MLB Player News

The 32-year-old right-hander is only expected to need one or two outings there before he’s cleared to rejoin the Astros’ bullpen. Stanek has been sidelined since September 4 when he suffered a right ankle sprain while covering first base. On the season, he boasts a 4.07 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and a 49/21 K/BB ratio across 48 2/3 innings in 53 appearances out of the Astros’ bullpen.

The 35-year-old slugger tagged Zach McAllister for his 409-foot three-run shot in the sixth inning, extending the Blue Jays’ advantage to 6-0. That would be his lone hit in four at-bats on the evening. For the season, Belt is now hitting .252/.369/.477 with 17 long balls and 41 RBI in 392 plate appearances with the Jays.

Varsho opened the scoring in this one with a 380-foot bomb off of Yankees’ starter Luke Weaver in the third inning. The 27-year-old outfielder also worked a walk in the sixth inning and rode home on Brandon Belt’s three-run blast. He finished the evening 1-for-3 and is now hitting .220/.287/.388 with 19 homers, 57 RBI and 16 stolen bases on the season.

Chapman victimized Yankees’ starter Luke Weaver for his 346-foot opposite-field blast in the fourth inning — extending the Blue Jays’ early lead to 2-0. It was Chapman’s first home run in nearly two months, so it’s nice to have that weight lifted off of him before the postseason begins. On the season, the 30-year-old third baseman is now slashing .240/.339/.420 with 15 long balls and 53 RBI.

The 34-year-old right-hander allowed just five hits on the night while issuing one free pass. Bassitt got 18 swings and misses on 99 pitches on the night — five each on his sinker and cutter — while registering an elite CSW of 39 percent. He wraps up the regular season with a 16-8 record, 3.60 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and a 186/59 K/BB ratio over 200 innings in 33 starts on the season. It’s the first time in Bassitt’s career that he has eclipsed the 200-inning plateau, and he’s one of just four hurlers in baseball this year to do so.

The 25-year-old outfielder reached on a one-out infield single in the third inning and promptly swiped second base, but the Yankees were unable to cash him in. Florial finished the day 1-for-3 and is now hitting .255/.350/.353 with zero homers, seven RBI and three stolen bases on the season.

On the plus side, the right-hander racked up six strikeouts on the night while issuing only one base on balls. All of the damage done against him came via the long ball — with Daulton Varsho slugging a solo homer in the third inning and Matt Chapman belting one of his own in the fourth. Weaver got nine swings and misses on 77 pitches on the night, registering a CSW of 25 percent. The 30-year-old hurler finishes the 2023 season with a 3-6 record, 6.40 ERA, 1.58 WHIP and a 109/40 K/BB ratio over 123 2/3 innings in 29 appearances (25 starts) between the Reds, Mariners and Yankees.

The Orioles moved to 100-59, and since they have a tiebreaker over the 97-win Rays, they’re officially AL East champs and also the No. 1 seed in the AL. Kremer allowed just two hits and walked one tonight to finish the season with a 4.12 ERA. He’s likely to be Baltimore’s third starter in the ALDS.

It’s a shame that Wells lost service time because of fatigue, but at least it looks like he’ll be a factor in the postseason out of the bullpen for the Orioles. He’s pitched four perfect innings since rejoining the team as a reliever.

How about those Red Sox? Sale gave up two runs over 16 innings in his last three starts and has an 0-1 record to show for it. Overall, he went 6-5 with a 4.30 ERA and a 125/29 K/BB ratio in 102 2/3 innings. His upside seems to be in question now, but his velocity and strikeout rate is much the same as during his glory days. Health is obviously an issue and likely will remain one, but it’s quite possible he’ll post a much better ERA next year if the Red Sox do anything about their league-worst defense.

Teheran struck out four. His 4.40 ERA in 11 starts and three relief appearances for the Brewers isn’t particularly impressive, but it’s partly a product of his bad outings being really bad; 22 of the 35 earned runs he allowed came in three starts. He’s going to deserve a major league deal this winter, even if it’s just to serve as a swingman initially.