MLB Player News

Stephenson is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Athletics.

After going 0-for-4 in Tuesday's matchup with the A's, Stephenson will ride the pine for the second contest of a three-game set. Jose Trevino will be behind the plate and bat seventh for Cincinnati.

Walker (knee) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees.

Walker will hit the bench for a second straight game while he manages inflammation in his right knee. Jose Fermin will take over for Walker in right field and bat cleanup for St. Louis in Wednesday's series finale.

Glasnow (back) is expected to cover around three innings and 45 pitches in his next minor-league rehab start Sunday, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.

Glasnow reported to Single-A Ontario on Tuesday for the first start of his rehab assignment and his first appearance at any level since May 6, after a bout with lower-back spasms resulted in a prolonged absence. The right-hander breezed through his outing Tuesday, retiring six of the seven batters he faced on 16 pitches. The Dodgers haven't revealed whether he'll stick around at Ontario for his next outing or move up to a higher-level affiliate, but either way, he'll be looking to tack on about 30 more pitches to his workload. Glasnow is likely to require one or two rehab starts beyond Sunday before returning from the 60-day injured list and reclaiming a spot in the Dodgers' six-man rotation.

Johnston is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

Since the beginning of July, Johnston has put together a lowly .156/.230/.203 slash line with only three extra-base hits (all doubles). His ongoing struggles at the dish appear to have cost him playing time, as he'll stick on the bench against a right-handed starter for the second straight day. The Rockies will once again go with Jordan Beck as a replacement in the lineup for Johnston, after Beck went 1-for-3 with a triple in Tuesday's 11-inning loss.

The Cubs optioned Kelly to Triple-A Iowa on Wednesday.

Kelly will give up his spot on the 26-man active roster to right-hander Kevin Gausman, who has joined the Cubs after being acquired from the Blue Jays on Sunday. During his brief stay in the big leagues, Kelly tossed 1.1 scoreless innings in his lone relief appearance.

Gilbert is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rangers.

The left-handed-hitting Gilbert will stay on the bench for the second day in a row while the Rangers send another southpaw (Cody Bradford) to the bump. Grant McCray will slide over to center field in place of Gilbert, while Eddys Leonard draws a second straight start in left field.

Koss is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rangers.

Koss covered third base in the first two contests of the series but will cede the hot corner to Buddy Kennedy in the finale. With Matt Chapman (abdomen) having recently suffered a setback that will delay his return from the injured list and potentially keep him out for the rest of the season, the everyday role at third base is up for grabs. Koss has done little thus far to prove himself worthy of steady playing time; he's slashing just .167/.216/.188 over 51 plate appearances with the Giants.

Basabe will start at second base and bat fifth in Wednesday's game against the Rangers.

Basabe will pick up a fifth straight start after going 5-for-15 with three home runs, a double and eight RBI through the Giants' first four games of August. At least until the Giants get trade-deadline pickup Marcelo Mayer (forearm) back from the injured list, Basabe looks like he could be in store for an everyday role at second base.

Ramirez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.

Ramirez will head to the bench after going 1-for-11 with a walk and a stolen base while starting in each of the Cubs' last three contests. He'll give up his spot in the lineup to Tyrone Taylor, who draws a start in center field while MVP candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong gets a day off from playing defense but sticks in the starting nine at designated hitter.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday that Snell (elbow) should be ready to return from the 60-day injured list to make his next start in the majors, Sonja Chen of MLB.com reports.

On the shelf since May 15 after he required a NanoScope procedure to remove loose bodies from his left elbow, Snell is poised to rejoin the Dodgers after he completed his fourth rehab start Tuesday at Triple-A Oklahoma City. After rolling to a 1.13 ERA, 0.60 WHIP and 16:1 K:BB in eight innings over his first three starts, Snell wasn't nearly as sharp Tuesday, as he surrendered three runs on five hits -- including two home runs -- and four walks while striking out three over 3.2 innings. On a positive note, Snell's elbow checked out fine coming out of the appearance, and he was able to push his pitch count up to 73 (41 strikes) despite not meeting his goal of covering five innings. He'll likely line up for a start Monday or Tuesday in Kansas City in what will be just his second appearance of the season for the Dodgers.