MLB Player News

Murakami went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and an additional run scored during Friday's 6-1 win over Tampa Bay.

Murakami extended the White Sox's lead to 4-1 in the third inning with a two-run homer off Nick Martinez, and the slugger came around to score in the sixth on a deep ball from Colson Montgomery. The long ball was the 24th of the season for Murakami and extended his on-base streak to 17 games, during which he has gone 16-for-62 with four home runs, 10 RBI, five doubles and 16 runs scored.

Guerrero (hamstring) is back in the lineup for Friday's matchup against the Cardinals, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

During Thursday's day off, Guerrero tested his hitting and running to determine his availability for Friday's series opener. The 27-year-old will man first base and bat second for Toronto.

The Orioles announced this week that Mountcastle (foot) suffered a "significant" oblique strain while warming up for his first rehab game and will now be out a couple more months, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Mountcastle, who has not played since April 11, will miss even more time after straining his oblique prior to his first rehab game. Orioles general manager Mike Elias said they "can't expect him back anytime soon." The 29-year-old is now unlikely to play again this season after registering just eight games played from late March to early April.

Manzardo is out of the lineup for Friday's matchup against Arizona.

Despite smacking a two-run homer and drawing two walks in the series finale against Cincinnati on Thursday, Manzardo will ride the bench for Friday's series opener against the Diamondbacks. Rhys Hoskins will take over at first base and bat cleanup for Cleveland.

Contreras went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk Thursday in a 5-4 win over the Athletics.

The Red Sox trailed by a run going into the eighth inning, but they tied the score on a solo homer by Wilyer Abreu. One batter later, Contreras launched another long ball to center field to provide what turned out to be the game-winning run. The homer was Contreras' 23rd of the campaign, one shy of the regular-season career-high mark he established with the Cubs in 2019. With 67 RBI on the campaign, he's also on pace to surpass the career-best 80 runs driven in that he recorded last year.

Kurtz (forearm) will start at first base and bat leadoff Thursday against the Red Sox.

Kurtz made an early exit from Wednesday's contest after taking a pitch off his forearm, but he's been cleared to return to the starting nine after MRI results came back clean Thursday. The 23-year-old slugger owns an .890 OPS through 426 plate appearances on the season, but he's gone just 1-for-12 with a three-run homer and seven strikeouts since returning from the injured list Saturday.

Clemens went 1-for-4 with a grand slam in Thursday's 4-3 victory over the Royals.

Down to his final strike, Clemens launched a Matt Strahm slider over the right-field fence for a grand slam, giving the Twins an improbable 4-3 victory. It was Clemens' 19th homer of the season, matching his career high, and his fifth off a left-handed pitcher. The 30-year-old, who got the start in right field Thursday, has gone 10-for-33 (.303) over his last eight games, boosting his slash line to .244/.300/.493 across 382 plate appearances this year with 53 RBI, 51 runs scored and seven stolen bases.

Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said Wednesday that Kurtz will undergo an MRI on Thursday after X-rays on his left forearm were "kind of unclear," Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Kurtz was forced to depart Wednesday's contest versus the Red Sox after being struck on the forearm by a Patrick Sandoval pitch. The Athletics should offer an update on the star first baseman's status later Thursday. Kurtz just returned from the injured list less than a week ago after missing time with a thumb injury.

Murakami went 1-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and three runs scored Wednesday against the Yankees.

Murakami delivered a clutch home run in the eighth inning to tie the game at 4-4. He also scored a game-tying run in the 11th frame. After starting slowly following his return from the injured list in mid-July, Murakami is now in the midst of a six-game hitting streak, during which he's gone 8-for-24 with three home runs, seven RBI and eight runs scored.

Manzardo went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and an additional RBI in a 6-1 win over the Reds on Wednesday.

Manzardo reached base safely three times in Wednesday's game as he continues his mini power surge over his last seven games. In those games, Manzardo has three homers and eight RBI to go along with a .714 slugging percentage, but he is struggling overall on the season with a .154 average (4-for-26) and 12 strikeouts since the break and is batting just .210 for the season.