MLB Player News

Ray lasted only five innings in Houston on Wednesday, giving up three runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six.

It took Ray 99 pitches just to get that far, part of a larger trend of inefficiency -- he's failed to pitch even six innings in seven of his last eight starts. Ray owns a fantastic 10.42 K/9, which will keep him on a lot of fantasy rosters (especially in keeper leagues), but his too-high walk rate has combined with some bad luck on batted balls to leave him with a 4.74 ERA so far. That's the bad news. The good news is that his xFIP -- considered one of the best indicators of future ERA -- is a full point lower, and that .360 BABIP should come down. Until that transpires, though, Ray needs to be deployed with extreme caution.

Perez didn't factor in the decision against the Giants on Wednesday. He tossed 5.2 innings in which he allowed four runs (three earned) on five hits and two walks while fanning two.

Perez surrendered his third homer of the season, but other than that he was pretty decent. The 25-year-old righty doesn't get lots of strikeouts and he walks too many batters, but he's done an excellent job to avoid the damage a combination like that might produce. Perez has allowed three or fewer runs in six of his eight starts this season. His next start is scheduled against the Padres on the road Monday.

Wood has been diagnosed with a posterior impingement in his throwing elbow and will be shut down for four weeks, the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

An MRI taken on Wood's injured elbow did not reveal any sort of ligament damage, but with him not even throwing for a month, he is still facing a lengthy absence and could be out at least until the All-Star break. After Wood is reevaluated around the beginning of July, the Dodgers will determine the next step in his recovery.

DeGrom tossed seven impressive frames Wednesday against the White Sox, striking out 10 while allowing just a run on five hits and two walks, but received no decision.

The Mets went on to lose in extra innings despite deGrom letting Chicago get nothing other than a Todd Frazier solo homer. He's now posted consecutive seven-inning, one-run outings, but it's now been a month since deGrom has won a game. The pitcher himself shares the blame for that to some degree, but his offense and bullpen have certainly not been there for him, and it's hard to pin the lack of victories on deGrom when he's still sitting on a sparkling 2.62 ERA. He'll again look for that elusive fourth win Tuesday against Pittsburgh.

Davies (3-3) threw eight shutout innings, allowing just three hits, striking out nine and walking none in a 3-1 victory over the Cardinals on Wednesday afternoon.

This is by far the best start of his career. Davies has posted a scoreless outing two other times in his career, but in neither one did he pitch eight innings or not walk a batter. Additionally, the nine strikeouts were a new career high. The most punchouts Davies had in a start prior to Wednesday was six. He threw 73 of his 105 pitches for strikes, inducing 13 swing-and-misses and recording 24 called strikes. Davies will look to keep this going in his next outing Tuesday against Oakland.

Houser gave up five earned runs over five innings in Thursday's 7-2 loss to Double-A Mobile.

Houser has had a rough go at it so far in 2016 as he's given up four or more earned runs in six of his nine starts. His pitching frustrations are largely due to the number of hits he allows (.292 BAA) resulting in a sub-par 1.48 WHIP this season. The 23-year-old righty will need to lower his ERA and improve his peripherals if he hopes to advance further in Milwaukee's farm system.

Lorenzen is preparing to return to the Reds as a reliever, the Cincinnati Enquirer's C. Trent Rosecrans reports.

He is still working in extended spring training before heading out on a rehab assignment. This was certainly expected, given Lorenzen's struggles as a starter. With most pitchers this can be the kiss of death for their fantasy potential, but Lorenzen has two plus pitches and Reds have the worst bullpen in baseball, so he could find his way to saves before the end of the season if the transition goes off without a hitch.

Hammel (leg) remains on track to start Saturday against the Diamondbacks, MLB.com's Carrie Muskat reports.

He threw a side session Wednesday and the Cubs are confident he will make Saturday's start. As always, Hammel is a solid bet to walk away with the win Saturday, as he is 6-1 through 10 starts, thanks to a 2.09 ERA and the best run support in the league.

Kershaw's next start has been pushed from Friday to Saturday against the Braves, the Los Angeles Times' Andy McCullough reports.

This has little to do with Kershaw, and everything to do with slotting Julio Urias in on Thursday and pushing Kenta Maeda (hand) back a day to Friday. Kershaw faces the Braves on Saturday, which is as lopsided a matchup on paper as owners are likely to see all season long.

Maeda (hand) will not start Thursday as scheduled, but will start Friday against the Braves instead, the Los Angeles Times' Andy McCullough reports.

This is actually excellent news, as he would have faced the Cubs in Wrigley Field on Thursday, and instead gets to face perhaps the worst offense in baseball Friday. X-rays were negative on his hand, and he is obviously in good enough shape not to get skipped, so owners should deploy him with confidence Friday. Julio Urias will take the ball Thursday.