Rice is not in the lineup for Friday's contest versus the Orioles.

After five consecutive starts, Rice will take a seat in Friday's series opener. The Yankees will roll with Paul Goldschmidt at first base and Austin Wells at catcher.

The Rays activated Aranda (wrist) from the 10-day injured list Friday.

Aranda has been on the shelf since late July due to a fractured left wrist, but has rejoined the active roster ahead of the Rays' final series of the regular season. He has been playing in backfield games at the Rays' spring training complex in Florida, and could see some big-league action this weekend. Everson Pereira (back) was placed on the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move. Aranda's return could mean fewer opportunities for Bob Seymour.

The Cubs optioned Santana to the Arizona Complex League on Friday, Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Santana had to agree to the option, and he will be part of the Cubs' taxi squad during next week's National League Wild Card Series against the Padres. The veteran first baseman has gone 2-for-19 at the plate since signing with Chicago at the end of August.

Mountcastle went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, two total RBI and an additional run scored in Thursday's 6-5 win over Tampa Bay.

Mountcastle got Baltimore on the board in the third inning with his seventh homer of the year, a two-out, opposite-field blast off Jesse Scholtens, before driving in a second run with another two-out base hit in the fifth. It's the first multi-hit game since Sep. 2 for Mountcastle -- he'd gone 8-for-51 (.157) in 13 contests coming into Thursday. Overall, he's slashing .253/.289/.372 with 35 RBI and 34 runs scored across 353 plate appearances this season.

Schanuel went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's 9-4 loss to the Royals.

Schanuel has gone 6-for-22 (.273) with two homers and four RBI over six games since he returned from a wrist injury. The first baseman is up to 12 homers through 131 games, one shy of his power output from 147 games in 2024. He's added a .267/.355/.393 slash line, 53 RBI, 64 runs scored and five stolen bases in 2025 as an everyday presence in the Angels' lineup when healthy.

Pasquantino went 1-for-4 with a home run, a walk, three total RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 9-4 win over the Angels.

Pasquantino made an early impact with his two-run homer in the first inning, and he added a third RBI in the third. The first baseman has put it all together in September, batting .314 (27-for-86) with four homers, 17 RBI and 15 runs scored over 22 contests this month. For the season, he has a .267/.326/.479 slash line with 32 homers, 111 RBI, 72 runs, 31 doubles and a stolen base over 157 games.

Freeman went 2-for-3 with two home runs and three RBI during the Dodgers' 8-0 win over the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

Freeman got Thursday's scoring started with a solo homer in the second before giving the Dodgers an 8-0 lead in the fourth with a two-run shot to right-center field. It was his second multi-homer game of the season, and he is now up to 23 long shots on the year, which surpasses his mark in 2024 by one. Freeman is slashing .293/.364/.496 with six steals, 80 runs, 23 homers and 88 RBI in 621 plate appearances this season.

Kurtz went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBI during the Athletics' 11-5 loss to the Astros.

The Athletics trailed by as many as 10 runs in Thursday's contest, but Kurtz gave the home fans something to cheer for with a solo homer in the sixth inning and a two-run shot in the eighth. It was Kurtz's third multi-homer game of the season, and his 35 long balls lead all rookies and rank 12th in the majors. He has a 1.010 OPS in 477 plate appearances this season, which ranks second in the majors behind Aaron Judge (1.140) among players with at least 450 plate appearances.

Walker went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two additional RBI during the Astros' 11-5 win over the Athletics on Thursday.

Walker collected an RBI in three separate plate appearances and capped things off with a solo shot to left field in the eighth to give the Astros a 10-run lead. Walker has seemingly broken out of his mini-slump, logging at least one hit in each of his last four games while going 6-for-17 (.353) over that span. He'll look to help the Astros make a final push for the playoffs in the upcoming weekend road series against the Angels.

Bernabel isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against Seattle.

Bernabel will receive a day off after going 0-for-3 during his return from the injured list Wednesday. Blaine Crim will start at first base and bat third.