MLB Player News

Pomeranz elected free agency Friday.

The veteran southpaw will explore his options on the open market after he recently cleared waivers upon being designated for assignment by the Cubs. Over his 31 appearances in the majors this season between the Angels and Cubs, Pomeranz has pitched to a 5.59 ERA and 1.66 WHIP across 29 innings.

Kurtz went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in Sunday's 11-8 loss to the Twins.

Kurtz returned from a thumb injury Saturday, but he stayed cold at the plate. When he went deep Sunday, he snapped an 0-for-25 stretch at the plate that dated back to July 3. The first baseman should be able to turn things around, though his 32.1 percent strikeout rate is an obvious flaw, especially since he's struck out 17 times over nine contests in July. Kurtz is batting .264 with a .901 OPS, 21 homers, 69 RBI, 62 runs scored, 15 doubles, one triple and seven stolen bases over 94 games this season.

Castro went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and a hit-by-pitch in Sunday's 11-2 loss to the Brewers.

Castro reached the 10-homer mark on the year with this blast, one of four the utility man has hit in July. He's added 11 RBI while batting .197 (13-for-66) with 24 strikeouts over 19 games this month. For the season, Castro is hitting .258 with a .724 OPS, 44 RBI, 45 runs scored, 15 doubles and seven stolen bases over 91 contests, but his rate stats are likely to come down if he continues to whiff.

Carrigg went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 11-2 loss to the Brewers.

Jacob Misiorowski was perfect for 4.2 innings before Carrigg's solo shot. The long ball ended a 15-game homer drought for Carrigg, who still hit .280 with six doubles and six RBI in that span. The outfielder is batting .287 with an .879 OPS, five homers, 26 RBI, 30 runs scored, nine doubles, three triples and three stolen bases over his first 39 games in the majors. As expected, there hasn't been much power in Carrigg's bat, but he could still make some gains with speed, and he's maintained a good eye at the plate.

Bellinger said he will return to New York on Monday to undergo additional testing on his strained left hamstring, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Bellinger was placed on the 10-day injured list Sunday, but the Yankees are still looking to determine the severity of his hamstring injury. Even if his upcoming tests reveal a minor strain, Bellinger could be hard pressed to make it back from the shelf when first eligible Aug. 4. The Yankees recalled Spencer Jones from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a corresponding move, and the rookie could end up occupying the strong side of a platoon in the outfield while Bellinger is on the IL.

Freeland (2-10) allowed five runs on six hits and a walk while striking out two over 5.1 innings to take the loss versus the Brewers on Sunday.

Freeland has reverted to poor form lately, allowing 19 runs across 22.1 innings over his last four starts, three of which have come on the road. He has a 17:3 K:BB in that span, but he's also given up five home runs. For the season, the southpaw has a 7.34 ERA, 1.55 WHIP and 85:21 K:BB through 99.1 innings over 19 starts. His 7.7 K/9 is one of the better marks of his career and his 1.9 BB/9 is his best, but a 1.9 HR/9 has largely held him back, resulting in a career-worst ERA. Freeland's next start is projected to be at home versus the Royals.

Triple-A Nashville placed Williams (wrist) on the 7-day injured list Wednesday.

Williams hadn't played since July 7 due to the wrist injury before Nashville decided to deactivate him. The 22-year-old shortstop has produced a .234/.341/.385 slash line with nine home runs and 21 stolen bases across 358 plate appearances at Nashville this season, his first in the Brewers organization after he was acquired in January as part of the deal that sent Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers to the Mets.

Bauers went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, an RBI, a stolen base and two runs scored in Sunday's 11-2 win over the Rockies.

Bauers has multiple hits and a steal in back-to-back contests. Prior to this recent burst of productivity, he had gone just 4-for-30 over a 10-game span from July 11-24. The 30-year-old is picking up steady time in right field in the absence of Sal Frelick (shoulder), though Bauers moves to first base when Andrew Vaughn is on the bench. Bauers is batting .263 with an .855 OPS, 18 home runs, eight steals, 60 RBI, 62 runs scored, 16 doubles and one triple over 96 contests this season.

Montgomery secured the save Sunday against the Cubs, allowing two runs on two hits and no walks in the ninth inning. He struck out two.

It was interesting to see Pittsburgh deploy Montgomery in the ninth over Gregory Soto, who's been the club's primary closer this season and last worked Friday. Montgomery appears to be working his way up the bullpen ladder following the departure of Dennis Santana, but he barely survived Sunday and needed every bit of the 8-5 lead he was granted. Through 42.1 innings, Montgomery has a 4.04 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 65:19 K:BB with two saves in two chances.

Vaughn went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and a second RBI in Sunday's 11-2 win over the Rockies.

Vaughn went deep in the sixth inning and added a sacrifice fly in the eighth. He's hit safely in five of his seven games since the All-Star break, going 6-for-21 (.286) with two homers and four RBI in that span. For the season, the first baseman is batting .308 with an .878 OPS, four homers, 28 RBI, 23 runs scored, 15 doubles, two triples and no stolen bases over 194 plate appearances.