Lance McCullers (arm) lasted 3.1 innings Sunday against the Angels, allowing two earned runs on four hits while walking one and striking out four. He didn't factor into the decision in a 7-5 loss.

Making his first start since Sept. 6 due to an arm injury, it's likely that McCullers was on a pitch count (he tossed 39 of his 63 pitches for strikes), especially given the team's upcoming playoff run. Nonetheless, the 23-year-old is now three strikeouts shy of tying his career-high 129 set as a rookie back in 2015 -- which is a number he should be able to eclipse in his final start of the season Saturday in Boston.

Jordan Montgomery will start either Tuesday or Wednesday's game against the Rays, George A. King of the New York Post reports.

Montgomery was originally slated to start Sunday before being scratched, and it wasn't immediately clear if he'd get another turn in the rotation before the season wrapped up. Though manager Joe Girardi didn't commit to the exact order, Montgomery would line up against the Rays either way. If he pitched Tuesday though, the lefty could potentially see a second start during the week on Sunday if the New York Yankees don't have anything meaningful to play for in the regular season finale.

Tyler Skaggs didn't factor into the decision Sunday in Houston, allowing four earned runs on six hits while walking two and striking out three over five innings. The Los Angeles Angels won 7-5.

Thanks to another no-decision, Skaggs' record for the season sits at a dismal 2-6 through 15 starts. The 26-year-old's WHIP (1.38) and ERA (4.48) are right in line with his career marks of 1.34 and 4.53, though, so owners shouldn't be shocked by his performance this year. He'll toe the rubber one last time in 2017 on Friday against the visiting Mariners.

Ariel Miranda , who gave up five earned runs on four hits and a walk over an inning in his most recent appearance versus the Indians on Saturday, could log additional relief outings during the season's final week, Josh Horton of MLB.com reports.

The Cuban southpaw has sputtered over his last six starts, generating a 6.81 ERA and allowing 11 home runs and a .383 wOBA in 37 innings during that span. Miranda has allowed a majors-high 37 round trippers overall while making a team-high 29 starts. Manager Scott Servais has already determined that Miranda won't log another start, but he also doesn't want to shut him down altogether for the final week, hence the possibility of him making a couple of relief appearances as the season winds down.

Judge, Aaron went 2-for-4 with a pair of home runs and three RBI in Sunday's loss to the Blue Jays.

The homers were number 47 and 48, leaving Judge just one shy of tying the rookie mark in that department. With a .296 average and 11 homers in September, it appears that Judge has fully shrugged off his second-half slump and will now get to play all seven remaining games at home in the friendly confines of Yankee Stadium.

Alex Cobb is likely to skip his last scheduled start of the season this coming Thursday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Cobb has fired a career-high 179.1 innings this season in what is his first full campaign since Tommy John surgery. The 29-year-old right hander has provided mostly encouraging results, posting a 12-10 record, 3.66 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. Cobb played the 2017 campaign on a one-year, $4.2 million contract, so it remains to be seen if he's tossed his last game in a Tampa Bay Rays uniform.

Dwyane Wade agreed to a buyout settlement with the Chicago Bulls and is now an unrestricted free agent, ESPN reports. Wade agreed forgo $8 million of his $23.8 million salary in the deal.

Cleveland, San Antonio, Oklahoma City and Miami are seen as the leading candidates to sign Wade. He'll likely make the decision more on his chances to advance in the playoffs rather than money as Miami can only offer him $4.2 million, the highest of those four suitors.

Justin Patton (foot) has been able to do some shooting recently, but has yet to be cleared for running or practices, Jerry Zgoda of the Star Tribune reports.

The Minnesota Timberwolves ' 2017 first-round pick continues to work his way back from a broken fifth metatarsal in his left foot, which he had surgery performed on at the start of July. The fact that he's yet to be cleared for running likely means he won't be available for the start of training camp in the next few days, though there's yet to be word on if he's expected back for the season opener. When healthy, Patton will likely battle with Cole Aldrich for the backup center minutes behind Karl-Anthony Towns, but the practice time he misses because of his injury could ultimately slow his development and keep his playing time limited early in the season.

