MLB Player News

Wheeler (finger) threw a bullpen session Monday, Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Wheeler skipped his scheduled start Saturday against the Marlins after tearing his fingernail while putting on his pants. He's reportedly dealt with fingernail issues since he was an amateur. If the nail responded well to the bullpen session, Wheeler could pitch later in the week, but if it responds poorly, a trip to the injured list can't be ruled out.

Gray, who was placed on the 10-day injured list Sunday with a right mid-back strain, said he's hopeful he'll be ready to rejoin the Cincinnati rotation during the final week of the regular season, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Whether or not Gray returns may ultimately hinge on if the Reds have a legitimate chance at claiming a playoff spot; entering play Monday, Cincinnati sits two games behind in the wild-card race and 2.5 games behind St. Louis for second place in the National League Central. Gray is first eligible to return from the IL on Sept. 21, but before a determination on his availability for the final week of the season is made, he'll likely need to resume throwing without discomfort. Prior to being shut down, Gray had struggled through his two roughest starts of the season, giving up a combined 11 runs in four innings in losses to the Cardinals and Cubs.

Suarez was optioned to the Phillies' alternate training site Monday.

Suarez struggled mightily in three outings since returning from the COVID-19 injured list, allowing nine runs on 10 hits and four walks while striking out one over four innings. The southpaw will attempt to improve at alternate camp, and it's unclear whether he'll return to the major-league bullpen with just two weeks remaining in the regular season.

The Marlins optioned Garrett to their alternate training site following Sunday's doubleheader against the Phillies, Andre Fernandez of Sirius XM Radio reports.

Miami summoned the 23-year-old lefty from the alternate site to start the second game of Sunday's doubleheader versus the Phillies. Garrett was quite impressive in the outing, ceding one run on three hits and two walks while striking out six to come away victorious in his MLB debut. Miami will have two doubleheaders on tap against the Nationals during the upcoming weekend, so expect the Marlins to bring Garrett back from the alternate site to start one of those four contests.

Kim (chest) was activated as expected ahead of his scheduled start in the first game of Monday's doubleheader against the Brewers.

Kim missed just shy of two weeks while on a blood thinner to deal with a kidney issue. There's been quite a bit of good fortune in his 0.83 ERA this season, as he's striking out just 13.3 percent of opposing batters over 21.2 innings and has been helped out by a .200 BABIP and an 86.0 percent strand rate, though his 3.62 FIP is still a solid number. He'll face fellow former KBO ace Josh Lindblom in this start.

The Braves recalled Toussaint from their alternate training site ahead of his scheduled start Monday in Baltimore.

Toussaint will be making his fifth start and his first since Aug. 17 as the Braves continue to cycle through pitchers in a patchwork rotation that has had several members deal with injuries or perform ineffectively this season. The latter case applies to Toussaint, who has stayed healthy but has submitted a 7.89 ERA and 1.52 WHIP across 21.2 innings with the big club. While a baseline quality start Monday could be enough for Toussaint to earn another turn through the rotation, his poor form this season suggests that fantasy players can't rely on him to meet that low standard.

Wright (1-4) allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits and two walks while striking out four over six innings as he earned the win Sunday against the Nationals.

Wright has struggled over most of his appearances this year as he was charged with losses in four of his five starts. Sunday's effort matched his longest start of the season. Although he wasn't particularly dominant, Atlanta's offense provided him with considerable support against Max Scherzer, allowing Wright to secure his first major-league win. With several other starters slated to return next week, Wright's next start should come Sunday on the road against the Mets.

Houser (1-5) allowed seven runs (two earned) on four hits and four walks while striking out five across four innings to take the loss Sunday against the Cubs.

Houser held the Cubs scoreless through three innings. However, a combination of poor control and shoddy defense resulted in seven runs crossing the plate over the next 12 batters Houser faced. Though it's hard to see in the overall line, there were promising aspects of the effort for Houser, as he generated 15 swinging strikes on 100 total pitches. Even so, it was another disappointing result, as Houser now has a 5.40 ERA with a 37:18 K:BB across 46.2 frames for the season. He's in line to take his next turn through the rotation Friday against Kansas City.

Martinez allowed three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out eight over four innings in a no-decision against the Reds on Sunday.

It was a mixed bag for Martinez. The eight punchouts are great, but the Reds managed three extra-base hits off the right-hander, including a homer off the bat of Brian Goodwin. Martinez has now given up 13 hits in 7.2 innings (two starts) since his return from the COVID-19 IL. He built up to 90 pitches Sunday after throwing 80 in his first start back on Sept. 8. Martinez has a couple favorable matchups to close out the regular season (at PIT, at KC), but with an ERA north of 10.00 around all the missed time, he's difficult to trust and should be viewed as a volatile option.

Mahle allowed three runs on four hits and four walks while striking out three over 2.2 innings in a no-decision against the Cardinals on Sunday.

Mahle issued early walks in each of the first three innings and manager David Bell did not have the stomach for it, as he lifted the right-hander after 77 pitches. It was a departure from what has been the norm for Mahle this season; he has generally displayed good control and command, especially lately, with a 0.93 WHIP and 2.7 BB/9 in his last four appearances entering play Sunday. Wins have been hard to come by on this team, but Mahle's done enough to remain in a starting role the rest of the season. He will look to be more efficient against the White Sox at home next weekend.