MLB Player News

Rockies starter Juan Nicasio turned in a solid outing but did not factor in the decision Sunday afternoon against the Padres.

Nicasio pitched five scoreless innings and took a no-hitter into the sixth before surrendering two runs, including a solo home run by Nick Hundley. The right-hander permitted two runs on four hits and a walk while striking out seven in six innings of an 8-7 victory. 

Nicasio has allowed five runs combined in his last two starts (12 innings). He is scheduled to make his next start Friday at home against Philadelphia. 

Pirates starter Gerrit Cole will be called up for Tuesday's game against San Francisco, MLB.com reports.

Cole, 22, is the Pirates' top prospect and was rated a top-10 prospect across baseball by Baseball America and MLB.com heading into the season. He owns a 2.91 ERA with 47 strikeouts over 12 starts at Triple-A Indianapolis. Over his two minor league seasons, Cole posted a 2.84 ERA with 183 strikeouts over 200 innings.

Marlins manager Mike Redmond said Sunday starting pitcher Henderson Alvarez, who has been sidelined all season with a shoulder injury, is close to starting a rehab assignment, according to The Palm Beach Post. However, no date for Alvarez to begin his rehab assignment has been set.

Pirates starting pitcher Charlie Morton went six-plus innings strong in his minor-league rehab assignment for Triple-A Indianapolis Saturday.

Morton allowed two runs on six hits while striking out four in 6 1/3 innings of work in his final rehab start. He is expected to be activated at some point next week. The right-hander allowed just eight earned runs in 19 innings pitched at Triple-A.

The Pirates officially named top pitching prospect Gerrit Cole the start for Tuesday's game against the Giants, confirming earlier reports.

Cole, who entered the season as Baseball America's No. 7 overall prospect, has a 2.91 ERA in 12 starts for Triple-A Indianapolis. The top pick in 2011's draft has struck out 47 batters in 68 innings, while walking 28. He has not allowed a run in his last 19 innings of work heading into his major-league debut.

It is not yet clear whether the injury-riddled Pirates' rotation will require his services for the remainder of the season, or if he will just make one or two starts before being sent down. 

Nationals starting pitcher Stephen Strasburg made it through a bullpen session Saturday, and has a scheduled return date from the disabled list.

Assuming he can make it through a simulated game Tuesday, Nationals manager Davey Johnson told MASNSports.com, Strasburg is scheduled to come off the disabled list to start June 16 at Cleveland. Strasburg is eligible to return from his lat injury that day and looks to miss the minimum amount of time, as long as he avoids a setback. 

All indications are that Mets pitching prospect Zack Wheeler could make his major league debut during a doubleheader at Atlanta on Tuesday, June 18, SNY reports Saturday. 

Wheeler struggled a bit in his start with Triple-A Las Vegas Friday, but it sounds as if he'll make just one more start at that level before the Mets call him up. 

Mets pitching prospect Zack Wheeler may be on his way to the big leagues very shortly, the New York Post reports Saturday. 

Wheeler started for Triple-A Las Vegas Friday and was cruising until allowing three runs in the fifth inning over 38 pitches. He was removed before he could qualify for the win with only two outs in the inning. 

Still, Wheeler probably made his next-to-last start for Vegas before he makes his Mets debut. Manager Wally Backman has been extremely pleased with Wheeler. 

"You get hurt when you pitch up in the zone," Backman said. "I thought he pitched a good ballgame until [the fifth], and then he pitched the ball up in the zone."

Before the game, Backman said: "He's getting close. His timetable is definitely running short here at Triple-A."

The No. 8 prospect in all of baseball entering the season, according to MLB.com, has gone 4-1 at Las Vegas over 12 starts with a 4.14 ERA. He's struck out 66 over 63 innings. 

Dodgers starting pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu turned in a dominant performance but was unable to factor in the decision Friday night against the Braves.

Ryu surrendered a run-scoring single to Dan Uggla in the fourth inning for his only damage of the night. He yielded one run on six hits and one walk while striking out six in 7 2/3 innings pitched.

Ryu has allowed two runs or fewer in seven of his last eight starts. His ERA has gone from 4.01 to 2.72 over that span. He is scheduled to make his next start Wednesday at home against the Diamondbacks. He allowed two runs in 6 1/3 innings pitched in his previous meeting against Arizona on April 13.

Diamondbacks starting pitcher Patrick Corbin turned in a stellar performance but did not factor in the decision Friday night against the Giants.

Corbin fired six scoreless frames before surrendering a run-scoring single to Gregor Blanco in the seventh for his only damage of the night. He yielded one run on seven hits while striking out four in 7 1/3 innings pitched.

Corbin has allowed eight earned runs combined in his last three starts (21 1/3 innings). He is scheduled to make his next start Wednesday against the Dodgers in Los Angeles. He allowed three hits in six scoreless innings in his previous meeting against the Dodgers on April 12.