Alex Len officially signed his one-year, $4.2 million qualifying offer with the Phoenix Suns on Sunday, Shams Charania of Yahoo! Sports reports.

After attempting to work out an extension with the Suns throughout the offseason, Len was never able to get an offer that he felt he deserved. He'll instead sign a one-year qualifying offer and will bank on receiving more interest as an unrestricted free agent next year. Look for Len to spend the upcoming season behind Tyson Chandler at center, though with Alan Williams going down with a partially torn meniscus earlier this month, Len should be able to surpass the 15.1 minutes per game he averaged a season ago.

Nemanja Bjelica (foot) returned to practice Friday, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports. "He did well. He did contact. He did almost everything today," said head coach Tom Thibodeau.

Bjelica underwent surgery back in March to address a break in his left foot and was limited to non-contact work in the weeks leading up to training camp. He'll likely be eased back into action during practice and preseason games, but this is a positive sign that he'll be ready for the start of the regular season.

Enes Kanter was sent to the Knicks alongside Doug McDermott in a trade for Carmelo Anthony on Saturday, Adrian Wojnawrowski of ESPN reports.

With this trade to the Knicks, Kanter has the potential to become the starting center, competing with Willy Hernangomez and Joakim Noah. He could also see some time at power forward, backing up Kristaps Porzingis. In his final season with the Oklahoma City Thunder , Kanter averaged 14.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in 21.3 minutes per game across 72 games.

Doug McDermott has been sent to New York, alongside Enes Kanter, in exchange for Carmelo Anthony, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports.

McDermott spent just 22 games with the Thunder after being traded from the Bulls, and averaged 9.0 points, and 2.7 rebounds in 2016-17 across his time with both teams. In his three seasons, he has been impressive as a deep threat and as a scorer, but lacks defensively. With the New York Knicks , he may see a bigger role, as he'll face much less competition for playing time than he would have with Oklahoma City in 2017-18. There will likely be more updates on his role in the Knicks rotation going forward.

James Lodge was sent to AHL Manitoba on Saturday, TSN reports.

Lodge has a relatively high profile as Winnipeg's 2013 third-round (84th overall) draft selection, but we're still waiting for him to make his NHL debut. Last season, the Pennsylvania native recorded eight goals and 10 helpers (albeit with a minus-10 rating) over 63 games with AHL Manitoba.

Travis Sanheim is making a strong case to crack the Opening Night roster with the Philadelphia Flyers , Philly.com reports.

The 6-foot-4 defenseman from Manitoba has a goal and an assist through a pair of exhibition games. It's obvious from his draft position -- the Flyers took him 17th overall in the 2014 NHL Entry Draft -- that Sanheim is a special talent, but Robert Hagg and Sam Morin are also bidding for the chance to be with parent club from the start.

Justin Dowling was waived Saturday for the purpose of reassignment to AHL Texas, Mark Stepneski of the Dallas Stars ' official site reports.

Dowling suffered from a concussion before the start of training camp. The depth center only appeared in one of a possible three preseason contests, but he didn't register so much as a single shot on goal and went minus-1.

Scott Darling (undisclosed) is expected to start Monday's preseason game against the Oilers.

The Carolina Hurricanes were originally hoping Darling would be well enough to play Saturday against the Capitals, but Cam Ward wound up getting the nod instead. Assuming he is able to play a full contest Monday with no setbacks, Darling's status as the team's No. 1 netminder does not appear to be in doubt at this point.

Jesse Gabrielle has been assigned to AHL Providence.

Gabrielle, who logged 35 goals and 64 points, to go along with 88 PIM in 61 games for WHL Prince George last season, will thus gain some seasoning at the AHL level to start the coming season. The 5-foot-11, 204-pounder draws comparisons to veteran Brad Marchand thanks to the level of energy he brings to the table, as well his tendency to be an on-ice agitator.

Zane McIntyre has been assigned to AHL Providence.

McIntyre is a candidate for a promotion when injuries hit the big club, but his demotion likely signals that veteran Anton Khudobin is in line to secure the Boston Bruins ' top backup goalie job behind Tuukka Rask.