MLB Player News

The Reds outrighted Leibrandt to Triple-A Louisville on Thursday.

Having been outrighted previously, Leibrandt has the ability to decline the assignment and become a free agent, but it's unclear what his plans are. The southpaw saved the Reds' bullpen earlier this week by eating six innings and allowing five runs in a relief appearance Monday versus the Royals.

The Giants outrighted Porter to Triple-A Sacramento on Thursday.

Porter passed through waivers after being designated for assignment. He has the ability to decline an outright assignment and elect free agency, but at this point it appears Porter will stick around as organizational catching depth.

Williams (elbow) threw a simulated game at Nationals Park ahead of Tuesday's loss to the Marlins, MLB.com reports.

The veteran right-hander still lacks a concrete timeline for his return from last July's internal brace procedure on his elbow, but Williams is making progress in his recovery. He'll need a lengthy rehab assignment, but he could be a month or so away from providing the Nationals' beleaguered staff with an additional rotation option.

Phillips (elbow) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday, yielding one hit and one walk over two-thirds of a scoreless frame.

Phillips struck out one batter and averaged 95.7 mph with his four-seamer, which is up 0.3 mph from last season. The righty is working his way back from Tommy John surgery and will likely need a fairly lengthy rehab assignment before rejoining the Dodgers' active roster.

Trevino (hamstring) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Louisville on Thursday, going 0-for-3 with a strikeout.

Trevino also caught six innings behind the plate in his first bit of game action since he strained his left hamstring nearly three weeks ago. The veteran backstop shouldn't require too many more rehab at-bats before rejoining the Reds' active roster.

Acuna went 1-for-4 with a run scored and a stolen base in Thursday's loss to the Blue Jays.

The third-inning steal was Acuna's 14th of the season, with seven of them coming in the last eight games. Over that stretch, the 28-year-old superstar is slashing .296/.472/.889 with five homers, seven runs and nine RBI as he shows signs of regaining the pre-injury form that saw him deliver 41 home runs and 73 stolen bases in a historic 2023 regular-season campaign.

Lowe went 2-for-5 with two doubles and two runs scored Thursday against the Astros.

Lowe ignited a Pirates rally with each of his doubles, coming around to score both times. It was his first multi-hit game in his last seven starts, though he's still been plenty productive of late. Across his last 10 games, Lowe has two homers, eight RBI and 10 runs scored. He's maintained an .873 OPS across 57 games this season, his highest mark since 2020.

Moreno batted third in the order and went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Thursday's 3-2 win over the Dodgers.

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo adjusted the lineup Thursday, swapping the spots of Moreno and shortstop Geraldo Perdomo, who was dropped to seventh. It was just the third time this season the catcher has hit third, but he's been one of the team's hottest hitters of late, slashing .311/.394/.459 over the last 17 contests. Per Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports, Perdomo will mainly stick in the seventh spot for now, but it's not yet clear if Moreno will be the primary No. 3 hitter while the shortstop works through his struggles at the dish.

Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said Thursday that the plan for now is to keep Perdomo in the lower third of the batting order, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.

Perdomo hit out of the seventh spot Thursday and responded with two hits, including a two-out, game-tying single in the bottom of the eighth inning. Perdomo could move around the lineup depending on days off for teammates, but the plan is to mainly keep in the seven-hole for now. The shortstop had a breakout 2025 but is slashing .230/.333/.348 with three home runs, 22 RBI, eight steals and 27 runs through 59 games in 2026.

Smith entered Thursday's game to play first base after Ildemaro Vargas (thigh) was removed in the fifth inning. Smith went 0-for-1 in a 3-2 win over the Dodgers.

The lefty-hitting Smith would not have been the first choice as a replacement with Dodgers southpaw Justin Wrobleski still on the mound, but Jose Fernandez was already in the game as the DH. The Diamondbacks typically limit Smith's exposure to left-handers. Vargas is day-to-day and is not expected to suit up Friday against Washington lefty Foster Griffin, but it's unlikely Smith will be in the starting lineup.