MLB Player News

Mahle allowed three earned runs on three hits while walking two and striking out 11 across six innings Tuesday against the Braves. He did not factor into the decision.

Mahle kept the Braves hitless through six innings and looked dominant in the process, not allowing a ball to get out of the infield until the seventh inning. His start unraveled a bit from there, as he allowed two home runs and a double to the three batters he faced in the seventh inning. Still, signs are positive for Mahle as he has generated 32 total swinging strikes over his past two starts, flashing the swing-and-miss stuff that had previously been untapped.

Wheeler surrendered four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out three over four innings in Tuesday's win against the Cardinals. He did not factor into the decision.

Wheeler wasn't missing many bats, as he induced just three swings and misses, but he was dotting the zone and got 20 called strikes. The righty twirled quality starts in each of his first two times out, so this effort marks a bit of a step back. With Jason Vargas (hand) set to make his season debut Saturday, there was some concern that Wheeler may not stay in the rotation next time through, but that seems to be a non-issue now thanks to Matt Harvey's move to the bullpen. Wheeler's lined up for a favorable matchup against the Padres in San Diego on Sunday.

Flaherty, who is considered the leading candidate to start Saturday's game against the Pirates, has already been pulled from his scheduled Wednesday start for Triple-A Memphis, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.

General manager Michael Girsch continues to be somewhat coy about the team's exact plans for Saturday's pitcher, simply saying "we have a pretty good idea of who it's going to be." However, the fact Flaherty has been removed from his next scheduled start lends further credence to his candidacy, as he would have been automatically eliminated from consideration otherwise. Flaherty has already filled in once at the major-league level this season with positive results, racking up nine strikeouts over five innings against the Brewers on April 3.

Davies (2-2) got the win Tuesday, allowing two runs on four hits and three walks while striking out two over six innings against the Royals.

It wasn't an overly dominant outing, but Davies still earned his second straight quality start while only striking out a pair but inducing 11 groundouts. The 25-year-old has sprinkled in a couple of blowups in his five starts, but in the other three he's gone at least six innings and allowed either one or zero runs. He won't overpower anyone -- his 6.4 K/9 is an improvement on last year's 5.8 mark -- but if he keeps holding opposing offenses in check, he should remain worthwhile as a staff filler. Davies lines up to take his next start Sunday against the Cubs.

Hill (finger) said he expects to start Monday against the Diamondbacks, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Hill said his four-inning, 58-pitch simulated outing Tuesday went off without a hitch, clearing the way for him to return from the disabled list to make his next start for the Dodgers. Prior to landing on the shelf with a cracked fingernail, Hill compiled a 6.00 ERA through three starts (15 innings).

Buehler was optioned to High-A Rancho Cucamonga on Tuesday, Eric Stephen of TrueBlueLA.com reports.

This is simply to allow Los Angeles to bring in an additional bullpen arm for the next couple of games. Buehler is still expected to rejoin the Dodgers on Saturday to start one game of the doubleheader against the Giants. The top prospect tossed five scoreless innings in his 2018 big-league debut, allowing just four hits and three walks while striking out five batters in a no-decision against the Marlins on Monday.

Lauer had his contract selected from Triple-A El Paso and will start Tuesday's game against the Rockies.

As expected, Lauer will make his major-league debut after impressing in a trio of starts with the Chihuahuas, compiling a 3.00 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 19:6 K:BB through 18 innings. While the 22-year-old has some pedigree (25th overall pick in 2016), it would be unwise to expect much from him in his first big-league start, as he's facing a difficult Rockies lineup in the most hitter-friendly park in the majors.

Fried was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett on Tuesday.

The pitching prospect will join the big club for the first time all season after impressing in his first three minor-league starts (one with Double-A Mississippi and two with Triple-A Gwinnett). Fried will likely settle into a long-relief role during his time with the big club, though he could also be an option to spot start should an opportunity arise. Miguel Socolovich was designated for assignment to clear a spot on the roster for Fried.

Soroka threw his first career shutout Monday for Triple-A Gwinnett, striking out four while allowing three hits and three walks over seven frames at Rochester.

Soroka's minor-league career has been littered with notable achievements, with him typically serving as one of the youngest and best pitchers in his league, but this performance was a first for the 20-year-old righty. He now sports a 1.99 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 24:5 K:BB in 22.2 innings and leads all International League pitchers with a 69 percent groundball rate. While he is not on the 40-man roster, Soroka appears to be close to ready for a promotion to the big-league rotation, perhaps as soon as an opening lines up with his pitching schedule.

Buehler tossed five shutout innings and allowed just four hits and three walks while striking out five in a no-decision Monday against the Marlins.

Buehler made his first major-league start in place of the injured Rich Hill (finger) and did not disappoint. His fastball was clocked as high as 101.3 mph, but Buehler didn't overwhelm the Marlins by inducing swings and misses -- Miami whiffed just four times against 89 pitches from Buehler. But he did induce eight groundballs as the Marlins weren't able to draw enough hard contact to get any rallies going. Buehler's time in the majors may be short-lived, as Hill isn't expected to be out for long, but the rookie righty is under consideration to start one game of Los Angeles' doubleheader Saturday against San Francisco.