MLB Player News

Diaz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and two runs scored Sunday against Atlanta.

The Rays are in the midst of a lengthy homestand, and Diaz has performed well across the first six games, collecting seven hits in 24 at-bats with five runs scored and two home runs. He got off to a slow start to the season but has reached base multiple times in four of his last five starts.

Rojas (toe) is still experiencing pain while moving side to side in cleats, MLB.com reports.

Rojas hasn't made much progress in his recovery from a hairline fracture, though it was noted that he felt okay doing work on turf. He isn't expected to be able to return until early May.

Thaiss went 1-for-3 with an RBI on Sunday against the Red Sox.

Thaiss sat in the first two games of the series, with Omar Narvaez instead behind the dish. He accounted for the White Sox's only run Sunday with an RBI single in the eighth inning and has now reached base in each of his last four starts. Thaiss has only two extra-base hits this season, though he has maintained a 7:8 K:BB through 34 plate appearances

Astros general manager Dana Brown said Sunday that he expects Gusto to make at least one more start with the big club, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

After opening the season in the Houston bullpen, Gusto slid into the rotation Saturday as a replacement for Spencer Arrighetti (thumb), who was placed on the 15-day injured list earlier in the week. Though he took a loss against the Angels and gave up three earned runs over four innings, Gusto delivered a strong 6:1 K:BB and induced 12 whiffs on 72 pitches. The Astros seemingly came away encouraged by the rookie's performance, and he looks like he'll be in line to make his next start during the team's three-game series versus the Padres next weekend. Gusto could be headed to the bullpen or to Triple-A Sugar Land after that, however, as Lance McCullers (forearm) could be on track to return from the 15-day injured list the following week.

General manager Dana Brown said Sunday that the Astros' series with the Royals that runs from April 25 through 27 could be a potential target for McCullers' (forearm) season debut, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports. "That would be pretty encouraging, but we don't want to rush it," Brown said.

McCullers made the third start of his minor-league rehab assignment Saturday with Triple-A Sugar Land and delivered his best performance yet; he struck out five over four scoreless innings, yielding just one hit and one walk. He covered 61 pitches in the outing, inducing 13 whiffs while averaging 91.4 miles per hour on his 13 sinkers, 80.5 mph on 13 curveballs and 85.1 mph on 12 sliders, according to Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. All of those velocity readings were a couple ticks below his averages from his last healthy season in 2022, but McCullers noted that it's not an unexpected development, and he's happy overall with how his surgically repaired forearm has been responding coming out of his first three rehab starts. According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, McCullers will shift his rehab to Double-A Corpus Christi for his fourth rehab start next weekend. He's expected to reach 75-to-80 pitches in that outing, and if all goes well, he'll be activated from the 15-day injured list to make his 2025 Astros debut during the Kansas City series.

Duran threw a perfect inning while striking out one in Sunday's 5-1 win over Detroit. He has a 1.42 ERA with five strikeouts in 6.1 innings but doesn't have a save chance.

He was lined up to get a save opportunity, but the Twins scored in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Duran a four-run lead to protect in the ninth inning. The Twins do not have a save yet as a team this season. Duran's velocity is down slightly this season (99.9 mph average fastball from 100.5 mph last season), but he's still been very effective. He's set to get the bulk of save chances for the Twins, though manager Rocco Baldelli will likely play matchups and use Duran in the eighth inning at times with Griffin Jax pitching the ninth inning.

Julien went 1-for-4 with a home run in Sunday's victory over the Tigers. He started at second base and hit leadoff.

Julien has been improving at the plate and gaining more playing time in the last week. He's hitting .380 (8-for-21) with a home run over his last eight games. He could stay in the leadoff role against right-handed pitching if he stays hot.

Woods Richardson (1-1) earned the win Sunday, allowing one run on five hits with no walks over five innings against Detroit. He struck out five.

Woods Richardson had a solid outing with a slight increase in velocity to a max 95.9 mph fastball after two lackluster starts to begin the season. He likely needed a strong outing to remain in the rotation with David Festa making a case for keeping a starting role and Zebby Matthews pitching well at Triple-A.

Milner struck out two over a scoreless inning in Sunday's 3-1 loss to the Mariners.

Milner made a sixth consecutive scoreless appearance to open the season. He's allowed three hits and walked one while striking out eight over seven innings.

Harris started in left field and went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Sunday's 3-1 loss to Seattle.

The Rangers rested Marcus Semien, which led to Josh Smith covering second base and gave Harris is first start since being called up. The lefty hitting outfielder could see more opportunities in left field with Wyatt Langford (oblique) on the injured list, but Smith is the primary fill-in.