MLB Player News

Walker (finger) threw a successful three-inning simulated game Tuesday and is hopeful that he will be able to start Sunday in Miami, FOX Sports Arizona reports.

He said it felt weird at first when he was throwing without protective tape on his hand, but eventually all of his pitches, including his changeup, felt good, which was a big step. Walker will now prepare to start Sunday, continuing with treatment on the blister on his right index finger. If he was dropped for some reason in shallower formats, now is the time to pick him up. He has a 3.46 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 46:18 K:BB in 52 innings this season.

Nicolino suffered a left index finger contusion in Tuesday's start against the Phillies and is day-to-day, Tim Healey of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports. He gave up zero runs on zero hits and zero walks while striking out one in three innings before being removed.

While his line before the injury was impressive, it's important to remember that it was his first time through a mediocre Phillies lineup. His career 4.57 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and horrific 9.8 percent strikeout rate in 163.1 career innings in the majors are more indicative of what kind of pitcher he projects to be moving forward. It remains to be seen if he will be able to make his next scheduled start Sunday against the Diamondbacks.

Wacha (2-3) lasted three innings in Tuesday's loss to the Dodgers, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits and three walks. He struck out four.

Wacha enjoyed a pair of scoreless frames to begin the game, but he unraveled in the third and yielded four runs on four hits and two walks, running up his pitch count before his removal after the end of the inning. The right-hander was quite solid through his first seven outings of the season, but nine earned runs in seven innings over back-to-back matchups with the Dodgers have bloated his ERA over a full run to 3.99. He will look to get back on track Sunday against the underachieving Cubs.

Ray (5-3) pitched a complete-game shutout, allowing four hits with 10 strikeouts in Tuesday's win over Pittsburgh.

Ray is in some kind of groove right now. After shutting down the Pirates on Tuesday night, he has now run his scoreless innings streak to 24.2. In his last three starts -- all wins -- Ray has allowed just 11 baserunners and struck out 25. With the extended stretch of stellar work, Ray looks a lot like the potential breakout candidate many tabbed before the season. He ranks third in the National League in strikeouts and sixth in wins. He will look to keep putting up zeroes when he faces the Marlins in Miami on Sunday.

Velasquez left his start Tuesday with a right elbow flexor strain.

This is not good news, but it is also not surprising, considering Velasquez's fastball velocity dipped from 95 mph to 90.9 mph before he left Tuesday's start in the second inning. He should be considered out indefinitely, and it would not be surprising if he ends up needing season-ending surgery. Velasquez allowed two runs on two hits while recording one strikeout and just four outs total against the Marlins before exiting. He has a 5.76 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 53:21 K:BB in 50 innings this season.

Velasquez left Tuesday's start against the Marlins in the second inning with an apparent injury, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Three straight Marlins had hit the ball hard off Velasquez, whose velocity was down to 90.9 mph on the last fastball he threw. He struck out Giancarlo Stanton on a 95 mph fastball in the first inning. His status will be updated when the team releases the exact nature of the injury.

Manager Dave Roberts confirmed Ryu will make a spot start Wednesday against the Cardinals, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

With Alex Wood set to miss his next turn in the rotation while on the disabled list, the Dodgers will turn to Ryu to start in his place Wednesday. The 30-year-old has already started seven games for the Dodgers this season, posting a 4.75 ERA and 36:15 K:BB across 36 innings of work. Given Wood is only expected to miss one start, Ryu's performance Wednesday could determine whether he is shifted back to the bullpen or kept stretched out as a starter.

Teheran (4-4) gave up three earned runs on six hits and a walk over 6.1 innings in Monday's 6-3 win over the Angels. He struck out five.

Teheran's problems all stemmed from the long ball, as he gave up a trio of solo shots to Andrelton Simmons, Albert Pujols and Luis Valbuena. He allowed just three singles otherwise and was able to throw 61 of 91 pitches for strikes overall. The 26-year-old right-hander now has back-to-back quality starts after being touched up for nine runs on eight hits over three innings by the Blue Jays on May 18, and he's managed to lower his ERA from 5.47 to 4.82. The right-hander will look to keep things moving in the right direction when he takes on the Reds at Great American Ball Park on Saturday.

Hill (2-2) turned in a solid outing Monday, holding the Cardinals to one run over five innings and striking out four in a 5-1 win.

This performance represented a marked improvement over his last start when he walked seven batters and allowed five runs. Hill told the Orange County Register that a mechanical adjustment led to Monday's improved control on the mound. Blister issues and inconsistency have diminished he 37-year-old's fantasy value, but his dominance last season should keep fantasy owners intrigued as they wait for the southpaw to put it all together. Hill will look to carry his success into his next start when he faces the Brewers on Saturday.

Hendricks (4-3) allowed five runs on six hits (one homer) while striking out five without a walk over five innings in Monday's 5-2 loss to the Padres.

Most of the damage to Hendricks' line came on a grand slam off the bat of Hunter Renfroe in the fourth inning. After getting off to a strong start -- Hendricks retired the first 10 batters he faced -- he ultimately allowed seven of his final 11 hitters to reach base. The disappointing outing was the right-hander's worst of the year, and it comes on the heels of a streak in which he allowed two runs or fewer in six straight starts. Despite an average 7.5 K/9, Hendricks remains valuable in fantasy because of his solid control and groundball tendencies on one of the best all-around rosters in baseball.