MLB Player News

Johnson has been diagnosed with a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee and will undergo season-ending surgery, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Johnson had to be carted off the field during this past Saturday's game with Triple-A Indianapolis after stumbling over the first-base bag while attempting to leg out an infield single. It's a brutal injury for the 22-year-old infielder, who will undergo more examinations before undergoing surgery, with an eye toward being back on the field during the 2027 season. Johnson had a .651 OPS with 24 steals (in 30 attempts), eight home runs and 37 RBI across 401 plate appearances in Triple-A this season before the injury.

Prieto is expected to be optioned to Triple-A Memphis on Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

The move will make room on the active roster for Cardinals prospect Joshua Baez, who will make his major-league debut against the Cubs on Saturday. Prieto was brought up from Triple-A on Aug. 4 but has gone 1-for-11 in five games since his promotion to the big leagues. He's been utilized as a depth piece in the infield but will see regular playing time in the minors.

St. Louis manager Oli Marmol said Friday that Baez will be in the Cardinals' lineup against the Cubs on Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Baez is scheduled to make his major-league debut in Chicago on Saturday, five years after being selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2021 First-Year Player Draft. He's been heating up at the plate at the right time, having gone 20-for-58 (.345) with six steals, six doubles, five home runs and 16 RBI over his last 15 games with Triple-A Memphis, which has brought him up to an .898 OPS across 460 plate appearances this season. Baez has played in all three spots in the outfield and should see a fair amount of reps in the majors, with most of his starts likely coming in left field.

Nationals manager Blake Butera revealed Friday that Abrams will be the team's primary second baseman moving forward, with Nasim Nunez shifting to shortstop, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

Abrams remains at shortstop for Friday's game against the Mets, and he will still see occasional starts at the position. However, his main spot on the diamond will be second base, a position he hasn't played since 2022 with the Padres. The alignment should improve the Nationals' middle-infield defense, as Abrams has long been a poor defender at shortstop, while Nunez is considered an above-average fielder. Additionally, several of the team's top prospects are shortstops, so an eventual shift to the keystone for Abrams felt inevitable.

Carrigg is absent from the lineup for Friday's contest in San Francisco.

Carrigg was in the lineup for the previous 11 games, splitting time between center field (eight starts) and shortstop (three starts). He'll exit the lineup for Friday's series opener, with the Rockies leaning on Jake McCarthy in center field and Ezequiel Tovar at shortstop.

Goodman is not in the lineup for Friday's game in San Francisco.

Goodman will receive a day of rest after starting each of the previous six contests. Brett Sullivan will do the catching for the Rockies in Friday's series opener.

Crews is not in the lineup for Friday's game versus the Mets.

It's a routine day of rest for Crews, who had started in each of the last nine contests. Jose Tena, Jacob Young and Daylen Lile will patrol the outfield for the Nationals in Friday's series opener.

Mets interim manager Andy Green said Friday that Vientos (hand) has begun baseball activities, Laura Albanese of Newsday reports.

Vientos is finally ready to ease back into workouts after missing more than a month of action with a fractured right hand. There's no timetable yet for the infielder's return, and he is likely to require a rehab assignment before being reinstated to the active roster.

Atlanta manager Walt Weiss said that Lopez (knee) completed a bullpen session Tuesday, Jesus Cano of The Athletic reports.

Shortly after Lopez landed on the 15-day injured list Aug. 2 due to left knee inflammation, Weiss indicated that Lopez was expected to return when first eligible Friday. The 32-year-old righty looks like he'll need at least a little extra time beyond that before being activated, and he may also be headed for a role change upon his return. Though Weiss noted Tuesday that he still views Lopez as a starter, the skipper noted that Lopez could be an option out of the bullpen, depending on the club's needs. Atlanta has gotten excellent results from trade-deadline pickup Tyler Mahle in his first two starts, and Weiss may prefer to keep Mahle in the rotation ahead of Lopez, who had started in his last six appearances prior to landing on the shelf and posted a 3.86 ERA and 1.29 WHIP in 28 innings over that span.

Nootbaar is absent from the lineup for Friday's game in Atlanta.

The Diamondbacks have faced two lefties since the trade deadline and the left-handed-hitting Nootbaar has been out of the lineup both times. Tyler Locklear is in the designated hitter slot and Ryan Waldschmidt will play left field for Arizona.