland, Nick Tepesch and Yu Darvish will pitch beginning Friday in that order in the three-game series against the Royals.

The Rangers have decided to recall starter Martin Perez for the second time in a week to make the start Saturday against Kansas City, the Dallas Morning News reports. The team was considering bringing back Alexi Ogando for that start, but has decided against it. 

Perez gave up four runs over 5 1/3 innings at Arizona Monday and was optioned back to Triple-A Round Rock immediately after the doubleheader. 

A year ago, there was a highly-touted rookie pitcher who had a decent, if not impressive, season debut followed up by a six-run meltdown in his second start. Last season's best rookie pitcher also got out of the gate slowly, allowing five earned runs in just 5 2/3 innings in his first major-league start.

The pitchers in question are Matt Moore and Yu Darvish, who wound up having pretty nice seasons for their Fantasy owners. What Kevin Gausman has done for the Orioles in his first two starts looks worse on paper than what Moore and Darvish did at the start of last season, but none of the three had an auspicious start to his rookie campaign.

I'm not arguing that Gausman is bound to do as well as either Darvish or Moore did in 2012, but the possibility is still very much there. If you picked up Gausman in your Fantasy league, he deserves a longer trial than just two starts. Regardless of who else is available on waivers, they are highly unlikely to have the kind of upside that Gausman has shown during his brief time in the minors.

Over the last few years, I've regarded Corey Kluber as a nothing minor-leaguer who got occasional looks in the Indians starting rotation simply because he was all they had. But having watched him pitch a handful of innings this season, my eyes have determined something different: This guy looks good.

He throws hard and gets plenty of movement with his secondary arsenal -- which he uses more than you'd expect for a pitcher with his limited experience. Each of those times I saw him in early May, I wondered how anyone could hit him, but when I checked the box score the next day, I came away unimpressed.

So here's the question: What do my eyes know? I'm no scout. Never claimed to be one. If their eyes have kept quiet about Kluber, then mine -- which also once tried to convince me Luke Hochevar was pretty good -- should just fall in line, right?

Probably. But when Kluber goes and strikes out 18 batters in 13 innings, as he has over his last two starts, my eyes just keep believing, even if my brain and my mouse have yet to catch up.