MLB Player News

Mountcastle went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and two strikeouts in Friday's 3-1 win over Cleveland.

Mountcastle put the Orioles on the board with his two-run blast in the seventh inning that proved to be the difference in Friday's low-scoring contest. The 24-year-old has been dominant across the last four games, as he's gone 6-for-16 with three home runs, a double and seven RBI during that time.

Vaughn (undisclosed) was seen taking batting practice prior to Friday's game against the Tigers, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Vaughn is currently on the COVID-19 injured list, but manager Tony La Russa said earlier Friday that the rookie could return as soon as Saturday. Given his participation in Friday's batting practice, a Saturday return now appears even more likely.

Dalbec is out of the lineup Friday against the Yankees, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Dalbec is 2-for-23 with 15 strikeouts over his past eight games and will head to the bench Friday. Marwin Gonzalez will start at first base in the series opener at New York.

Manager Tony La Russa said Friday that Vaughn could be activated from the COVID-19 injured list as soon as Saturday, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Vaughn was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Thursday, but general manager Rick Hahn noted that he thought it could be a short stay on the IL for the rookie slugger. Nothing is official at this point, but based on La Russa's comments, Vaughn has a solid chance of being activated by the end of the weekend series against the Tigers.

Gurriel went 3-for-4 with a solo home run during Thursday's loss to the Red Sox.

With the Astros trailing 5-0 in the bottom of the ninth, Gurriel took Brandon Workman deep to get Houston on the board. After becoming the only Astro to not strike out against the Red Sox on Wednesday, the 36-year-old was the only Astro to score a run versus Boston on Thursday. Overall this season, Gurriel has put together a strong slash line of .310/.380/.519 with eight home runs and leads the Astros in hits (58), RBI (40) and batting average (.310).

Torkelson has appeared in four games for High-A West Michigan since suffering a hamstring injury May 23, going 5-for-16 with two home runs, two doubles, three walks, seven RBI and five runs.

Torkelson has returned with a bang from the sore left hamstring, which kept him out of the lineup for just under a week. The 22-year-old was touted for his plus power and plus hit tool coming out of Arizona State in 2020, but he had difficulty making consistent contact in the Grapefruit League this spring before he was assigned to High-A. Torkelson has assuaged some of those concerns so far during the regular season, as he's striking out at a manageable 22.9 percent clip through 96 plate appearances.

Kirilloff is not in Thursday's lineup against the Royals.

The Twins' top prospect has started 12 straight games, with three of those coming against left-handed starters, so while a lefty (Kris Bubic) is on the hill for Kansas City, this seems like just a standard day off. He is hitting .265 with zero home runs, 14 strikeouts and four walks in 49 at-bats since returning from a wrist injury May 21. Kyle Garlick will start in right field while Trevor Larnach starts in left.

Vaughn was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Thursday. "Andrew is currently asymptomatic and our hope is that, similar to our other IL placements of this nature, he will return shortly to the active roster," general manager Rick Hahn said in a statement.

Hahn said that no other players are affected at this time. Vaughn missed Monday's doubleheader due to allergies, but he he returned to action Tuesday and went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Gavin Sheets was recalled from Triple-A in a corresponding move while Jake Lamb draws the start in left field.

Olson went 3-for-4 with an RBI single, a double and a run in a win over the Mariners on Wednesday.

The slugging first baseman continued wielding a red-hot bat in the shutout win, as Olson now is 7 for-14 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI, a walk and five runs over his last three contests. The surge has pushed Olson's season slash line -- which now stands at an impressive .274/.361/.570 -- to its highest figures since May 6.

Lowe is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rockies.

Lowe's first time out of the lineup all season will unfortunately come at Coors Field. His .246/.354/.396 season slash line isn't anything special for a first baseman, but his job remains very safe with Ronald Guzman out for the year following knee surgery. Charlie Culberson will get the nod at first base Thursday.