Player Notes

Jeremy Hellickson pitched a season-high eighth innings and allowed two runs Wednesday against the Blue Jays.
Advice: Hellickson left with a one-run lead, but that was blown right away by Fernando Rodney. It was still a nice outing for Hellickson, going down as just his third quality start of the season. He allowed four hits, walked one and struck out four.

Derek Lowe has cleared waivers.
Advice: Lowe will now either accept an assignment to Triple-A Round Rock or opt to become a free agent. The 39-year-old righty posted a 9.00 ERA in 13 innings with Texas.
More: Jon Heyman on Twitter

Stephen Strasburg pitched seven innings of one-run ball, striking out seven, in a no-decision against the Giants on Tuesday.
Advice: Strasburg has allowed just two earned runs in his last three starts, dropping his ERA from 3.45 to 2.66. That overstates how well he's pitched -- he's given up nine unearned runs this season -- but tonight's performance was maybe the most impressive one he's put together this year and should give him something to build on.

Bud Norris held the Royals scoreless through six innings but took a no-decision as the Astros lost on Tuesday.
Advice: Norris left with a 3-0 lead, but the bullpen proceeded to allow seven runs in the next three innings to rob him of a win. He has a 3.86 ERA this year, but he's struck out just 35 batters through 56 innings and is likely due for some regression. His next start will come Monday against the Rockies.

Jarrod Parker dropped to 2-6 after surrendering three runs in seven innings Wednesday against the Rangers.
Advice: Another solid outing for Parker, even if he did allow two homers. He's turned in three straight quality starts, and he has a 22/9 K/BB ratio in four turns this month after finish April with an 18/16 K/BB ratio in six starts.

David Freese (thumb) is out of the Cardinals' lineup again Wednesday.
Advice: He's now missed three straight games due to swelling around his right thumb where he needed three stitches for a small cut. The Cards are worried that cut could split open, so they're playing things cautiously. Freese could be back in there Friday after the off day Thursday. Matt Carpenter is at third again Wednesday, with Daniel Descalso covering second.
More: MLBlogs.com

Jorge De La Rosa improved to 6-3 after limiting the Diamondbacks to one run in 5 1/3 innings Wednesday.
Advice: De La Rosa has been strong so far in his first full year back from back from Tommy John surgery. The guess here is that he will wear down this summer -- he's pitched more than 130 innings just once in his career -- but he's been quite an asset for the Rockies so far.

After entering a tie game in the ninth, Bobby Parnell was charged with three runs and a loss Wednesday against the Reds.
Advice: Parnell's only mistake was Shin-Soo Choo's leadoff double. After that came a groundout, an intentional walk, an excuse-me double down the first-base line that Ike Davis could have handled but hoped would go foul, another intentional walk and then a bloop single. Parnell didn't deserve to have three runs added to his total, taking his ERA from 0.93 to 2.21. And he probably doesn't need to be intentionally walking batters when the league is hitting .160 against him this season.

Alex Rios went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI as the White Sox beat the Red Sox on Tuesday.
Advice: The double was Rios' 11th of the year, and he's now hitting .306/.369/.559 this season. As is his history, this was supposed to be a down season for the 32-year-old, but he's bucking the trend thus far. He now has 26 RBI through 44 games.

Red Sox manager John Farrell said on WEEI in Boston that Shane Victorino (hamstring) is out of the lineup again Wednesday.
Advice: Victorino hasn't played since he left Monday's game with left hamstring tightness, but Farrell said he is "moving in the right direction." Consider him day-to-day.
More: Evan Drellich on Twitter

Ike Davis went 0-for-2 with two walks on Wednesday and had a couple of key miscues in the field in the Mets' loss to the Reds on Wednesday.
Advice: Neither play went as an error, but they both could be considered mental errors. In the seventh, Davis stayed back on a grounder rather than charge it, allowing the runner to score from third and giving the Reds a 4-2 lead. In the ninth, with the score tied 4-4, Davis elected to let a grounder go down the line, figuring it would curl foul. It didn't, giving Brandon Phillips an RBI double. In Davis' defense, the ball really did seem likely to go foul and the Reds almost certainly would have scored the go-ahead run had he handled it. In truth, Davis' decision looked much worse than it was, but since it turned out so badly, it's more fuel for those who want him demoted.

Jake Odorizzi's next start has been pushed back to next Monday against the Marlins.
Advice: Odorizzi originally lined up to face the Yankees on Sunday, but Alex Cobb will get the call instead. The 23-year-old right-hander gave up three runs in five innings Monday against the Indians and makes for a fine streaming option in mixed leagues now that he has a favorable matchup against Miami.
More: Marc Topkin on Twitter

Marco Scutaro went 0-for-3 with two walks Wednesday against the Nationals, snapping his 19-game hitting streak.
Advice: That's fine: Scutaro has now reached base safely twice in 14 games in a row, which is more impressive anyway.

David Ross (concussion) is hopeful to begin a minor league rehab assignment Thursday with Double-A Portland.
Advice: Ross hasn't played since May 11 due to concussion-related symptoms. However, he has increased activity in recent days and could rejoin the Red Sox this weekend if all goes well.
More: Evan Drellich on Twitter

Matt Dominguez is out of the Astros' lineup on Wednesday night because of left quad tightness.
Advice: The Astros have a scheduled team off day on Thursday, so giving Dominguez the night off Wednesday affords him two full days of rest. The 23-year-old third baseman is batting just .245/.275/.371 in 43 games this season but he's one of the best defensive infielders in MLB.
More: Brian McTaggart on Twitter