MLB Player News

Nola (6-5) pitched seven scoreless inning with eight strikeouts during Monday's win over Pittsburgh. He allowed just four hits and a walk.

Nola entered with just three runs allowed and 17 strikeouts through 14.1 innings over his prior two starts, so this was another dominant outing from the youngster. His pitch arsenal matches his pedigree, and the sky is the limit moving forward. It's unlikely he continues to cruise through lineups like he has in his past three starts, but there's also plenty of room for negative regression before it's even worth considering fading him at this stage of the game. Additionally, sometimes everything just clicks and there's no looking back. Nola lines up to face San Diego at Citizens Bank Park in his next start.

Strasburg (back) will take the mound for Monday's game against the Mets, Dan Kolko of MASN Sports reports.

Strasburg experienced back spasms during his most recent start June 28 against the Cubs, but he still struck out 13 batters during that outing and came out of his bullpen session over the weekend no worse for wear. The Nationals don't seem worried about the newly minted All-Star's health heading into the final stretch of the first half, so fantasy owners can feel comfortable keeping him active as he prepares for a two-start week.

Wentz tossed six scoreless innings for Low-A Rome on Saturday in a win over Columbia, allowing only one hit and one walk while striking out nine.

It was the 19-year-old's best start of the season so far, but Wentz has been impressive all year and now boasts a 3.03 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 80:23 K:BB in 71.1 innings. The Braves' No. 8 prospect won't be rushed through the system, especially considering just how stacked the organization is when it comes to high-upside arms, but Sally League hitters appear to be overmatched against the lefty, so a promotion to High-A before the end of the year could be in the cards.

Walker allowed two runs -- one earned -- on six hits and a walk while striking out eight batters through seven innings during Sunday's win over Colorado. He didn't factor into the decision.

There have been some peaks and valleys for Walker this season, and he also missed roughly a month with a blister issue. However, with a 3.30 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 8.0 K/9, he's been a fairly reliable fantasy option when toeing the rubber. His 3.57 FIP is his lowest mark over the past three years, too. Walker has a strong offense to provide run support, and while it would be nice to see better game-to-game consistency from him, it's difficult to nitpick the emerging righty. Walker projects to face the Reds at Chase Field in his next start.

Marquez allowed three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out six batters over 5.2 innings during Sunday's loss to Arizona. He didn't factor into the decision.

Arizona owns a strong offense, and Chase Field is a hitter-friendly venue, so this was a solid outing from Marquez. He is fighting an uphill battle calling Coors Field home, and the Diamondbacks and Dodgers are two potent offenses that are in his division. There aren't going to be many soft matchups for Marquez going forward. Still, his 4.41 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 8.0 K/9 aren't crippling marks, so he's definitely an option to stream or utilize as a potential low-priced flier in daily contests. He projects to make his next start at home against the White Sox.

Teheran allowed two runs on three hits and four walks while striking out eight batters through 6.1 innings during Sunday's win over Oakland. He didn't factor into the decision.

The eight punchouts were a season high for Teheran, and despite allowing another home run, this was easily one of his better starts of 2017. The long ball has been a serious problem of late, as Teheran owns a 2.7 HR/9 through his past nine games and a 1.9 mark for the year. It's probably still best to be selective with his matchups, too. He projects to face Washington at Nationals Park in his next start, which is obviously a daunting test.

Martinez surrendered seven runs -- five of which were earned -- on seven hits across five innings in a 7-2 loss to Washington on Sunday. He also walked four and struck out three.

Things did not go well for the Cardinals' ace in prime time, particularly when it came to facing Bryce Harper, who hammered a two-run home run in the first and third innings. The three strikeouts matched Martinez's lowest total of the season (back on April 9), while the four free passes were the most since the whopping eight he dished out on April 15. However, with 11 quality starts in his last 13 outings, owners need not worried about Martinez, as he's been one of the solidest fantasy assets on the mound in the National League this season.

Maeda was tagged for five earned runs on eight hits in just 3.2 innings in a loss to the Padres on Sunday. He also walked one and struck out one.

The Padres did the bulk of their damage in the second inning, putting up three runs. Meanwhile, the Dodgers bullpen surrendered just three hits (and one walk) the rest of the game, but it wasn't enough as the offense couldn't get out from under an early five-run deficit. Maeda is now 6-4 on the year with a pedestrian 4.56 ERA, 72 strikeouts and 1.19 WHIP across 12 starts. He'll likely remain in the rotation at least until Brandon McCarthy (knee) returns from the disabled list.

Williams gave up two runs on three hits and one walk while striking out three in six innings against the Giants on Sunday.

He now has three straight quality starts with an impressive 17:3 K:BB in 19 innings over that span. Regression is likely coming, but he has done enough to gain a fairly strong hold on a rotation spot going into the All-Star break. His next start will come Friday in Wrigley Field.

Ryu will undergo further scans on his left foot Monday, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Though initial X-rays cleared Ryu of any structural damage to the foot issue that bothered him in his most recent start against the Angels on Wednesday, he's apparently still hurting a bit and will have his turn in the rotation pushed back as a result. The Dodgers have already ruled him out from starting during the three-game series with the Diamondbacks that begins Tuesday, but if the secondary scans show no new damage to Ryu's foot, he could be cleared to pitch over the weekend against the Royals.