MLB Player News

Kirby (8-7) was handed the loss against the Rays on Wednesday, allowing eight runs (seven earned) on 10 hits with one strikeout across two innings.

Kirby endured the roughest outing of his career, failing to work into the third frame for the first time in his 108 MLB starts. The appearance went down as the shortest of his four-year tenure and matched the second-highest run total he's ever allowed in a game. Kirby was peppered for 10 hits by the 17 batters he faced, consisting of eight singles and two doubles. It was an uncharacteristic barrage of hard contact for the typically steady starter, who will try to put this outing behind him as he heads into his next scheduled turn against St. Louis. Kirby has a 4.47 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 104:26 K:BB across 104.2 innings this season.

Houser (8-4) earned the win over the Mariners on Wednesday, allowing four runs on four hits and one walk while striking out eight over seven innings.

Houser cruised through the first five frames and allowed just one baserunner, but things fell apart in the sixth inning, when he surrendered all four of his runs. Despite the stumble, Houser still logged a season-high eight strikeouts and was good enough to take home the win. Since being acquired by the Rays, however, he's allowed four or more runs in four of six starts, posting a 4.91 ERA and 27:10 K:BB across 33 innings during that stretch. The 32-year-old will look to replicate the strong early innings from Wednesday's outing in his next scheduled start against his former team, the White Sox.

Kayfus went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a sacrifice fly and a run scored in Wednesday's 8-1 win over the Red Sox.

Kayfus recorded doubles in the second and sixth innings before adding a sac fly in the eighth to bring home Cleveland's final run. The performance was a welcome turnaround for the 23-year-old, who entered the contest batting just .100 with two RBI and 10 strikeouts over his previous 10 games. On the season, Kayfus is now slashing .203/.264/.380 with 10 RBI and 11 runs scored across 88 plate appearances.

Cantillo (4-3) earned the win over the Red Sox on Wednesday, allowing one run on five hits and two walks while striking out seven over six innings.

Cantillo was impressive against a tough Boston lineup, completing six innings for the first time this season. The southpaw's lone blemish came in the fourth inning when Boston scratched across a run on three singles, but he quickly rebounded to retire seven of the final eight batters he faced. Wednesday's performance continued a strong stretch in which Cantillo has now allowed exactly one run in three straight outings. Across his nine starts this year, the 25-year-old has posted a 3.68 ERA and 51:24 K:BB over 44 innings.

Ellard will serve as the White Sox's opening pitcher for Thursday's game against the Twins, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Ellard will work as an opener for the second time in four days after coughing up one unearned run in 1.2 innings in Monday's 6-5 win over Minnesota. Jonathan Cannon is expected to pitch in bulk relief after Ellard exits the game.

Leiter (9-8) took the loss Wednesday as the Rangers were downed 2-0 by the Diamondbacks, giving up two runs on three hits and three walks over six innings. He struck out eight.

The 25-year-old right-hander delivered his third straight quality start, and eighth of the season, on 99 pitches (64 strikes), but Leiter got no run support from the Texas offense. In nine outings since the All-Star break, Leiter has posted a 2.66 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 57:24 K:BB over 47.1 innings as he establishes himself as a key part of the team's rotation plans for the present and future. Leiter is scheduled to make his next start at home early next week against the Brewers.

Topa (1-5) was charged with the loss and a blown save in a 4-3 defeat to the White Sox on Wednesday, allowing one run on two hits and no walks with one strikeout in two-thirds of an inning.

That's consecutive blown saves for Topa, who has now given up at least one run in four straight outings. Given the right-hander's recent struggles, it wouldn't be surprising to see manager Rocco Baldelli turn to a different high-leverage arm, such as Cole Sands or Kody Funderburk, for Minnesota's next save chance. Topa has a 4.03 ERA and 1.45 WHIP over 58 innings this season.

Mize (13-5) picked up the win over the Mets on Wednesday, allowing one run on five hits over five innings in a 6-2 victory. He struck out three without walking a batter.

The right-hander was lifted after only 69 pitches (48 strikes), his lowest workload since Aug. 4 -- denying Mize a shot at his eighth quality start of the season. The Tigers' caution is understandable considering he stumbled to a 5.81 ERA across five starts in August, but his spot in the rotation for September is secure, and the team may be attempting to build in some rest for him ahead of the playoffs. Mize lines up to make his next start on the road next week against the Yankees.

Leasure picked up the save in a 4-3 win over the Twins on Wednesday, allowing one hit and one walk with no strikeouts in a scoreless ninth inning.

Leasure turned in his sixth save of the season, and it was also his fourth consecutive scoreless outing. The right-hander had a 4.62 ERA for the year through July 28, but he's been exceptional out of the Chicago bullpen since the start of August. Over his last 14 innings, Leasure has a 2.57 ERA, 0.71 WHIP and 22:4 K:BB with four saves to enhance his ERA to 4.08 for the campaign.

Quero went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a 4-3 win over the Twins on Wednesday.

Quero left the yard for the fifth time this season, and it was his first homer since Aug. 12 versus Detroit. The switch-hitting backstop has a decent .737 OPS during his rookie year, and he's fared even better over his last 18 games. During that span, Quero is batting a torrid .351 with two big flies, two doubles, 10 RBI and eight runs scored across his last 57 at-bats.