MLB Player News

Perez went 3-for-5 with a solo home run, an additional run scored and a double in a 14-6 rout of the Cardinals on Thursday.

Perez made history in the sixth inning with a 385-foot solo blast to left field. It was his 137th regular-season homer at Kauffman Stadium, establishing a record for long balls hit at the ballpark, per Anne Rogers of MLB.com. The home run was also Perez's 313th in his career, putting him four away from reaching George Brett's franchise mark of 317. Perez came into Thursday without a homer over his previous 17 games, a span during which he batted just .157 (11-for-70).

Liberatore (3-4) allowed seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and no walks while striking out two batters over 1.2 innings to take the loss against Kansas City on Thursday.

Liberatore got an early lead when St. Louis scored twice in the top of the first inning, but he gave one run back in the bottom of the frame on a Bobby Witt (knee) solo homer. Things got much worse for Liberatore in the second, as the Royals swarmed him for six hits -- five of which were doubles -- en route to six runs. The left-hander ultimately gave way to a reliever after retiring only two batters in that disastrous frame. It was the shortest outing of the season for Liberatore, and he hasn't been providing much depth of late, completing fewer than five frames in three straight outings. He's had a few promising starts this season, but it's mostly been a struggle for the veteran pitcher, who now has an ugly 5.23 ERA and 1.56 WHIP along with a 67:27 K:BB through 72.1 innings spanning 15 appearances.

Cameron (4-4) earned the win over St. Louis on Thursday, allowing four runs (three earned) on eight hits and two walks while striking out six batters over five innings.

Cameron had a rough first inning, when the Cardinals put up a pair of runs on a hit, two walks, a wild pitch and an error. However, the Royals offense had the lefty hurler's back, posting seven runs over the ensuing two frames to hand him a big lead. It wasn't exactly smooth sailing for Cameron from there, as he gave up two more runs and needed 108 pitches to labor through five innings, but KC's offensive explosion provided the support needed for him to emerge with the win. Cameron bounced back with six punchouts and 14 whiffs after notching just one strikeout in his previous start, and he kept the ball in the park after allowing two long balls in that prior outing. He'll carry a 4.20 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 70:19 K:BB through 75 frames into his next start, which lines up to be a road game in Tampa Bay.

Benintendi went 1-for-1 with a grand slam in Thursday's 5-1 win over the Yankees.

Benintendi delivered the game's defining moment in the eighth inning. Entering as a pinch hitter for Randal Grichuk in a tie game with the bases loaded, the veteran outfielder launched a 393-foot grand slam off Camilo Doval to break the game open and give Chicago all the offense it would need. The homer continued a recent power surge for Benintendi, who has now gone deep three times in his last 17 plate appearances. After a slow start to the season, he has raised his production to a .242 batting average and .741 OPS across 66 games.

Montgomery went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Thursday's 5-1 win over the Yankees.

Montgomery opened the scoring in the second inning, taking Ryan Weathers deep for a solo shot. The blast was his 20th home run of the season, moving him into a tie for fifth in the majors. The shortstop has been on an impressive power surge lately, collecting four homers and seven RBI over his last four games. Montgomery is slashing .230/.325/.516 with 13 doubles, 45 RBI, 36 runs scored and one stolen base across 70 games.

Weathers did not factor into the decision Thursday against the White Sox, allowing one run on three hits and one walk while striking out eight over 6.1 innings.

Weathers came out firing, striking out the side in the first inning before running into his lone mistake of the night when Colson Montgomery launched the first pitch of the second inning for a solo homer. The left-hander was excellent from that point forward, limiting Chicago to just two additional hits while recording his fifth outing of at least eight strikeouts. The performance was a much-needed rebound effort after a rough stretch in which he had allowed five or more runs in four of his previous five starts. Weathers now has a 4.13 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 89:22 K:BB across 80.2 innings.

Burke (4-4) earned the win Thursday against the Yankees, allowing one run on five hits and one walk while striking out eight over 7.1 innings.

After opener Bryan Hudson tossed 1.2 scoreless innings, Burke carried the bulk of the workload and finished the game, with the lone blemish on his line coming via a Ryan McMahon solo homer in the third inning. The right-hander was dominant Thursday, generating a whopping 20 whiffs and an elite 39.2 percent whiff rate. His eight strikeouts matched a season high and were especially encouraging given his recent inconsistency, as he entered Thursday with a 5.82 ERA over his previous seven appearances. Burke now owns a 3.89 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 81:29 K:BB across 81 innings this season and is scheduled to face Cleveland at home in his next outing.

Atlanta designated Leon for assignment on Thursday.

With Atlanta acquiring Joey Bart (foot) from the Pirates, Leon loses his spot on the 40-man roster after going 4-for-44 at the plate with zero extra-base hits and a 0:18 BB:K across 21 games.

Atlanta acquired Bart (foot) from the Pirates on Thursday in exchange for Hunter Stratton.

Bart has spent the last month-plus on the injured list due to a foot infection, but he began a rehab assignment last week and appears ready to make his return to the big leagues with Atlanta, where he'll serve as the backup to Drake Baldwin while Sean Murphy recovers from a broken finger that is expected to sideline him until after the All-Star break. In just 62 trips to the plate this season with the Pirates, Bart slashed .259/.290/.379 with two homers, six RBI, nine runs scored and a 2:21 BB:K.

Soto went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs and a walk in Thursday's 6-4 win over the Phillies.

Soto opened the scoring with a solo homer off Aaron Nola in the first inning before taking the veteran right-hander deep again in his next plate appearance to record his second multi-homer performance of the year. Soto has looked locked in at the plate over his last eight games, batting 14-for-29 (.483) with three homers. The 27-year-old is now slashing .300/.398/.582 with 17 home runs, seven doubles, one triple, 38 RBI, 36 runs scored and six stolen bases across 249 plate appearances this season.