MLB Player News

McCullers (forearm) threw all of his pitches and sat between 92 and 93 mph with his fastball in a live batting practice session Friday, Sonja Chen of MLB.com reports.

McCullers continues to ramp up his activity and is expected to throw a few more live batting practice sessions before advancing to simulated games and ultimately a rehab assignment. With several steps still needed prior to his activation, McCullers is expected to be activated at some point in August.

Manning (biceps/shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Toledo next week, Joey Pollizze of MLB.com reports.

Manning resumed mound work last weekend, and he threw an up-down bullpen session Friday. The right-hander will likely require several rehab appearances since he's been on the injured list for two and a half months, but it's possible that he'll be cleared to rejoin the Tigers sometime in late July or early August.

Flexen is scheduled to make his next start Tuesday in Washington against the Nationals rather than in Sunday's series finale with the Blue Jays in Seattle, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

After getting the Independence Day start against the Padres, Flexen appeared primed for a two-start week, but the Mariners instead used Wednesday's off day to reorder their rotation. Logan Gilbert, who started in Tuesday's 6-2 win over San Diego, will instead get the two-start week while he takes the hill Sunday on his normal four days' rest.

Morton (5-3) picked up the win Friday, giving up two runs on four hits and three walks over seven inning in a 12-2 rout of the Nationals. He struck out seven.

Aside from a two-run blast by Juan Soto in the third inning, Morton was firmly in control, firing 69 of 105 pitches for strikes before exiting. The win was his first in over a month but the veteran right-hander has been pitching like an ace again recently, reeling off four quality starts in his last five trips to the mound and missing the fifth by only one out. Over that stretch, Morton has a 1.60 ERA, 0.77 WHIP and 42:8 K:BB through 33.2 innings.

Whitlock (hip) allowed two runs on six hits and struck out three over two innings for Triple-A Worcester on Friday. The right-hander made his first rehab appearance after hitting the injured list June 10.

Whitlock threw 26 strikes among 34 pitches over the fifth and six innings and wasn't hit particularly hard, per Katie Morrison of MassLive.com; however, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre batters were able to bunch hits together. "They jumped him, really," WooSox manager Chad Tracy said. "That happens in rehab appearances, they know guys are trying to get back on their feet, so they kind of jumped him. Couple soft hits, there were a couple squared up." Most of the damage came in the fifth when both runs scored on four hits; the sixth was cleaner but the RailRaiders managed another two hits. Whitlock is rehabbing for a return to Boston as a multi-inning reliever.

Bassitt (6-6) took the loss Friday as the Mets were downed 5-2 by the Marlins, giving up two runs on six hits over 6.1 innings. He struck out three without walking a batter.

The right-hander effectively missed only one turn through the rotation while on the COVID-19 list and delivered his fourth straight quality start and 10th of the season upon his return. Bassitt left the game with the Mets down 2-1 and got stuck with the loss. The 33-year-old will take a 3.94 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 98:26 K:BB through 96 innings into his next outing.

Lopez (6-4) picked up the win Friday, allowing one run on four hits and a walk over five innings in a 5-2 victory over the Mets. He struck out five.

A third-inning solo shot by Brandon Nimmo was the only real blemish on Lopez's line, but the right-hander wasn't efficient and left after 93 pitches (64 strikes) with the Marlins clinging to a 2-1 lead. He also hit another batter, his sixth HBP in his last five starts. Lopez's early-season success has faded, and since the beginning of June he carries a 4.50 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 37:13 K:BB through 40 innings over seven outings.

Cortes didn't factor into the decision in Friday's 12-5 win over the Red Sox, giving up four runs on eight hits and two walks over 3.2 innings. He struck out four.

The southpaw got staked to a 4-0 lead before he even stepped on the mound, but Cortes had his own struggles and couldn't stick around long enough to capitalize on the run support. His early season magic appears to have worn off, as the 27-year-old has failed to last longer than five innings in four of his last last six starts, stumbling to a 5.34 ERA over that stretch thanks to a 2.8 HR/9 despite an otherwise solid 1.36 WHIP and 27:7 K:BB through 28.2 innings.

Blackburn (6-4) gave up six earned runs on seven hits and a walk while striking out six over four-plus innings to take the loss in an 8-3 defeat to the Astros on Friday.

Blackburn got off to a very good start by facing the minimum number of batters through three innings and striking out five of them. However, he started to unravel when Alex Bregman went deep in the fourth. Blackburn wasn't able to right the ship and was pulled without having recorded an out in the fifth after another home run to Martin Maldonado. The 28-year-old right-hander began the season on a high note with a 2.15 ERA through the end of May, but he appears to be coming back down to earth after being shelled by the Astros and posting an ERA of 5.13 in June. Look for him to start next week at Texas.

Urquidy (8-3) gave up three earned runs on four hits and a walk while striking out two over eight innings to earn the win in an 8-3 victory over the Athletics on Friday.

Urquidy got plenty of run support and was effective over eight innings to pick up his eighth win of the season. The 27-year-old right-hander took advantage of the weak Athletics lineup by pitching to contact all night long. He induced seven groundouts and seven flyouts while allowing one home run. Urquidy has now strung together five quality starts in a row and has lowered his ERA to 4.08 from a season-high 5.04 on June 9. He is expected to make his next start at home in a rematch against the Athletics on Friday.