MLB Player News

Perez went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Saturday's 6-1 win over San Diego.

Perez sent an elevated fastball from Matt Waldron over the center-field fence to extend Kansas City's lead in the sixth inning. It marked the veteran's second homer of July, and he's hitting .286 with an .864 OPS, nine RBI and four runs scored across 11 games this month. Overall, Perez is slashing .211/.253/.351 with 12 homers, 39 RBI and 33 runs scored across 91 contests this season.

Thomas went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and a double in Saturday's 6-1 win over the Padres.

Thomas crushed a hanging breaking ball from Griffin Canning for a two-run homer to kick off the scoring in the first inning. The outfielder has gone yard in back-to-back games coming out of the All-Star break and has been hot in July, slashing .340/.400/.740 with four homers, 11 RBI and nine runs across 13 contests. Thomas' season marks sit at .243/.342/.423 with nine homers, 34 RBI, 29 runs and four stolen bases over 84 games.

McGonigle went 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored in Saturday's 7-0 win over the Angels.

Like he did throughout the first half of the season, McGonigle served as an effective offensive catalyst for the Tigers. The rookie infielder now has a .389 OBP, which is good for ninth in the majors. McGonigle also has 60 walks versus only 59 strikeouts through 95 games, and his good eye at the plate along with his strong contact skills should make the 21-year-old a fairly reliable fantasy option the rest of the way.

Manager Walt Weiss said Saturday that Perez (forearm) is likely to return from the 15-day injured list during Atlanta's four-game home series with San Diego that begins Monday, MLB.com reports.

The lefty appears most likely to slot back into the rotation Wednesday, which would afford ace Chris Sale an extra day of rest. Perez has been on the shelf since July 6 due to a left forearm contusion, but he's made good progress in his recovery and doesn't look like he'll require a rehab assignment. The 35-year-old doesn't miss many bats (18.6 K%, 22 percent whiff rate), but he's been able to maintain a 3.54 ERA and 1.19 WHIP over 81.1 innings by generating groundballs at a healthy 47.7 percent clip.

Cortes went 2-for-4 with a homer, a double, two RBI, two runs scored and a hit by pitch in Saturday's 15-1 win over the Nationals.

Cortes ripped an RBI double in the first inning before adding a solo homer in the seventh frame as part of the Athletics' offensive explosion. After a dreadful June at the plate, the outfielder has gone 10-for-28 (.357) with four extra-base hits (one homer), three RBI and five runs across nine games in July. Overall, Cortes is slashing .283/.360/.448 with seven homers, 25 RBI, 22 runs and a stolen base across 75 contests in 2026.

The Pirates optioned Curtis to Triple-A Indianapolis on Sunday, Danny Demilio of PittsburghBaseballNow.com reports.

The right-hander received his first promotion to the big leagues Saturday and made his MLB debut in the second game of a doubleheader in Cleveland with five scoreless innings of bulk relief. Curtis should have a better chance of returning to the majors later this summer now that he's on the 40-man roster, though his 4.96 ERA in 18 appearances between the Double-A and Triple-A levels could be a limiting factor, even after his strong performance Saturday.

Ritchie was credited with his second hold of the season in Saturday's 7-6 loss to the Rangers after striking out a batter and allowing one hit and no walks over a scoreless inning of relief.

Ritchie helped cover for the demoted Hurston Waldrep last Sunday, with Atlanta deploying him for 4.1 innings of bulk relief in a 4-3 win over St. Louis. Rather than opening the second half with Ritchie as the fifth starter, Atlanta instead handed Owen Murphy his first MLB start Saturday before Atlanta manager Walt Weiss leaned on Ritchie and six other relievers to finish out the contest. Atlanta optioned Murphy to Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday, but Ritchie appears likely to stick in the bullpen for the time being with Martin Perez (forearm) expected to return from the injured list during the upcoming week.

Atlanta selected Hernandez's contract from Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday.

The right-hander joined Atlanta on a minor-league contract in November and is now getting his first opportunity in the big leagues since 2024. Hernandez finished that season playing in the Korea Baseball Organization and also spent time overseas in 2025. Thus far in the 2026 season, the 31-year-old posted a 4.83 ERA, 1.51 WHIP and 72:27 K:BB across 76.1 innings for Gwinnett. He made 11 starts at Triple-A but will work out of the bullpen for Atlanta.

Soderstrom went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, two additional runs scored and was hit by a pitch in Saturday's 15-1 win over the Nationals.

Soderstrom added to the offensive explosion, blasting a two-run homer in the sixth inning to stretch the lead to 8-0. The left fielder has now gone deep in back-to-back games since returning from the All-Star break. On the year, the 24-year-old is slashing .245/.346/.484 with 16 homers, 46 RBI, 47 runs and a stolen base across 86 contests.

Atlanta optioned Murphy to Triple-A Gwinnett on Sunday.

The right-hander made his first big-league start Saturday versus Texas and will head back to Triple-A after giving up three runs (two earned) on five hits with two strikeouts and two walks over 2.2 innings. Murphy has now covered 6.2 frames across three MLB appearances and has allowed three earned runs with a 6:2 K:BB. The 23-year-old could get another look in the majors later this summer, but for now he should step back into the rotation at Gwinnett.