MLB Player News

Ohtani was removed from Friday's game against the Padres due to a bicep injury, Jack Harris of the California Post reports.

Ohtani said after the game that he became concerned about his bicep after his final at-bat in the sixth inning, but he noted that what he felt was similar to an injury he dealt with a couple of months ago that subsided relatively quickly. Although his injury is believed to be minor, manager Dave Roberts confirmed that Ohtani will not play Saturday as a precaution, per Harris. The two-way star gave up three earned runs on seven hits and two walks in six innings on the mound Friday and went 0-for-3 as a hitter.

Herrera went 3-for-4 with a walk, three runs scored and two RBI in Friday's 17-1 win over the Cubs.

All three hits were singles, but Herrera was still in the thick of the offensive eruption by the Cardinals. It was the first multi-hit effort for the 26-year-old catcher/designated hitter since June 21, snapping a nine-game skid that had seen him bat just .129 (4-for-31) with one double and one RBI. Despite the brief swoon, Herrera sports a respectable .258/.396/.406 slash line on the season with 10 homers, five steals, 38 RBI and 58 runs in 85 contests.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a double, a run scored and three RBI in Thursday's loss to the Cardinals.

The 31-year-old journeyman came to the plate with the bases loaded in the first inning and cleared them with a comebacker that deflected off Dustin May's ankle and went into shallow right field. Smith continues to see consistent playing time at DH against right-handed pitchers, but he's gone 19 straight games without a home run, managing just a .196/.259/.235 slash line over that stretch with two doubles and seven RBI. His declining production could prompt Atlanta to look for a more reliable left-handed power source at the trade deadline.

Atlanta signed McCutchen to a minor-league contract Thursday.

McCutchen was released by the Rangers in late May after slashing just .192/.277/.260 across 37 games. The 39-year-old has been assigned to the Florida Complex League for the time being but should report to Triple-A Gwinnett once he's shaken off some rust. McCutchen could eventually get an opportunity in Atlanta as a short-side platoon bat.

Bell went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 8-3 win against the Astros.

Bell started off the scoring for the Twins on Wednesday when he tattooed a ball over the batter's eye in center field off of Tatsuya Imai during the opening frame. The 33-year-old slugger now has a 16-game road hitting streak, which is the longest active streak in the majors. After a slow start, Bell has now raised his OPS to .713 and leads the team in RBI with 56.

Rooker will undergo season-ending surgery to repair a cartilage tear in his left knee, Jason Burke of Roundtable.io reports.

Rooker was re-evaluated Tuesday after making slow progress in his recovery from a bone bruise in his left knee, which has been bothering him since early June. Test results revealed torn cartilage in the 31-year-old's knee, so he'll go under the knife to address the issue, putting an early end to his 2026 campaign. Jonah Heim has been getting regular starts at DH with Rooker on the IL and could now remain in that role for the rest of the year.

Yelich is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against Cincinnati.

As left-hander Andrew Abbott takes the mound for the Reds, Milwaukee will give Yelich his second rest of the series. William Contreras will take over as the designated hitter and bat third in the third game of a four-game set.

Andujar is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

Andujar started each of the last four games -- twice against lefties, twice against righties -- and went 6-for-14 with two doubles, one walk and one run. He should remain a regular presence in the lineup versus southpaws, but Andujar may have to settle for a part-time role against righties while the Padres seem to be prioritizing Ty France over him for the final spot in the everyday lineup.

Rooker was re-evaluated at Stanford for his knee injury Tuesday, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Rooker landed on the injured list June 12 due to a bone bruise in his left knee and has progressed slowly in his rehab, beginning a running and swinging progression Monday. "I wouldn't say that his progress has stopped," Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said Tuesday. "... it hasn't progressed as efficient as we'd like. So he's down there going through another exam." More clarity regarding Rooker's status and recovery timeline should come following the results of his latest evaluation.

The Blue Jays placed Springer on the paternity leave list Wednesday.

Springer appeared poised to go on paternity leave this past weekend, but he ended up sticking around with the Blue Jays for a few extra days. He'll now take some time away from the team to welcome the new addition to his family, with MLB rules requiring Springer to remain on paternity leave for between 1-to-3 days. Toronto recalled outfielder Jonatan Clase from Triple-A Buffalo to temporarily take Springer's spot on the active roster.