MLB Player News

Lugo allowed a hit and a walk while striking out three over two scoreless innings in a no-decision versus Atlanta on Saturday.

The Royals clinched their playoff spot Friday, so Lugo stayed on turn but only threw 36 pitches (23 strikes) in his final start of the regular season. The light workload should keep him fresh enough to make a start in the wild-card round. He finishes with a 16-9 record, 3.00 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 181:48 K:BB over a career-high 206.2 innings across 33 starts this season. Seattle's Logan Gilbert could surpass Lugo for the major-league lead in innings pitched this year, as the former enters his scheduled start Sunday with 203 frames over 32 starts.

Lopez (shoulder) allowed one run on two hits and struck out nine without walking a batter over six innings in a no-decision versus the Royals on Saturday.

Lopez spent nearly three weeks on the injured list due to right shoulder inflammation, and it appears the time off served him well. He threw just 73 pitches (49 strikes) in an efficient outing. This was his 14th quality start of the season, an impressive run of success after he hadn't regularly pitched as a starter since 2021. Lopez ends the regular season with a 2.00 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 146:42 K:BB across 134.2 innings over 25 starts.

Ragans will not start Sunday in Atlanta, as the team will go with Alec Marsh instead in the regular-season finale, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The Royals will prioritize having Ragans available for the start of the postseason and give Marsh the nod in a game that still has implications for playoff seeding, as noted by Jason Beck of MLB.com. Marsh has worked primarily as a starter this season, but he was recently removed from the rotation in favor of Michael Lorenzen. Ragans will end his regular season with a 3.14 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 223:67 K:BB in 186.1 innings.

Marsh will start in the Royals' regular-season finale against Atlanta on Sunday, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Marsh shifted to the Royals' bullpen after Michael Lorenzen (lower body) returned from the 15-day injured list Wednesday. However, with the Royals clinching a playoff spot Friday, Marsh will start in the regular-season finale, presumably to open the door for Cole Ragans to start in Kansas City's opening game of the AL Wild Card Series. Across 25 outings (24 starts) this season, Marsh has an 8-9 record with a 4.65 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 121:39 K:BB across 124 innings.

Gore did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-3 win over the Phillies, allowing three hits and one walk with nine strikeouts over six scoreless innings.

Gore generated a ridiculous 24 whiffs on 91 pitches and departed with a 2-0 lead that his bullpen was unable to hold. The southpaw was fantastic in September, logging four quality starts and allowing just four total earned runs across five outings. He'll finish the season with a 3.90 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 181:65 K:BB and 10 wins across 166.1 innings.

Wheeler did not factor into the decision in Saturday's 6-3 loss to the Nationals, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks with 11 strikeouts over 6.1 innings.

Wheeler was his usual dominant self other than surrendering a two-run homer in the sixth inning, but the Phillies' offense didn't score a run until the eighth. The NL Cy Young candidate finished the regular season strong, yielding only 15 earned runs over 11 consecutive quality starts. He'll finish the regular season with a 2.57 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 224:52 K:BB while reaching 200 innings for the second time in his career.

Rodriguez (1-8) took the loss against the Marlins on Saturday, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts over five innings.

Rodriguez allowed two runs in the first inning and was charged with another after departing with no outs in the sixth. The 27-year-old rookie yielded three earned runs or fewer in each of his five September outings but also failed to complete more than five frames in any of them. He'll finish the year with a 4.47 ERA, 1.32 WHIP and 85:40 K:BB across 86.2 innings.

Lively (13-10) took the loss Saturday against the Astros, allowing four runs (two earned) on five hits and four walks while striking out four over four innings.

Lively didn't have his best stuff for his final regular-season start as the four walks tied a season high. It's a tough ending for what has otherwise been a great season for the 32-year-old. Lively heads into the playoffs with a 3.81 ERA over 151 innings in his first season with the Guardians.

Verlander (5-6) picked up the win Saturday against the Guardians, allowing three runs on seven hits while striking out five over six innings. He did not issue a walk.

Verlander completed six innings for the first time since May, as he tossed just his sixth quality start of the season. Verlander will have to wait and see if he did enough against the Guardians to make the postseason roster. The 41-year-old has been a shell of his former self as of late, as he entered Saturday's start with a 10.90 ERA in 17.1 innings in September.

Burke (2-0) picked up the win Saturday, allowing two hits and three walks over five scoreless innings in a 4-0 victory over the Tigers. He struck out six.

The start of the game was delayed by over two hours due to rain, but Burke wasn't fazed by having to sit around in the clubhouse before taking the mound. The rookie right-hander tossed 84 pitches (49 strikes) in his final outing of the season, and in four September appearances with the big-league club, Burke put together an eye-popping 1.42 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 22:7 K:BB over 19 innings. The 2021 third-round pick could head into spring training next year as a favorite to secure a regular rotation spot with the White Sox.