MLB Player News

Palacios is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the White Sox.

The left-handed-hitting Palacios started each of the previous four contests against right-handed pitching, but he'll take a seat Thursday as the White Sox send righty Shane Smith to the hill. It's Bob Seymour in the designated-hitter spot for the series finale.

Diaz is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game versus the White Sox.

It appears to be a routine day off for Diaz, who had started each of the previous nine tilts and who homered in Wednesday's loss to the White Sox. Brandon Lowe is in the designated-hitter spot and Bob Seymour will play first base for the Rays in Thursday's series finale.

Volpe was given a cortisone shot in his left shoulder for an injury he suffered in early May, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.

Volpe described feeling a "pop" in his shoulder when he dived for a ball during a May 3 game against the Rays. He was cleared of structural damage and never went on the injured list, but Volpe has had "discomfort on occasion in the area since," per Sherman. The injury could at least partly explain Volpe's poor performance, as he has slashed .197/.248/.378 since and has struggled defensively. Jose Caballero started at shortstop for the Yankees on Wednesday, and manager Aaron Boone has indicated his starter at the position moving forward is fluid. It's not clear whether Volpe was available off the bench Wednesday or will be Thursday, as players who receive cortisone shots typically don't play for at least a couple days.

Walcott is slashing .338/.456/.473 with two home runs, eight steals, a 16.7 percent walk rate and an 11.1 percent strikeout rate in his last 74 at-bats for Double-A Frisco.

The pitching at Double-A is pretty watered down at this time of year, but it's still notable that Walcott is closing the year strong after he slumped for a couple months from mid-June through mid-August, when he logged a .581 OPS. On the year, the toolsy Bahamian infielder is slashing .251/.353/.386 with 13 home runs, 32 steals, a 12.9 percent walk rate and a 19.8 percent strikeout rate in 120 games as easily the youngest qualified hitter at Double-A -- Nelson Rada is the second-youngest qualified hitter at Double-A and he's almost seven months older than Walcott. It was announced this week that Walcott will play in the Arizona Fall League this year, which should set the stage for a big-league debut sometime next summer. Walcott has started 17 games at third base and 82 games at shortstop this year.

Kremer (forearm) will throw an extensive bullpen session Friday and could rejoin the Baltimore rotation next week, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Kremer was removed from last Friday's 2-1 win over the Dodgers due to right forearm soreness and had his next turn in the rotation skipped. However, he has recovered well since then and is on track to return next week if he can avoid a setback following Friday's throwing session. The Orioles haven't revealed the target date for Kremer's next start, but he appears to be lined up to take the hill Sept. 18 at home versus the Yankees.

Mountcastle is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game against the Pirates.

Mountcastle will retreat to the bench after starting each of the past seven contests. Coby Mayo is at first base and Samuel Basallo is in the designated-hitter spot Thursday as the Orioles go for the sweep.

Kirk is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Astros.

Kirk started at catcher each of the previous three contests, so he'll get some rest during Thursday's matinee. Tyler Heineman will do the catching and bat eighth for the Blue Jays.

Wells went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Wednesday in a loss to the Tigers.

Wells' eighth-inning homer was merely a consolation in keeping the Yankees from being shut out, as it made the score 8-1 in favor of Detroit. Nonetheless, it was a positive sign for the alertness of Wells' bat, as he had gone 1-for-12 over his previous 16 plate appearances. Wells has an unremarkable .715 OPS on the campaign, but he's been a good source of power from the catcher position with 21 homers and 66 RBI through 113 contests.

Tauchman is not in the lineup for Thursday's contest versus the Rays.

The left-handed-hitting Tauchman doesn't always sit against southpaws, but he will take a seat in this one as the Rays send lefty Ian Seymour to the bump. Brooks Baldwin is covering right field and batting seventh for the White Sox.

Benintendi is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rays.

The Rays are sending southpaw Ian Seymour to the bump, so the left-handed-hitting Benintendi will get a day of rest. Will Robertson will handle left field for the White Sox.