MLB Player News

Judge went 1-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's 6-3 win against Kansas City.

Judge continued his recent power surge with a 413-foot solo shot to center field in the seventh inning. The slugger also chipped in his sixth stolen base of the season after drawing a walk in the second. Judge has moved into second place in the majors with 25 long balls by going deep four times over his past three games. He's gone 6-for-13 with eight RBI during that stretch.

O'Neill is sitting out a second straight rehab game during his rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk on Thursday due to renewed left shoulder soreness, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.comreports.

O'Neill went 4-for-10 at the plate in his first three rehab contests, starting at designated hitter in the first game and in right field for the next two. However, the left shoulder impingement that sent him to the 10-day injured list nearly a month ago is evidently still giving him problems. O'Neill is expected to receive "a few days rest," per Kubatko, so the Orioles seem to think he's not dealing with a significant setback. However, O'Neill no longer looks to be a candidate to be activated from the injured list for this weekend's series versus the Angels.

Larnach is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers.

The left-handed-hitting Larnach will hit the bench while southpaw Patrick Corbin toes the rubber for Texas. Larnach is slashing just .167/.211/.259 (29 wRC+) in 57 plate appearances versus lefties this season, and the Twins could limit his exposure to same-handed pitching moving forward now that the team has all of its key outfielders healthy again.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone indicated Wednesday that Rice could see starts at catcher after Giancarlo Stanton (elbows) returns from the 60-day injured list, Greg Joyce of the New York Post reports.

Rice caught two innings in Tuesday's win over the Royals, with Boone calling Rice's performance behind the plate "noticeably excellent." It's the fifth time this season that Rice has seen action at catcher this season, and while he has yet to make a start at catcher at the big-league level, it was his primary position in the minors. Rice is not going to overtake Austin Wells as the primary backstop for the Yankees, but mixing him in at the position will allow Boone to fit Stanton and others in the lineup. It would also greatly boost Rice's fantasy appeal if he's able to gain catcher eligibility.

Clemens is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers.

Though he'll take a seat with southpaw Patrick Corbin on the bump for Texas, the left-handed-hitting Clemens had started at second base in five of the previous six games. Clemens went just 2-for-17 with a home run and two walks in that six-game stretch, however, and with Royce Lewis finally beginning to break out of his extended slump at the plate, Clemens could end up losing out on more opportunities to play against right-handers in the near future.

The Yankees optioned Headrick to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Thursday.

A corresponding move will be announced prior to Thursday's game in Kansas City. Headrick has a 4.73 ERA over 13.1 innings with the Yankees this season, but his 16:3 K:BB suggests he's pitched better than the ERA indicates.

Latz (hand) allowed two earned runs on three hits in an inning of relief in Wednesday's 6-2 loss to the Twins.

The lefty made his second career MLB start in his most recent appearance last Sunday against the Nationals and struck out seven over 3.1 innings before exiting with an apparent blister or cut on his pitching hand, but he made enough improvement for the Rangers to call upon him from the bullpen three days later. With Nathan Eovaldi (triceps) looking unlikely to be ready to return from the injured list the next time his turn in the rotation comes up Saturday versus the White Sox, Latz could be needed to make another start. Even if that's the case, Latz would likely be deployed as more of an opener than a traditional starter.

Heim is not in the lineup for Thursday's game in Minnesota.

Heim went 2-for-3 with a run scored while catching eight innings of Wednesday night's 6-2 loss, so he will receive a breather for Thursday's matinee. Kyle Higashioka will be behind the dish and bat ninth for the Rangers.

Kremer won't start Thursday's game against the Tigers but could work in bulk relief behind opening pitcher Keegan Akin, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.

The Orioles haven't officially confirmed that Kremer is on track to pitch Thursday, but he was previously listed as the team's scheduled starter and hasn't been reported to be dealing with an injury, so the belief is that he'll enter the contest after Akin covers the first inning or two. Kremer has made all but one of his 108 career MLB appearances as a starter, but the Orioles may be looking to see if working in bulk relief helps enhance his performance. The right-hander is coming off a rough start Friday against the Athletics in which he gave up five earned runs on eight hits and one walk over 5.1 innings.

Akin will serve as the Orioles' opening pitcher in Thursday's game versus the Tigers, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Dean Kremer had been scheduled to start, but he now appears slated to serve as a bulk reliever. Akin has opened twice for the Orioles this season, tossing a combined 2.2 frames in those outings.