MLB Player News

Gilbert tossed seven scoreless innings Sunday against the Angels, allowing just two hits and no walks while striking out nine. He did not factor into the decision.

Gilbert was magnificent once again and had another strong start wasted by the bullpen. Gilbert exited with a 2-0 lead that vanished in the eighth inning after two walks and a three-run homer by Jo Adell put the Angels in front for good. Sunday was the fifth time this season that Gilbert did not allow a run in a start and his nine strikeouts tied a season high. The 27-year-old will head into the break with a 2.79 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 124:25 K:BB in 132.1 innings. Since he pitched Sunday, Gilbert will not be available to throw in Tuesday's All-Star Game.

Dunning (shoulder) recorded no strikeouts and gave up one hit and no walks over two scoreless innings in his rehab start Sunday with Double-A Frisco.

Dunning exited the contest after throwing just 18 pitches (13 strikes), but the Rangers had been targeting him for around 35 pitches heading into the rehab outing, per MLB.com. Despite not striking out a batter, Dunning was efficient during his brief time on the mound, with the lone hit he allowed being an infield single. He may have been able to build up his pitch count through a bullpen session after he exited the contest, and assuming he avoided any setbacks with the right shoulder in the rehab start, he's expected to be ready to return from the 15-day injured list shortly after the All-Star break, per Jeff Wilson of RangersToday.com. Dunning has made 12 of his 15 appearances this season as a starter, but he's in line to serve as a multi-inning reliever upon coming off the IL.

Maeda came out of the bullpen and threw 3.2 shutout frames during Detroit's walk-off win over the Dodgers. He allowed one hit and struck out five batters.

For the first time this season, Maeda worked a bulk-relief role and the results looked great. He threw 34 of 55 pitches for strikes and generated 11 whiffs. He was crushed for 15 runs in just 6.1 innings over his previous two outings. Maeda will enter the second half without a clear role in Detroit. He's registered an unsightly 6.88 ERA and 55:23 K:BB through 69.1 frames.

Estes (4-4) earned the win Sunday, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits and a walk over six innings against the Phillies. He struck out five.

Estes began his start in an early hole after he allowed a one-out homer by Trea Turner in the first. However, the A's provided 10 runs prior to Estes being removed from the game, ultimately tallying 18 runs to allow the young righty to cruise to his fourth win. It was a nice bounce-back effort for Estes, who had allowed eight runs over just 1.2 innings during his previous start, which had come on the heels of his first complete-game shutout. Estes enters the All-Star break with a 5.29 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 49 strikeouts over 12 starts spanning 63 innings.

Mercado (1-2) took the loss Sunday, allowing six runs on five hits and three walks over four innings against Oakland. He struck out two.

Mercado tossed a couple of scoreless innings to start his outing, but things began to unravel in the fourth. Mercado allowed three two-run homers in total -- a fourth-inning blast by Brent Rooker, a fifth-inning long ball by Lawrence Butler, then a second dinger by Rooker in the sixth that ended Mercado's day. Following a promising beginning to his career that saw Mercado allow one run in five innings against the Cubs during his first career start, things have gone downhill, with the rookie right-hander having allowed 11 earned runs over his last two appearances spanning 5.2 innings.

Singer was saddled with the loss Sunday, allowing four runs on eight hits and a walk over 2.2 innings against the Red Sox. He struck out three.

Singer couldn't put things together Sunday, allowing separate two-run homers in each of the first and second innings, then loading the bases in the third prior to being pulled. It was the shortest outing of the season for Singer, who entered the contest having allowed only one earned run during each of his previous four starts. He enters the All-Star break ranked 10th in the majors with a 3.20 ERA to go along with a 1.23 WHIP and 99 strikeouts over 19 starts spanning 104 innings.

Marquez didn't factor into the decision Sunday against the Mets, allowing three runs on five hits and four walks across four innings. He struck out three.

Marquez made his first MLB start since April 26, 2023, after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He threw 70 pitches before being pulled. The 28-year-old managed to keep the Mets off the scoreboard until the fourth frame but was hit hard in the fourth. He allowed five of the first six batters he faced in the inning to reach safely, including a two-run home run to Pete Alonso. Marquez walked Francisco Lindor with the bases loaded for the Mets' third run but was able to avoid further damage by getting Brandon Nimmo to ground out with the bases loaded and end the inning. Marquez has previously been a reliable fantasy option, but fantasy managers should proceed with caution considering the right-hander's lengthy absence. The Rockies will play six consecutive games at Coors Field coming out of the All-Star break, though it's unclear when exactly Marquez will pitch.

Quintana (4-6) took the loss Sunday against the Rockies, allowing five runs on six hits and a walk across 5.2 innings. He struck out eight.

Quintana surrendered four home runs Sunday, the most he's allowed in a start in his career. Fortunately for the left-hander, three of the long balls occurred with no runners on base, with Ezequiel Tovar's two-run homer in the first inning being the only non-solo shot. The outing was Quintana's first real hiccup in a month, as he racked up a 0.89 ERA and 27 strikeouts across his last five starts (30.1 innings) and had thrown 14 consecutive scoreless innings leading up to Sunday's start. Quintana enters the All-Star break with a 3.91 ERA with a 71:33 K:BB across 96.2 innings.

Scherzer didn't factor into the decision Sunday against Houston, allowing one run on four hits and one walk with six strikeouts across four innings.

Scherzer didn't complete five innings for the first time since being activated from the injured list June 23 and threw only 71 pitches after tossing 95 pitches in his previous start. Though he didn't go deep into the contest, Scherzer was very effective, with the lone run against him coming in the third on a solo home run by Jake Meyers. The 39-year-old has logged a 2.96 ERA and a 23:4 K:BB across 27.1 innings heading into the All-Star break.

Blanco (9-4) took the loss Sunday against the Rangers, allowing two runs on two hits and two walks with five strikeouts across six innings.

All the damage against Blanco came in the first inning, when Josh Smith launched a two-run home run. However, the Astros managed to score only one run until the ninth inning, sticking Blanco with the loss despite logging a quality start. The 30-year-old has been outstanding this season, owning a 2.56 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP over 109.0 innings at the All-Star break. Before 2024, Blanco had a career 4.78 ERA in 58.1 innings and had primarily been utilized out of the bullpen, making him one of baseball's biggest breakouts so far.