MLB Player News

Garcia is absent from the lineup for Thursday's contest versus the White Sox.

The Royals have given Garcia one day off per series since he returned from the injured list last week. After reaching base seven times in the first two games of the three-game set, he'll grab a seat during Thursday's matinee. Nick Loftin will play third base in Garcia's stead.

Caglianone is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the White Sox.

Caglianone had started the last four contests, going 7-for-15 at the plate. He'll get a breather during Thursday's afternoon tilt. John Rave will patrol right field and will occupy the No. 7 slot in the Royals' batting order.

Alonso went 1-for-3 with a walk and a two-run home run in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader sweep of the Blue Jays.

The first baseman took future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer deep in the fifth inning, Alonso's ninth homer in September and his 41st of the season. His first year with Baltimore has gone as well as the team could have hoped -- in addition to an .871 OPS that's tied for the second-best mark of his career, he's reached the 40-homer mark for the fourth time and the 100-RBI plateau for the fifth time. Alonso also needs to cross the plate just four more times to record his second season with 100-plus runs.

Kittredge recorded his 11th save of the season in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Blue Jays, giving up a hit and striking out one in a scoreless ninth inning.

The right-hander has remained in the late-inning mix even with Felix Bautista back in the fold, and Kittredge (two) and Rico Garcia (four) have split Baltimore's last six saves. Since the beginning of August, Kittredge has collected two wins, three holds and seven saves in 19 appearances with a 3.63 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 12:2 K:BB over 17.1 innings.

Bassitt (9-5) picked up the win in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader sweep of the Blue Jays, allowing two runs on seven hits and a walk over five innings. He struck out two.

It was something of a revenge game for veteran right-hander, as with the victory Bassitt helped eliminate his former club from playoff contention while keeping Baltimore's faint wild-card hopes alive. Bassitt has been on a roll to close out the 2026 regular season, winning five of his last six starts while posting a 3.63 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 28:12 K:BB over 34.2 innings.

Van Eyk (0-2) took the loss in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Orioles, giving up four runs on four hits over five innings. He struck out two without walking a batter.

The 28-year-old right-hander didn't pitch poorly in his first career start, but he got hit hard when Baltimore batters did make contact as three of the hits off Van Eyk went for extra bases, including a solo shot by Christian Encarnacion-Strand in the fourth inning. Van Eyk's first taste of the majors this season didn't go particularly well, as he sports a 5.40 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and meager 3:2 K:BB through five appearances and 11.2 innings for the Blue Jays.

Scherzer (3-9) took the loss in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Orioles, giving up four runs on four hits and three walks over five innings. He struck out seven.

Getting swept in the twin bill officially eliminated the Blue Jays from playoff contention, but Scherzer went down firing as he tossed 60 of 93 pitches for strikes. The 42-year-old right-hander has a 4.41 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 29:14 K:BB over his last six starts and 32.2 innings, but his personal campaign may not be done -- after Wednesday's performance, Scherzer sits four career strikeouts behind former teammate Justin Verlander (hamstring) for eighth place on MLB's all-time list. Toronto manager suggested before Wednesday's outing that Scherzer could pitch again at home Sunday versus Cincinnati in the regular-season finale, both to give a potential farewell to home fans and to try and catch Verlander.

McGonigle went 3-for-5 with a double in Wednesday's 4-2 loss to the Nationals.

The Tigers only managed eight hits in total, helping to explain why McGonigle wasn't able to cross the plate despite another strong effort from the leadoff spot. The 22-year-old appears to have the AL Rookie of the Year Award sewn up, but he isn't coasting to the finish line -- through 20 games in September, McGonigle has produced a .305/.396/.512 slash line with nine extra-base hits including three homers, plus 11 runs, 12 RBI and a 13:14 BB:K. He's the first Detroit rookie to collect 50 extra-base hits in a season since Steve Kemp in 1977.

Duran went 2-for-3 with a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 1-0 win over the Guardians.

Duran singled to lead off the bottom of the sixth inning and scored the game's lone run. He later singled and stole second base in the eighth, giving the Red Sox a chance to bring in an insurance run. The steal was the 20th of the season for Duran, who has stolen as least 20 bags in four straight seasons. He also joined the 20-homer/20-steal club for the second time in his career. While his .207 batting average has been a drag, Duran's provided legit fantasy value.

Jensen went 3-for-4 with a run scored in Wednesday's 5-4 win over the White Sox.

Jensen collected a trio of singles, marking his fifth game of the season with three-plus hits. The young catcher is ending the regular season on a high note, hitting .338/.416/.750 with six homers, 15 RBI and 16 runs in 18 September contests. Overall, Jensen is slashing .237/.323/.454 with 25 homers, 76 RBI, 77 runs and two stolen bases across 146 games.