MLB Player News

Mayer is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Blue Jays.

Mayer started each of the previous five contests, but he'll get a breather during Thursday's afternoon tilt. Isiah Kiner-Falefa will occupy shortstop for the Red Sox.

Kiner-Falefa started at third base and went 1-for-2 with two walks and two stolen bases in Wednesday's 3-0 loss to the Blue Jays.

Kiner-Falefa put himself in scoring position a couple of times, but the Red Sox continued a dismal run of failing to produce with RISP -- Boston's gone 1-for-24 in those situations and left 26 runners on base in the first two games of the series. Kiner-Falefa unexpectedly has become a lineup regular for Boston, having started 18 of the last 19 games at second base, shortstop and third base. A combination of Trevor Story's abdomen injury and Caleb Durbin's inconsistent bat have led to Kiner-Falefa being a constant presence in the starting nine. He's gone 19-for-65 (.292) with three extra-base hits, six RBI, seven walks, four steals and 12 runs scored during that stretch.

Young went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 5-3 loss to the Orioles.

Young went back-to-back with Dominic Canzone in the ninth inning to cut the deficit to two runs, but the Mariners didn't get any closer. Young has hit well in June, going 19-for-64 (.297) over 15 games. The second baseman is now batting .256 on the year with a .684 OPS, six homers, 33 RBI, 32 runs scored, two stolen bases, 10 doubles and a triple over 75 contests. He's made noticeable improvements compared to last season, mainly in the power and contact departments.

Holliday went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and a second run scored in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Mariners.

Holliday had gone 0-for-12 with six strikeouts over his previous four games. He was well on his way to another poor performance before his ninth-inning homer. The infielder hasn't logged a multi-hit effort since May 29 versus the Blue Jays, but he continues to see a starting role at second base. Holliday is batting .195 with a .671 OPS, four homers, 12 RBI, 13 runs scored, one double, one triple and three stolen bases over 26 contests.

The Angels activated Grissom (oblique) from the 10-day injured list Wednesday.

Grissom wound up missing only two weeks of action as he recovered from a left oblique strain. He is starting at first base and batting fifth in Wednesday's contest against the Diamondbacks.

The Tigers placed Torres on the 10-day injured list Wednesday with a left oblique strain.

Torres sustained the injury during Monday's game in Houston. He missed more than a month of action earlier this season with the same injury before returning in early June. It's unclear at this point how long he might be sidelined this time around, but it will likely be longer than a minimum absence. Hao-Yu Lee has drawn two straight starts at second base for the Tigers and could share the position with Zach McKinstry while Torres is shelved.

McKinstry is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Astros.

McKinstry will get the afternoon off after he went 5-for-25 with a solo home run, four walks and four additional runs while starting seven of the Tigers' last eight games. Though he appears to have a grasp on a near-everyday role for now, McKinstry's playing time could dry up if he continues to underwhelm at the plate. He's produced a .168/.258/.245 slash line over 165 plate appearances on the season.

Torres (side) remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's contest in Houston.

Torres had to exit Monday's game after tweaking his left side, and he will now miss a second straight start. The Tigers have not ruled out a potential stint on the injured list for Torres, but they will wait at least until Friday following Thursday's team off day before making an IL decision. Hao-Yu Lee will grab another start at second base in Torres' stead.

Gonzalez (shoulder) went 1-for-2 with a walk and a two-run home run for Double-A Portland on Tuesday.

Gonzalez, who opened a rehab assignment with the Sea Dogs, started at second base and played seven innings. It's unclear how many at-bats he'll need while on rehab, but Gonzalez has been taking batting practice off the Trajekt machine, which has helped rehabbing players shorten their rehab times, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. He's next scheduled to serve as the designated hitter on Wednesday followed by a day off Thursday. If he responds well, Gonzalez will likely play three consecutive days over the weekend.

Smith started at second base and went 1-for-4 in Tuesday's 12-2 loss to the Twins.

Smith started for the first time since being activated from the injured list Monday. A glute injury landed him on the IL in early May and was followed by a wrist issue and a case of viral meningitis. At the time of his injury, Smith was batting .217 with six RBI through 31 games and his hold on the starting job at second base was tenuous. Ezequiel Duran was making a push for more playing time and nothing has changed since. Lately, Duran has covered shortstop while Corey Seager (concussion) works his way back, but Smith is still in jeopardy of sliding back to a utility/part-time role.