Phillies claim right-hander Jerome Williams from Rangers, expected to start him Tuesday - MLB

From Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer …

Two of the worst pitching staffs in baseball jettisoned Jerome Williams this season, but the veteran righthander has found a new home with the pitching-starved Phillies.

On Sunday, they claimed Williams off waivers from Texas. The 32-year-old Hawaiian is expected to start Tuesday against one of his other former teams, the Los Angeles Angels.

That’s the rotation spot that belonged to Roberto Hernandez, who was traded to the Dodgers last week. Sean O’Sullivan filled in Thursday but the Phillies designated him for assignment on Sunday afternoon to clear the roster spot that Williams now occupies.

Williams has posted rough 6.71 ERA in 57 2/3 innings this season between the Astros and Rangers.

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CINCINNATI — The Los Angeles Dodgers placed pitcher Noah Syndergaard on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a blister on the index finger of his right throwing hand.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the timetable for Syndergaard’s return is unknown despite the 15-day designation.

“The physical, the mental, the emotional part, as he’s talked about, has taken a toll on him,” Roberts said. “So, the ability to get him away from this. He left today to go back to Los Angeles to kind of get back to normalcy.”

Syndergaard allowed six runs and seven hits in three innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night, raising his ERA to 7.16.

Syndergaard (1-4) has surrendered at least five runs in three straight starts.

Syndergaard has been trying to return to the player he was before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the better part of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Roberts said Syndergaard will need at least “a few weeks” to both heal and get away from baseball and “reset.”

“I think searching and not being comfortable with where he was at in the moment is certainly evident in performance,” Roberts said. “So hopefully this time away will provide more clarity on who he is right now as a pitcher.

“Trying to perform when you’re searching at this level is extremely difficult. I applaud him from not running from it, but it’s still very difficult. Hopefully it can be a tale of two stories, two halves when he does come back.”