MLB Player News

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed Thursday that Ohtani will make his next start as a pitcher Saturday in Kansas City, Sonja Chen of MLB.com reports.

Ohtani will be taking the mound for the third time this season after previously tossing one inning in both of his previous two starts. The Dodgers have been deliberately easing the two-way superstar back in as a pitcher coming off his September 2023 Tommy John surgery, and it's not yet clear if he will be cleared to increase his workload Saturday. Ohtani has served as the Dodgers' designated hitter and has batted leadoff in both games he's pitched in so far, so his scheduled appearance on the mound shouldn't affect his presence in the lineup. Ben Casparius will most likely work in bulk relief behind Ohtani.

Lawlar was placed on Triple-A Reno's 7-day injured list Thursday due to a hamstring injury, Jack Sommers of SI.com reports.

Lawlar dealt with a hamstring issue last week into the beginning of this week, but he was back in Reno's lineup Wednesday. However, the talented young shortstop logged just one at-bat in his return before he was lifted, and he's now landed on the minor-league IL. Per Sommers, Lawlar will miss at least a month due to the injury, so he won't be back in action until late July, at the earliest.

Kerkering (5-3) was charged with the loss in Thursday's 2-1 defeat to the Astros, giving up one run on two hits with no strikeouts in the eighth inning.

Although it was not a save situation, the 24-year-old right-hander allowed his first earned run since May 6. Thursday ended a streak of 19 appearances without an earned run for Kerkering, who was summoned to face the top of Houston's lineup but failed to keep the game tied. Kerkering has still worked to a 1.16 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 21:11 K:BB over his last 23.1 innings, so he should remain in Philadelphia's closer mix going forward.

Holmes (4-7) allowed two runs on six hits and three walks while striking out six over five innings to take the loss Thursday versus the Mets.

Holmes gave up a run in each of the fourth and fifth innings. It wasn't a bad performance from the right-hander, but Atlanta's offense mustered a pitiful three hits in the game, giving Holmes no support. He's allowed 11 runs (10 earned) in 25.2 innings across his five starts in June. Overall, he's at a 3.70 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 103:42 K:BB through 90 innings over 17 appearances (16 starts) this season. Holmes is lined up to face the Angels early next week, which could be a two-start week for him.

Alonso went 3-for-4 with a double, one RBI and one run scored in Thursday's 4-0 win over Atlanta.

Alonso's bat has been a little quiet lately -- he's 11-for-38 (.289) with just two extra-base hits and two RBI, as well as a 2:16 BB:K over his last 10 games. This was his third multi-hit effort in that span. The first baseman is at a .292/.384/.549 slash line with 18 home runs, 23 doubles, 65 RBI, 46 runs scored and no stolen bases across 82 contests. Alonso has hit for a high average all year without sacrificing too much power, so a little regression was to be expected at some point, but he's managed it gracefully so far.

Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said following Thursday's win over Atlanta that the organization believes Canning likely suffered an Achilles injury, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.

Testing will be needed to confirm the Mets' initial assessment, but if Canning is dealing with an Achilles injury, he could be set to miss a substantial amount of time. The righty hurler emerged as an important part of the team's rotation this season, posting a 7-3 record with a 3.77 ERA over 76.1 innings before suffering the injury. Nothing is certain yet, but if Canning is dealing with a serious injury, it would deplete the Mets' rotation further -- they are already without Kodai Senga (hamstring), Sean Manaea (oblique/elbow) and Tylor Megill (elbow).

Almora signed a minor-league contract with the Diamondbacks on Thursday, Kevin Barral of FishonFirst.com reports.

Almora had previously been in Miami's organization, posting a .604 OPS with one home run and four steals over 44 games with Triple-A Jacksonville until he was released last Thursday. The veteran outfielder hasn't played in the majors since 2022, when he got into 64 contests with Cincinnati. Almora has had some big-league success in the past -- he swatted 12 homers with 32 RBI over 130 games with the Cubs in 2019 -- but will likely need to impress in Arizona's minor-league system to get another look at the highest level.

The Mets stated after Canning was pulled from Thursday's game against Atlanta that he's dealing with a left ankle injury.

Canning collapsed to the ground and had to be assisted off the field by trainers after stepping awkwardly on the mound during the third inning. In addition to clarifying that the hurler's injury is to his left ankle, the Mets also stated that Canning will undergo imaging. It's not clear at this point if Canning will have to miss his next start, but it certainly is a possibility pending the details of his injury.

Canning was removed from Thursday's contest against Atlanta due to an apparent left leg or foot injury, Andrew Tredinnick of The Bergen Record reports.

Tredinnick notes that Canning's removal came after he took an "awkward step" at the base of the mound. The right-hander had been cruising prior to his departure, striking out three batters and giving up just one hit over 2.2 scoreless frames. Canning fell to the grass after getting hurt and needed help from Mets trainers to exit the field, but it will take further evaluation for the team to determine the extent of his injury.

Pomeranz worked around a hit to toss a scoreless inning and earn a hold in Thursday's 3-0 win over the Cardinals. He struck out one.

Pomeranz got the nod in the eighth inning of a close game instead of Ryan Pressly, who last pitched Tuesday. Pressly recorded a save as recently as June 12, though since then, Daniel Palencia has rattled off three saves, including his eighth of the season Thursday. Palencia has been excellent and seems to be strengthening his grip on the closer role, but it appears that the bullpen is a bit fluid in front of him. Pomeranz has also been excellent this season, as he still hasn't allowed an earned run across 21.2 innings. The lefty also has five holds and a save, and his strong play figures to keep him in a high-leverage role for the Cubs moving forward, along with Pressly and the recently activated Porter Hodge.