MLB Player News

Basso is listed as the Athletics' starting pitcher for Sunday's game in Houston, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Basso will make his third appearance of the season and his second in a row as a starter, but as on the other two occasions, he's likely to be deployed as more of an opener. He covered 2.1 innings and tossed 32 pitches in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Royals, and Basso should be in line for a similar workload Sunday. Jack Perkins is the expected bulk reliever once Basso exits the contest.

Genao started at shortstop for a second consecutive game and went 1-for-4 in Saturday's 4-3 win over Colorado.

Genao replaced Brayan Rocchio at shortstop for a second consecutive game. Rocchio, who's been the primary shortstop since early April after beginning the season at second base, has slumped in the second half with a .183/.230/.270 slash line over 30 games since the All-Star break. Meanwhile, Genao has a .315/.373/.426 slash line over 15 games since being called up earlier this month. Genao has also played second base since joining the Guardians, but Travis Bazzana has been more productive than Rocchio and is less susceptible to losing his job.

Velazquez went 3-for-4 with a walk, three home runs and four RBI for Triple-A Columbus on Saturday.

Velazquez has been mashing for the Clippers of late, going deep 16 times over the last 20 contests. He had just four home runs over his first 48 games for Columbus. With 27 homers combined between Double- and Triple-A this season, Velazquez should be a top candidate to join the Guardians when rosters expand Sept. 1. Cleveland currently ranks 29th in home runs (123), last in slugging (.369) and last in OPS (.682).

Culpepper went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 7-5 loss to the Padres.

This was Culpepper's first homer since he hit one in his major-league debut Aug. 7. The infielder has adjusted well to the big leagues so far, batting .286 over 12 contests. He's added three RBI and five runs scored, but he has yet to attempt a stolen base after swiping 17 bags on 20 attempts over 74 games with Triple-A St. Paul to begin the year.

Keaschall went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a second RBI in Saturday's 7-5 loss to the Padres.

Keaschall is up to eight homers this season, four of which have come over 18 games in August. He's batting .348 (23-for-66) this month to supplement his improved power hitting. The 24-year-old is batting .274 on the year, adding a .749 OPS, 38 RBI, 60 runs scored, 19 doubles, one triple and 14 stolen bases over 121 contests. Keaschall may be able to use his speed more if he sticks in the leadoff spot he's hit out of in the last five games.

Lee went 3-for-4 with a solo home run, a double and two total runs scored in Saturday's 7-5 loss to the Padres.

This was Lee's first multi-hit effort in eight games after he logged four straight such performances from Aug. 9-12. The infielder has gone 18-for-68 (.265) in August, an improvement on his .247 average for the year. Lee has added a .729 OPS, 19 homers, 68 RBI, 56 runs scored, 20 doubles, three triples and seven stolen bases over 124 contests as a regular presence in the Twins' lineup.

Kremer allowed two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out five over 5.1 innings in a no-decision versus the Padres on Saturday.

Kremer has allowed just eight runs over 22.2 innings across four starts since he was traded to Minnesota from Baltimore. He likely deserved a better fate for his efforts Saturday, but the Twins' bullpen went into meltdown mode in the seventh and eighth innings. Kremer is at a 5.22 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 58:19 K:BB through 58.2 innings over 11 starts this season, but he's looked good with his new team. He's lined up to make his next start at home versus the White Sox.

Sandoval allowed two runs on five hits and two walks while striking out six over 5.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Giants on Saturday.

Sandoval allowed solo shots to Willy Adames and Andrew Knizner to account for the two runs on his line. While it was a third straight outing without a win for Sandoval, this was an improvement after he got tagged for seven runs over four innings in his last appearance. The southpaw has a 4.54 ERA, 1.76 WHIP and 41:18 K:BB through 39.2 innings over eight starts this season. His next start is projected to be on the road versus the Yankees.

Smith recorded his 33rd save of the season in Saturday's game against Colorado, allowing a run on one hit while striking out one.

It was not perfect for Smith, yet he was able to navigate around a Connor Norby solo home run to earn the save. Saturday's outing ended his streak of 12 straight outings without allowing an earned run. Through 58 innings this campaign, Smith owns a 2.33 ERA, 1.10 WHIP and 81:20 K:BB.

Bibee (5-13) earned the win after allowing two runs on five hits and one walk over six innings against the Rockies on Saturday. He struck out six.

Bibee recorded his first start allowing two or fewer runs since July 31 on Saturday. The right-hander was on point besides rocky fourth and fifth innings, where he gave up an RBI double to Troy Johnston and a solo homer to Mickey Moniak. After picking up his first win in over a month, Bibee now owns a 5-13 record, 3.97 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 123:44 K:BB over 156.1 innings this season.