Player Notes

White Sox optioned RHP Deunte Heath to Triple-A Charlotte.
Advice: Heath appeared in four games with the White Sox and posted an 11.12 ERA. Donnie Veal will likely be called up to replace him on the active roster.

Burch Smith gave up five runs and three homers in 5 1/3 innings Friday in a no-decision against the Nationals.
Advice: Smith struck out eight and walked just one, but there was no overcoming the homers. He has a 15.63 ERA after two starts, so his rotation spot is tenuous at best.

Jorge De La Rosa was tagged for five runs in five innings Friday in a win over the Giants.
Advice: De La Rosa gave up nine hits and one walk and only registered one strikeout. It was quite a contrast for the southpaw, as he entered Friday's outing with a 14-inning scoreless streak and 12 scoreless frames at Coors Field this season. Still, the Rockies' offense powered him to the victory. De La Rosa is 5-3 with a 3.58 ERA through nine starts this season, but he needs more strikeouts to be interesting again in fantasy leagues.

Madison Bumgarner was knocked around for nine runs (seven earned) over 4 2/3 innings in a loss to the Rockies.
Advice: Bumgarner blew leads of 4-0 and 5-4, including a grand slam by Jordan Pacheco in a five-run fifth inning. The seven earned runs allowed were a season-high and fell one short of his career-high. The southpaw struck out four and walked a pair in the loss. Bumgarner has been money in seven out of his nine starts this season, so we're expecting better results next time out against the Nationals at home.

The White Sox are expected to call up left-hander Donnie Veal from Triple-A Charlotte on Saturday.
Advice: Veal struggled with the White Sox earlier this season, but hasn't allowed a run in four appearances (eight innings) at the Triple-A level. The 28-year-old will provide bullpen depth as a left-handed specialist.
More: Scott Merkin on Twitter

Jarrod Parker pitched seven innings of one-run ball in a no-decision against the Royals on Friday.
Advice: The A's didn't go ahead until the bottom of the eighth, so Parker was denied the win after his best performance so far this season. He struck out five and walked two tonight. After opening up 0-4 with an 8.10 ERA, he's 2-1 with a 4.07 ERA his last four times out.

James Shields took a complete-game loss after giving up two runs in eight innings Friday against the A's.
Advice: Shields struck out nine, matching his season high. Unfortunately, he gave up his fifth and sixth homers of the season. Shields dropped to 2-4 on the season. The Royals have scored a total of five runs in his four losses.

Athletics designated RHP Chris Resop for assignment.
Advice: Hideki Okajima has been called up from Triple-A Sacramento to replace him on the active roster. Resop has an ugly 6.00 ERA and 13/10 K/BB ratio over 18 innings this season. He's making $1.35 million, so it's likely he'll pass through waivers.

Pirates placed RHP Jose Contreras on the bereavement list.
Advice: Contreras is permitted to stay on the bereavement list for a minimum of three days and a maximum of seven. The Pirates have called up Jared Hughes to replace him on the active roster.

Jaime Garcia got the win Friday night against the Brewers despite giving up six runs in 5 1/3 innings.
Advice: Hey, fantasy owners will take it. Garcia allowed six hits and a walk while all the damage was courtesy of a pair of two-run homers by Aramis Ramirez. The southpaw has allowed 11 runs over his last two starts, increasing his ERA from 2.25 to 3.58 on the year. Still, he'll carry a 5-2 record into a start against the Padres next week in San Diego.

Kevin Slowey was knocked around in Friday's loss to the Diamondbacks, surrendering six runs on seven hits in only three innings of work.
Advice: Slowey walked one and struck out one in the brief outing. His undoing on this evening was his inability to keep the ball in the yard, as he allowed three home runs, including a pair of two-run shots to Paul Goldschmidt. Despite his 1-4 record, Slowey has actually pitched very well for the Marlins this season, posting a 3.44 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 37/12 K/BB ratio over his first 52 1/3 innings. He'll attempt to get back on track when he takes on the Phillies at home on Wednesday.

Nick Tepesch pitched decently in a losing effort against the Tigers on Friday, allowing two runs on six hits over his five innings.
Advice: Tepesch also walked three and struck out one in the contest. He shut down the vaunted Tigers offense through the first four innings, but they broke through in the fifth courtesy of an RBI double from Miguel Cabrera and a sacrifice fly from Alex Avila. Tepesch has done a decent job thus far for the Rangers, compiling a 3-4 record, 3.98 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 31/13 K/BB ratio over 43 innings. He'll get the Athletics next at home on Wednesday.

Koji Uehara notched his first save of the season in Friday's 3-2 win over the Twins in 10 innings.
Advice: The Red Sox pulled ahead in the top of the 10th on a sacrifice fly by Jonny Gomes and Uehara sat the Twins down in order to finish off the victory. Junichi Tazawa is supposed to be the fill-in closer, but he was unavailable after throwing 25 pitches over two innings on Thursday night. Oddly enough, Tazawa has yet to get a save opportunity with Andrew Bailey (biceps) and Joel Hanrahan (elbow) both sidelined. And with Bailey due back on Monday, his window is closing.

Rick Porcello was impressive in Friday's victory over the Rangers, allowing only one run on five hits over 5 2/3 innings.
Advice: Porcello uncharacteristically punched out six on the evening while allowing only one walk. The only damage against him on the evening was a solo homer off the bat of Geovany Soto in the fifth inning. After a brutal beginning to the season, the 24-year-old right-hander has rebounded nicely, posting four consecutive quality starts. He'll look to extend that streak to five when he takes on the Twins at home on Thursday.

Padres designated RHP Thad Weber for assignment.
Advice: The move clears a spot for Tim Stauffer on the 40-man roster. Weber made three appearances with the Padres earlier this season and owns a 3.93 ERA and 26/4 K/BB ratio in 34 1/3 innings over six starts in Triple-A. He could draw some interest on waivers.

Joel Peralta filled in admirably with Fernando Rodney potentially unavailable on Friday, recording the final four outs to preserve a two-run lead and earn his first save of the season.
Advice: After the Orioles erupted for six runs in the eighth inning, Peralta was called upon to get the final out of the inning. He then stayed on to pitch a perfect ninth inning and preserve the wild win. With Fernando Rodney struggling, Peralta is certainly worth stashing if speculating for saves in mixed leagues.

Trevor Cahill was terrific in Friday's victory over the Marlins, surrendering only one run on five hits over his eight innings.
Advice: Cahill walked four and struck out four on the night. The only blemish on his evening was an RBI single by Rob Brantly in the seventh inning. The 25-year-old righty has been extremely impressive in the early part of the season, posting a 2.33 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 43/24 K/BB ratio over 58 innings. He'll look to continue that dominance when he does battle against the Rockies in Colorado on Wednesday.