MLB Player News

Braves pitcher Alex Wood took the loss Tuesday, giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits and two walks in 6 2/3 innings while striking out six in his team's 3-2 defeat against the Pirates.

Wood (11-11) took hold of a 2-0 lead after two innings, but the Pirates managed an unearned run in the fourth inning before tying the game on a fifth-inning home run. Wood watched Pittsburgh take a lead on an RBI double in the sixth but still ended up with his 11th straight quality start. He owns a 2.78 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 170:45 K:BB ratio in 171 2/3 innings. Wood's slated to start the season finale Sunday against the Phillies.

Pirates pitcher Gerrit Cole earned a win Tuesday, giving up two earned runs on four hits and two walks in seven innings while striking out eight in his team's 3-2 victory over the Braves.

Cole (11-5) has racked up four straight wins, striking out 29 batters and walking only three while posting quality starts each time during that stretch. The win Tuesday clinches a playoff spot for the second straight season. Cole owns a 3.78 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 126:40 K:BB ratio in 131 innings. He's slated to face the Reds in Sunday's season finale.

Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto earned a win Tuesday, giving up just one earned run on four hits and one walk in eight innings while striking out seven in his team's 3-1 victory over the Brewers.

Cueto (19-9) had a rough outing in his last start, but he bounced back in a big way Tuesday, limiting Milwaukee to just a sixth-inning solo home run. He owns a 2.29 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 235:65 K:BB ratio in 235 2/3 innings. He'll go for win No. 20 in the season finale against the Pirates Sunday.

Marlins pitcher Henderson Alvarez earned a win Tuesday, giving up five hits and one walk in 7 2/3 scoreless innings while striking out two in his team's 2-0 victory over the Phillies.

Alvarez (12-6) has turned in three straight quality starts and continues to excel despite a pedestrian strikeout rate. He owns a 2.70 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 108:33 K:BB ratio in 180 innings. He's slated to face the Nationals in the season finale Sunday.

Phillies pitcher Cole Hamels was stuck with a loss Tuesday, surrendering two earned runs on seven hits and one walk in seven innings while striking out four in his team's 2-0 defeat against the Marlins.

Hamels (9-8) put together his seventh straight quality start Tuesday, with the Marlins scrapping together a run in the fourth inning and another in the fifth to pull out a win. Hamels owns a 2.47 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 191:58 K:BB ratio in 196 2/3 innings. He's set to face the Braves in the season finale Sunday.

Marlins pitcher Anthony DeSclafani has lost his appeal of a three-game suspension, which he'll begin serving Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

DeSclafani was suspended for hitting Brewers outfielder Carlos Gomez with a pitch on Sept. 11 after teammate Giancarlo Stanton was struck in the face by a pitch earlier in the game. He'll be eligible to return to action Friday.

The Cubs announced the probable starters for the final series of the season Tuesday, tabbing Eric Jokisch to face the Brewers Friday, Tsuyoshi Wada to take the mound Saturday and Kyle Hendricks to pitch the season's final game Sunday.

With the news, Edwin Jackson has been moved to the bullpen for the remainder of the season.

Mets starting pitcher Jacob deGrom has pitched for the last time in 2014, according to ESPN.com. The Mets will replace him for his final turn Saturday against the Astros. The rookie was thought to have an innings limit of 180-185 and has thrown 178 2/3 between the majors and minors this season.

Those innings were mostly spectacular. Though deGrom wasn't considered an elite prospect coming into the year, he's a leading candidate for NL Rookie of the Year with a 9-6 record, 2.63 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 9.2 strikeouts per nine innings. Over his final 15 starts, he went 9-2 with a 1.90 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 10.0 strikeouts per nine innings.

Michael Wacha recovered well enough from Saturday's start against the Reds to get another turn in the rotation, as the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that he will face the Diamondbacks this weekend.

However, in the three starts Wacha has made since returning from time missed due to a stress fracture in his right shoulder, he has not had his usual success in employing his changeup. Cardinals manager Mike Matheny acknowledged that Wacha is having to rely on his other offerings, telling the Post-Dispatch, "For him to be able to try to pitch without what is normally his No. 1 weapon and hold a team down like he did takes some adjustment. He’s getting better."

According to BrooksBaseball.net, Wacha got swings-and-misses on 16.9 percent of his changeups in 15 starts prior to his disabled list stint. In the three starts since, he has induced only one whiff out of 21 changeups (4.8 percent).

Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright dominated the Cubs at Wrigley Field on Monday, hurling seven scoreless innings to improve to 20-9 on the year. He allowed three hits and one walk while striking out eight in an 8-0 victory.

Wainwright has won 20 games for the second time in his career. He owns a 2.38 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP over 32 starts (227 innings). His final start of the regular season will come Sunday in Arizona.