MLB Player News

Kirk is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game in Boston.

Kirk started behind the dish each of the last three games, so he will get some rest during Thursday's matinee. Brandon Valenzuela will start at catcher and bat eighth as the Blue Jays look to complete the series sweep.

Springer went 0-for-3 with two stolen bases in Wednesday's win over the Red Sox.

The Blue Jays evidently liked seeing Mickey Gasper working behind the plate for Boston, as they went 5-for-5 on steal attempts against him during the game. Springer's thefts both came in the third inning after he was hit by a Jake Bennett pitch, but he was left stranded at third base by a Kazuma Okamoto groundout. Springer has just six stolen bases on the season to go along with a .212/.308/.369 slash line, seven home runs, 19 RBI and 22 runs in 52 contests, but three of those steals have come in the last two games.

Gimenez went 2-for-4 with two runs scored, an RBI and three stolen bases in Wednesday's win over the Red Sox.

The Blue Jays evidently liked seeing Mickey Gasper working behind the plate for Boston, as they went 5-for-5 on steal attempts against him during the game. It was the third three-steal game of Gimenez's career, and his first since July 6, 2023 when he was still playing for Cleveland. It was also the 27-year-old infielder's fourth multi-hit performance in the last 10 contests, a stretch in which he's slashing .355/.394/.548 with three doubles, a homer, four RBI and six runs in addition to Wednesday's thefts.

Bieber (elbow) built up to 80 pitches Wednesday in what's likely to be his final rehab start for Triple-A Buffalo, giving up five runs on seven hits and four walks over five innings. He struck out two.

The results weren't pretty, as Bieber served up homers to career minor leaguers Ryan Galanie and Andy Weber -- neither of whom are even on the 40-man roster for the White Sox -- but the veteran right-hander was sitting 91-92 mph with his fastball and topped out at 93.0 mph. With Max Scherzer (back) landing on the IL on Wednesday, the Blue Jays likely can't afford to give Bieber another rehab start to round into form. If he stays on turn, he lines up to make his 2026 big-league debut early next week at home against the Astros.

Mayer is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Blue Jays.

Mayer started each of the previous five contests, but he'll get a breather during Thursday's afternoon tilt. Isiah Kiner-Falefa will occupy shortstop for the Red Sox.

Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said Tuesday that Miller will start Friday's game against the Red Sox and will be piggybacked by Luis Castillo, Adam Jude of The Seattle Times reports.

Miller and Castillo both made standalone starts in their last two appearances as part of a six-man rotation, but the two will be deployed in tandem Friday while Seattle shifts back to a five-man setup. The Mariners previously used Miller and Castillo in a piggyback arrangement on three other occasions back in May, with Miller working between five and 5.2 innings in those contests while logging a 1.15 ERA and 0.57 WHIP. Expect Miller to handle a similar workload Friday, as Jude notes that the right-hander will be limited to around 75-to-80 pitches before turning the ball over to Castillo. Hollander relayed that all six of the team's starters will rotate through and have one piggyback outing until the All-Star break, so Miller and Castillo will likely be separated and make traditional starts when their turn in the pitching schedule comes up again next week.

The Angels optioned Kerry to Triple-A Salt Lake on Thursday.

Kerry made his major-league debut Wednesday in Arizona, covering four innings and yielding two runs out of the bullpen. The Angels will likely add a fresh bullpen arm later Thursday to take Kerry's spot on the roster.

The Angels optioned Porter to Triple-A Salt Lake on Thursday.

He's clearing out to make space on the roster for Tyler Heineman, who was acquired via trade to serve as top catcher Logan O'Hoppe's backup. Porter went 1-for-4 with a double during his brief time in the big leagues.

Kiner-Falefa started at third base and went 1-for-2 with two walks and two stolen bases in Wednesday's 3-0 loss to the Blue Jays.

Kiner-Falefa put himself in scoring position a couple of times, but the Red Sox continued a dismal run of failing to produce with RISP -- Boston's gone 1-for-24 in those situations and left 26 runners on base in the first two games of the series. Kiner-Falefa unexpectedly has become a lineup regular for Boston, having started 18 of the last 19 games at second base, shortstop and third base. A combination of Trevor Story's abdomen injury and Caleb Durbin's inconsistent bat have led to Kiner-Falefa being a constant presence in the starting nine. He's gone 19-for-65 (.292) with three extra-base hits, six RBI, seven walks, four steals and 12 runs scored during that stretch.

Fry started in right field and went 0-for-4 in Wednesday's 9-4 loss to Milwaukee.

After the Guardians learned that Chase DeLauter (ribs) would be unable to play through his injury and added him to the 10-day injured list, Fry filled the spot in right field the last two games. It's unclear if that will be a long-term solution, however. Cleveland called up prospect Kahlil Watson on Wednesday, and he should be part of the mix. Besides now having Watson at his disposal, manager Stephen Vogt likes having Fry in a utility role.