MLB Player News

Baker was charged with a blown save Saturday against the Pirates, allowing one run on two hits and one walk with two strikeouts in one inning.

With the heart of the order due up for the Pirates in the bottom of the eighth, manager Kevin Cash called on Baker to protect a 5-4 lead. He yielded a leadoff walk to Brandon Lowe and an infield singled to Ryan O'Hearn before Nick Yorke tied the game with a single. It was Baker's second blown save of the season, though he'd previously recorded four of the Rays' previous five saves. Baker now owns a 4.32 ERA and 9:3 K:BB across 8.1 innings and currently remains Tampa Bay's leading candidate for saves.

O'Hearn went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run, a walk and two runs scored in Saturday's 8-7 extra-innings loss to the Rays.

After Bryan Reynolds walked ahead of him, O'Hearn got the scoring started with a two-run homer off Drew Rasmussen in the bottom of the first inning, snapping an 11-game homerless streak for O'Hearn. He later walked and scored on Marcell Ozuna's two-run shot in the fourth. O'Hearn is now slashing .329/.417/.543 with four long balls, 15 RBI, 11 runs scored, one stolen base and an 11:14 BB:K across 84 plate appearances.

Murakami went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and three walks in Saturday's 7-6 extra-innings loss to the Athletics.

Murakami entered play Saturday with a putrid .063 average and 4:10 BB:K across 21 plate appearances against left-handed pitching. Facing lefty Hogan Harris in the top of the seventh inning, Murakami took him deep to center field. Both of his hits against left-handers this season are home runs, and overall the Japanese slugger is slashing .209/.386/.522 with seven homers, 14 RBI, 15 runs scored and a 20:29 BB:K across his first 88 major-league plate appearances. Murakami still needs to cut down on his 33 percent strikeout rate, but a 23 percent walk rate and his power have made up for the swing-and-miss thus far.

Kurtz went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and three walks in Saturday's 7-6 extra-innings win over the White Sox.

With the Athletics trailing 6-4 in the bottom of the seventh, Kurtz took Jordan Leasure deep for a two-run shot to tie the game. It was just Kurtz's second homer of the season, and he's now driven in six runs over the last three contests. After batting .083 over the first seven games of the season, Kurtz has five multi-hit games over his last 13 contests and is now slashing .235/.429/.368 with two long balls, nine RBI, nine runs scored, two stolen bases and a 23:30 BB:K across 91 plate appearances.

De Los Santos will be optioned to Triple-A Jacksonville on Sunday, Daniel Alvarez-Montes of ElExtraBase.com reports.

De Los Santos was recalled April 10 and has started just two games since his promotion. He has one hit across five at-bats in that span, though he'll return to Jacksonville in a corresponding move for the return of Kyle Stowers (oblique) from the injured list.

Rice went 1-for-3 with two walks and a solo home run in Saturday's 13-4 win over the Royals.

Kansas City tried to pitch around the red-hot slugger, but Rice got ahold of a Noah Cameron fastball in the third inning and drove it 398 feet into the second deck in right field. Rice has gone yard in three straight games, and on the season he's slashing .339/.468/.774 with six doubles, seven homers, 17 RBI and 19 runs in 20 contests.

The Astros claimed Harris off waivers from the White Sox on Saturday.

Harris was designated for assignment by the White Sox on Wednesday, but he'll now be a part of the Astros organization after being claimed Saturday. The veteran outfielder has no minor-league options remaining, so he'll be added to the Astros' 26-man active roster and could join the club as soon as Sunday. Prior to being DFA'd, Harris appeared in six games for the White Sox, going 3-for-12 with two steals, one RBI and two runs scored.

The Astros designated France for assignment Saturday, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

The move makes room on the Astros' 40-man roster for outfielder Dustin Harris, who was claimed off waivers from the White Sox in a corresponding move. France struggled out of the bullpen across three outings with Houston, allowing six runs on six hits and five walks while striking out four in 6.2 innings.

Guerrero picked up a minor finger injury in Friday's loss to the Brewers, but Blue Jays manager John Schneider indicated after the game that the first baseman is expected to be in the lineup Saturday, Mitch Bannon of The Athletic reports.

Guerrero's left index finger clipped Jorge Barrosa on a play at first base, but he remained in the game Friday and doesn't look like he'll miss any time. Toronto can ill afford to lose Guerrero given all their other injuries, and through 19 games he's slashing .319/.427/.420 with one homer and eight RBI.

The Mets recalled Senger from Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday.

With Jorge Polanco (wrist) headed to the injured list, the Mets will bring up Senger to give the big club another option to work as a DH and extra depth behind the plate. The 29-year-old has started strong in the minors, slashing .257/.316/.714 with five homers, 11 RBI and eight runs scored through 12 games.