MLB Player News

The Mets designated Flexen for assignment Monday after acquiring him from the Mariners.

Along with Flexen, the Mets acquired right-hander Trevor Gott from Seattle in exchange for lefty Zach Muckenhirn, but Gott is the main asset in the deal from the Mets' standpoint. The Mets will absorb the approximately $4 million remaining on Flexen's contract, and though he won't be added to the 40-man roster, the organization is presumably hoping that he'll pass through waivers and help bolster the rotation at Triple-A Syracuse. Flexen owns an ugly 7.71 ERA and 1.86 WHIP in 42 frames with Seattle in 2023, but between the prior two seasons, the 29-year-old right-hander amassed a 3.66 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over 317.1 innings and 53 starts. Perhaps a change of scenery will help the soft-tossing Flexen stumble upon a better pitch mix or a mechanical tweak that could allow him to resurface as useful rotation depth for the big club in the latter portion of the season.

Matz will start for the Cardinals on Wednesday in Miami, Isaac Azout of SBNation.com reports.

The Cards needed a spot starter following a doubleheader over the weekend. Matz has posted a 1.98 ERA since being demoted to the bullpen a month ago, which includes 6.2 scoreless frames over his last two appearances. That was preceded by a 5.72 ERA in 10 starts, though, making him a poor streaming option especially since he won't be ready for a full workload.

The Nationals reinstated Corbin (personal) from the bereavement list Monday, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Corbin was away from the Nationals for the entire series with the Phillies this past weekend, but he wasn't scheduled to pitch at any point during the three-game set after he made his most recent start last Wednesday in Seattle. He's already been confirmed to make his return to the Washington rotation Tuesday versus the Reds at Nationals Park.

The Mets acquired Flexen and right-hander Trevor Gott from the Mariners on Monday in exchange for left-hander Zach Muckenhirn, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Flexen will be returning to the organization where he started his professional career after he was drafted out of high school in 2012. Though he had been a serviceable back-end rotation option for most of his prior two seasons in Seattle, Flexen has struggled mightily both as a starter and reliever thus far in 2023, pitching to a 7.71 ERA and 1.86 WHIP over 42 innings before the Mariners designated him for assignment last week. According to Joel Sherman of the New York Post, the Mets will cover the approximately $4 million remaining on the $8 million in salary Flexen is due for the rest of the season, hoping that the return to Queens can help the 29-year-old re-emerge as useful starting depth. He'll most likely work in long relief initially.

The Padres promoted Snelling from Single-A Lake Elsinore to High-A Fort Wayne on Tuesday.

Snelling made his High-A debut Sunday, striking out four Lake County batters over five innings while giving up two earned runs on four hits and two walks. Prior to receiving the bump up to Fort Wayne, Snelling had been one of the most dominant pitchers in the California League, logging a 1.57 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 59:13 K:BB in 51.2 innings.

Gore (finger) is slated to start Thursday's game against the Reds at Nationals Park.

Gore failed to escape the third inning and was lit up for seven earned runs on six hits and three walks in his most recent start against the Phillies on Saturday, revealing afterward that he dealt with a blister on his left middle finger. The southpaw didn't express any concern about the abrasion forcing him to miss his next start, and the Nationals seemingly aren't worried either. Gore will look to bounce back Thursday from his disastrous outing last week, which caused his ERA to jump from 3.89 to 4.48.

Houser is slated to start Wednesday's game against the Cubs at American Family Field.

Houser will pick up another start while the Brewers seemingly plan to maintain a six-man rotation heading into the All-Star break. After spending just under two weeks in the bullpen, Houser re-entered the rotation last Thursday and delivered a quality start in a win over the Mets, striking out five over six innings while yielding two runs on seven hits and one walk.

Soroka is scheduled to start Wednesday's game against the Guardians at Progressive Field.

With Atlanta optioning rookies AJ Smith-Shawver and Jared Shuster to Triple-A Gwinnett within the past two weeks, the team looks as though it'll have rotation spots available for both Soroka and Kolby Allard until Max Fried (forearm) and Kyle Wright (shoulder) return from the injured list at some point after the All-Star break. Soroka rejoined the big club last Friday and delivered what was the best of his three starts this season with Atlanta, as he struck out seven over six innings while allowing three earned runs on five hits and no walks in a win over Miami. He'll draw a favorable road matchup versus the Guardians as he makes his second straight turn through the rotation.

Allard is scheduled to start Tuesday's game against the Guardians at Progressive Field.

Allard will make his second straight turn through the rotation, filling the spot that previously belonged to rookie Jared Shuster, who was recently optioned to Triple-A Gwinnett. After spending the first three months of the season on the 60-day injured list while recovering from a Grade 2 oblique strain, Allard was activated following two minor-league rehab starts and immediately impressed in his 2023 debut with the big club. Though he took a no-decision last week in his start versus the Twins, Allard struck out eight over 4.2 scoreless innings while allowing just four baserunners. He induced swings and misses on 14 of his 71 pitches, showing the sort of strikeout upside that belies his career 19.0 K% over 237.1 big-league innings. While Allard doesn't have much of a reliable track record to fall back on beyond his previous start, he could make for a decent streaming option Tuesday versus a weak Cleveland offense.

Montgomery (6-7) earned a win over the Yankees on Sunday, allowing one run (zero earned) on two hits and three walks while striking out six over 6.2 innings.

Montgomery was in command versus his former team and held the Yankees hitless until Gleyber Torres doubled off him with two outs in the sixth. His two hits allowed was a season low and he continued his streak of dominance since the end of May. Over his last seven starts, Montgomery has a 1.66 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 39:19 K:BB in 43.1 innings. He's pitched at least six frames in four of his last five outings and has racked up three straight wins. The 30-year-old will look to keep things going as he lines up for a road start against the White Sox this coming week.