MLB Player News

Diaz is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Tigers.

The Rays haven't indicated that Diaz is dealing with an injury, and despite being one of the team's more productive hitters this season, he'll be on the bench for the third time in four games Thursday. With Diaz's playing time having been scaled back lately, Jonathan Aranda has taken over as the Rays' everyday first baseman, and manager Kevin Cash has rotated a number of different players at the designated-hitter spot.

The Yankees placed Leiter on the paternity list Thursday.

By rule, Leiter will miss the next 1-to-3 games while welcoming a new addition to the family. Scott Effross has been summoned from the minors to absorb Leiter's roster spot.

Frazier is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Nationals.

Frazier will remain on the bench while the Royals face a fourth consecutive left-handed starting pitcher (Patrick Corbin). Hunter Renfroe will get the nod in right field in Frazier's place and will bat sixth.

Isbel is not in the lineup for Thursday's contest versus the Nationals.

The left-handed-hitting Isbel will begin the series finale on the bench as the Nationals start southpaw Patrick Corbin on the mound. The right-handed-hitting Garrett Hampson will patrol center field for the Royals.

Massey is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Nationals.

With southpaw Patrick Corbin toeing the rubber for the Nationals, the left-handed-hitting Massey will take a seat. Maikel Garcia is handling second base for the Royals in the series finale.

Melendez is absent from the lineup for Thursday's contest against the Nationals.

It's left-hander Patrick Corbin on the bump for the Nationals, so the lefty-swinging Melendez will begin the game on the bench. Tommy Pham is playing left field and batting leadoff for the Royals.

Clase went 3-for-3 with a walk, a two-run home run and a second run scored in Wednesday's 6-1 win over the Red Sox.

The 22-year-old ripped his first career homer in the seventh inning off Josh Winckowski by lofting a cutter over the fence in right field. Clase has looked good in his September cup of coffee with the Blue Jays, going 6-for-12, and he figures to head into spring training next year with a chance to win a regular spot in the outfield.

Gausman (14-11) picked up the win Wednesday, allowing one run on four hits and three walks over six innings in a 6-1 victory over the Red Sox. He struck out three.

It's been a disappointing campaign overall for Gausman, but the 33-year-old righty still tied his career high in wins with a sharp performance in his last outing. The quality start was his 16th of the season, and Gausman gave up three earned runs or less in his last nine trips to the mound, posting a 2.22 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 43:20 K:BB through 56.2 innings over that stretch. The loss of strikeouts is a worrying sign -- his 21.4 percent K rate in 2024 is a huge drop from the 31.1 percent mark he posted the year before -- but he's still expected to head into spring training next season as one of the veteran anchors for Toronto's rotation.

Fitts (0-1) took the loss Wednesday, giving up four runs on six hits and two walks over five innings as the Red Sox were downed 6-1 by the Blue Jays. He struck out two.

The rookie right-hander came into the game having not allowed an earned run in his first three big-league starts, but after three more shutout frames, Fitts ran into trouble in the fourth when Vladimir Guerrero and Alejandro Kirk led off the inning with back-to-back doubles. Fitts wraps up his first taste of the majors with a 1.74 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 9:7 K:BB through 20.2 innings, and depending on the moves the Red Sox make this winter, the 24-year-old could head into next spring with a chance to win a regular spot in the rotation.

Manager A.J. Hinch said Thursday that Skubal is "unlikely" to pitch in Sunday's regular-season finale versus the White Sox if the Tigers have already clinched a wild-card spot but still have seeding at stake, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.

The Tigers would still have the American League Cy Young frontrunner take the hill Sunday if the team has not yet locked up a playoff berth by then. However, with the Tigers' magic number down to three, any combination of Detroit wins or Minnesota losses over the next three days would punch the Tigers' ticket to the postseason prior to Sunday. Hinch seemingly prefers not to have Skubal take the hill if the four through six seeds in the American League postseason remain unsettled heading into Sunday, instead preferring to save his ace for Game 1 of the wild-card round, which begins Tuesday.