MLB Player News

Bassitt won't pitch during the Athletics' final series of the regular season, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Bassitt tossed 3.1 innings as the starter in Tuesday's loss to the Mariners, and manager Bob Melvin confirmed Friday that the right-hander is done for the season. However, the 32-year-old isn't dealing with an injury and likely would have been available if the Athletics were still in contention for a postseason spot. Bassitt made a career-high 27 starts this season and posted a 3.15 ERA and 1.06 WHIP in 157.1 innings.

Taillon (ankle) threw a successful bullpen session Friday and is in the mix to start Sunday's season finale against the Rays, Brendan Kuty of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.

Taillon exited his start Tuesday against Toronto after aggravating the ankle injury that sent him to the injured list in early September. He threw off flat ground Thursday and off a mound Friday, however, so the setback doesn't seem to be a significant one.

Strider had his contract selected by Atlanta on Friday.

Strider is in the midst of his first professional campaign and is now poised to make his MLB debut in the final days of the regular season. He spent most of the season at Double-A Mississippi and posted a 4.71 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 95:29 K:BB across 63 innings (14 starts). The 22-year-old is unlikely to be a factor on Atlanta's postseason roster given his inexperience, but it will still be a good opportunity to get his feet wet in the majors.

Cabrera (finger) was placed on the 10-day injured list Friday.

Cabrera was lifted after three innings Thursday due to a blister on his right middle finger, so he had already pitched for the final time this season regardless of whether or not he was put on the IL. The 23-year-old ended 2021 with a 5.81 ERA, 1.63 WHIP and 28:19 K:BB across 26.1 innings (seven starts). He should be back to full health early in the offseason.

Strider will have his contract selected by Atlanta within the next couple days, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

The 23-year-old was promoted to Triple-A Gwinnett at the start of the week and is now poised to join the major-league club after one appearance with the Stripers. Strider began the season at Low-A August but was quickly promoted to High-A Rome, and he spent most of the campaign with Double-A Mississippi. The 2020 draft pick has played well in his first year of professional ball with a 3.64 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 153:40 K:BB in 94 innings across all four minor-league levels.

Wainwright agreed to a one-year extension with the Cardinals on Friday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Wainwright appeared to be fading as expected throughout his mid-to-late thirties before suddenly bouncing back over the last two seasons, posting a combined 3.08 ERA over 42 starts. While that number outpaces his peripherals, his 3.76 FIP and 3.95 xFIP both indicate that he's still very much a useful pitcher. Next year will be Wainwright's age-40 season, and it's likely that it will be his final one, as he indicated over the summer that he'd retire after the 2021 or 2022 season. Longtime teammate Yadier Molina also signed a one-year extension back in August with the intention of retiring after the year, so the battery mates will probably ride off into the sunset together.

Syndergaard will serve as the team's opening pitcher in Sunday's season finale in Atlanta, Anthony Rieber of Newsday reports.

As he did Tuesday against the Marlins in his 2021 debut, Syndergaard is expected to be limited to one inning in the opener role. Manager Luis Rojas hasn't revealed which bulk reliever the team will deploy behind Syndergaard, or if the Mets will treat the season finale as a bullpen day. Sunday's outing could be Syndergaard's last with New York, as he's set to become an unrestricted free agent this winter.

Williams will start Saturday's game in Atlanta, Anthony Rieber of Newsday reports.

Williams' most recent appearance came in the second game of a doubleheader with the Marlins on Tuesday, when he followed opener Noah Syndergaard and covered four innings out of the bullpen. Though Syndergaard is on tap to serve as an opener again in Sunday's season finale, the Mets won't have Williams follow him, as the right-hander will instead get the chance to pick up his 16th start of the season a day earlier. Because he'll be returning to the mound on three days' rest, Williams likely won't be asked to cover more than 4-5 innings.

Cueto allowed a run on three hits and a walk with three strikeouts over 2.1 innings during Thursday's 5-4 win over Arizona.

The right-hander has been a starter for virtually all of his career, but he finds himself on the outside of San Francisco's rotation after returning from an elbow injury. Cueto logged the most innings of any Giant in this one after starter Scott Kazmir (hamstring) only got one out. For the year, Cueto has a 4.08 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 98:30 K:BB in 114.2 innings. It's unclear if he'll enter the postseason as a starter or a bulk reliever, but it's trending toward the latter.

Bieber didn't factor into the decision Thursday against the Royals after allowing one run on four hits across three innings, fanning one.

Bieber has managed to make two starts since returning from a shoulder injury, and while the team played it safe with his workload, he allowed just one run through six innings in that span. Cleveland's ace ends the regular season sporting a 3.17 ERA through 96.2 innings.