MLB Player News

Kemp is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Tigers, Charlotte Varnes of The Athletic reports.

Kemp started the previous four games and will receive a day off after going 3-for-15 with two homers during that span. Edmundo Sosa will take over at the hot corner Friday for Philadelphia.

The Pirates acquired Moss and Evan Sisk from the Royals on Thursday in exchange for Bailey Falter, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports.

Moss had a .917 OPS at the Single-A level in his first taste of professional ball in 2024, and he has a .270/.372/.418 slash line in 92 games at the High-A level this year. The 22-year-old isn't a significant prospect but will provide organizational depth at first base for the Pirates.

O'Hearn was traded from the Orioles to the Padres on Thursday along with Ramon Laureano, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports. The Orioles received Boston Bateman, Brandon Butterworth, Victor Figueroa, Cobb Hightower, Tyson Neighbors and Tanner Smith in return.

Several teams were in on O'Hearn, but the Padres went big to acquire both him and Laureano. O'Hearn typically sits against lefties, but he is slashing .294/.384/.490 with 13 home runs in 255 at-bats against righties this season.

Freeman went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run and two walks Wednesday in a loss to Cincinnati.

Prior to Wednesday, Freeman had gone 23 games without a homer. He snapped that drought in the fourth inning against Reds hurler Nick Martinez, bashing a two-run shot to account for Los Angeles' only runs of the game. Freeman has reached base safely in eight of his past nine contests and is slashing .343/.425/.457 with seven RBI during that span.

Smith went 2-for-4 with an RBI in Wednesday's 2-1 extra-inning loss to the Pirates.

Smith tallied two of the Giants' six hits and delivered an RBI single in the fourth inning. The first baseman has seen a slight dip in playing time since the All-Star break, logging a plate appearance in five of San Francisco's 12 games in that stretch. During that span, he's slashing .412/.500/.471 with two RBI, two runs scored and a double across 20 plate appearances.

The Diamondbacks plan to deploy Locklear as their primary starting first baseman after acquiring him in a trade with the Mariners on Wednesday, John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM reports.

Pavin Smith (oblique) should return from the 10-day injured list sometime in August, but he could remain mostly at designated hitter while Locklear receives an opportunity to become the Diamondbacks' long-term answer at first base. Locklear struggled during his cup of coffee in the majors last season but has slashed .316/.401/.542 with 19 home runs and 17 stolen bases in 434 plate appearances at Triple-A Tacoma this season.

Arizona acquired Locklear and right-handers Hunter Cranton and Juan Burgos from Seattle on Wednesday in exchange for third baseman Eugenio Suarez, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

The Mariners recalled Locklear from Triple-A Tacoma on Wednesday, but instead of backing up Josh Naylor at first base, the 24-year-old will now aim to carve out a role for himself in Arizona. Locklear has impressed in the minors this season, slashing .316/.401/.542 with 19 home runs, 82 RBI, 70 runs scored and 17 stolen bases through 434 plate appearances at Triple-A. He should step in as Arizona's primary first baseman for the immediate future, though his path to playing time will become less clear once Pavin Smith (oblique) is activated from the injured list.

Steer went 2-for-3 with a triple, two RBI, a walk and a run scored in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Dodgers.

Steer tallied his second triple of the season and the ninth of his career. It's been an uneven campaign at the plate for Steer -- he has a .692 OPS in 2025 -- but he's at least fared a bit better since the beginning of June. Across his last 182 plate appearances, the first baseman is slashing .263/.319/.449 with 15 extra-base hits, 26 RBI, 20 runs scored and three stolen bases.

Wagaman is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.

Wagaman is on the bench against a right-handed starter (Miles Mikolas) for the second day in a row and for the third time in the last four games. Dating back to the start of July, Wagaman has contributed a lowly .431 OPS in 20 games, and his poor stretch of production appears to have cost him his role as the Marlins' everyday first baseman. The right-handed-hitting Wagaman could have to settle for the short side of a platoon at first base with the lefty-hitting Troy Johnston, who will get a second straight start following his promotion from Triple-A Jacksonville on Tuesday.

Busch went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 10-3 win over the Brewers.

Busch started the game with a home run against Milwaukee starter Freddy Peralta, and while he didn't do anything from there, it was still a helpful effort for fantasy managers. The first baseman is settling in as Chicago's top leadoff option against righties, and he's having a productive season overall with 21 long balls and an .882 OPS across 102 games. The 21 homers matches Busch's total from last year, which was his first season with the Cubs.