MLB Player News

Darvish (8-7) allowed three hits and two walks while striking out nine over six shutout innings to earn the win over the Rangers on Saturday.

Darvish has turned in three quality starts over four outings since the All-Star break. This was a good bounce-back for him after the Pirates tagged him for seven runs in 4.1 innings in his last start. Darvish continues to battle inconsistency this season with a 4.53 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 117:38 K:BB through 107.1 innings over 19 starts. The 36-year-old is lined up for a home start against the Dodgers next week.

Wainwright (3-5) took the loss Saturday, allowing four runs on seven hits and three walks while striking out three batters over six innings against the Cubs.

Wainwright gave up a two-run homer in each of the third and fourth frames, which accounted for all of the scoring against him and was enough to saddle him with the loss. The right-hander at least managed to give St. Louis six frames, logging his longest outing since June 17. Wainwright has lost four of five starts since that performance against the Mets, and he's seen his season ERA balloon to 7.18. That's on pace to easily be the worst over a season in the 41-year-old's big-league career, as is his unintimidating 4.9 K/9.

Perez (8-4) allowed four runs on eight hits and three walks while striking out just one in 5.2 innings, taking the loss Saturday versus the Padres.

Perez gave up all four runs in the second inning, and the Texas offense mustered just four hits and three walks in the game. It was the second outing in a row in which Perez gave up four runs in one frame, though he was able to overcome it last Sunday versus the Dodgers. The southpaw now has a 4.98 ERA, 1.51 WHIP and 69:41 K:BB through 108.1 innings over 20 starts this season. Perez is tentatively lined up for a home start versus the Marlins next weekend, but either he or Dane Dunning may be at risk of losing his spot in the rotation once the Rangers activate Max Scherzer and Nathan Eovaldi (elbow) shakes off his injury.

Taillon (5-6) earned the win over St. Louis on Saturday, pitching six innings and allowing one run on two hits and four walks while striking out four batters.

Taillon ran into trouble in the first inning, allowing the first two batters he faced to reach base, with one of them scoring. An inning-ending double play off the bat of Nolan Arenado ended the threat, and after Taillon walked the bases full in the third, he retired the final 10 batters he faced en route to his third quality start of the campaign. The veteran right-hander held an ugly 6.93 ERA following a poor performance against Cleveland on July 2, but he's since lowered that mark to 5.46 on the back of a strong four-start stretch during which he's yielded just four runs over 25.1 frames.

Flexen (0-5) allowed six runs (five earned) on four hits and six walks while striking out four over 3.2 innings to take the loss versus the Athletics on Saturday.

The altitude usually makes its presence known on batted balls, but Flexen was far too generous with free passes to have an acceptable outing in his Rockies debut. His six walks Saturday doubled his previous season high. The right-hander is now at an 8.08 ERA, 1.93 WHIP and 33:25 K:BB over 45.2 innings between the Rockies and the Mariners this season. While it was far from an encouraging effort, Colorado's rotation needs arms capable of covering innings, so Flexen could stick around for a while. He's tentatively lined up for a road start in St. Louis next week.

Blackburn (2-2) allowed two runs on nine hits and struck out seven without walking a batter over six innings to earn the win Saturday over the Rockies.

Blackburn matched his season high in giving up nine hits, but he was able to escape Colorado relatively unscathed. This was his second quality start of the season, and it was also the second time he's completed six frames. The right-hander trimmed his ERA to 4.83 with a 1.57 WHIP and 56:18 K:BB through 54 innings over 11 games (10 starts). He's tentatively projected for a home start versus the Giants next weekend.

Teheran (2-5) took the loss against Atlanta on Saturday, allowing nine runs on 11 hits and no walks while striking out four batters over five innings.

Teheran was impressive against Atlanta in his previous start, allowing one run over six innings in a no-decision. The rematch Saturday against his former club didn't go anywhere near as well, as the right-hander gave up six runs in the first inning and a season-high nine runs overall. Atlanta tagged Teheran for three homers, accounting for five of the runs against him. The veteran hurler made for a good story when he opened the campaign with a 1.53 ERA over his first six starts after appearing in just one big-league game across the previous two seasons. However, things have mostly soured for Teheran since, as he holds an 0-3 record and an 8.89 ERA in his subsequent five outings.

Elder (8-2) earned the win over Milwaukee on Saturday, allowing one run on four hits and no walks while striking out three batters over seven innings.

Elder was both efficient and effective in the outing, needing just 86 pitches (59 strikes) to get through seven innings. The right-hander pitched to contact, notching just six swinging strikes and three punchouts, but picked up his 13th quality start of the campaign -- tied for fourth-most in the majors. Elder looked like he could be hitting a wall when he allowed a combined 14 runs (12 earned) across a pair of starts in mid-July, but he's since bounced back to finish the month with consecutive strong outings during which he's yielded just three runs over 13 frames.

Fried (forearm/illness) threw 79 pitches and allowed two runs over 4.1 innings during his rehab start with Triple-A Gwinnett on Saturday, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

The left-hander has given up five runs on 11 hits across 7.2 frames in his past two minor-league rehab outings, but he's more importantly continued to build up his workload. Saturday's outing was expected to be the final one of Fried's rehab assignment before he rejoins Atlanta's rotation, potentially lining him up to pitch Friday against the Cubs.

Wells (7-6) took the loss Saturday, allowing three runs on three hits and three walks over 2.2 innings in an 8-3 loss to the Yankees. He struck out one.

Wells was pulled after throwing 63 pitches Saturday and failed to make it through the third inning. The outing added to an already concerning trend for Wells, who covered just 6.1 frames in his previous two appearances. Despite the short start, Wells issued three walks, marking his fifth straight outing allowing multiple walks. Though Wells has faced some of baseball's best offenses over his last three starts in the Dodgers, Rays and Yankees, fantasy managers should be cautious with Wells moving forward, especially considering he's projected to face the Blue Jays next time out.