Nick Loftin plates two as Royals crush Cardinals

Mets manager Andy Green said that Holmes will likely need one more start after that. With recent reports that the Mets are likely to try to trade Holmes before the deadline, this timeline means that he may not be able to start in a Mets uniform before August third. Still, the Mets could entice a team to trade for Holmes if the veteran looks healthy and effective in his next two rehab starts, knowing that he would be able to be activated right after the deadline.

With Luis Robert Jr. off the injured list, there was an expectation that the Mets would rotate through their outfielders, but Robert Jr. is on the bench for this one too. Brett Baty will start in right field, which will allow Jorge Polanco to DH and Marcus Semien to play second base. There will be a logjam at certain positions over the next week or so until the Mets can trade some players away.

Lackey was the third overall pick in this month’s MLB Draft and will get the second-highest signing bonus of all time behind Roch Cholowsky, who was taken first overall in the same draft. The slot value for the third pick in this year’s draft was $9.7 million, so the deal is in line with what was expected for the Georgia Tech product.

After a great MLB debut, it’s been a tough rookie season for Ritchie, who now has a 4.50 ERA, 1.41 WHIP, and 49/33 K/BB ratio in 54 MLB innings. There will likely need to be some pitch mix changes if he’s going to develop into a usable starter for the Braves at the MLB level.

This was reported last night and is now official. Pérez will start on Wednesday against the Padres, a team that has struggled against lefties so far this season. Still, we would avoid using Pérez in his first start off the IL unless you’re in a deep format.

Barnett has exclusively been starting in Triple-A but has only pitched out of the bullpen in the Majors this year. He’s taking J.T. Ginn’s place on the roster, and Ginn was set to start on Friday against the Twins, but there is no indication yet if Barnett will make that start in his place. It would make sense since Barnett was scheduled to start on Thursday in Triple-A.

This is surprising since Ginn was tremendous in his last start, taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning against the Nationals. He clearly picked up a blister during that performance and will now miss his next two turns in the rotation.

The Royals needed a spot on the 40-man roster for Nate Pearson, so Misner was let go. The 28-year-old hit .220/.256/.244 in 44 plate appearances for the Royals this season.

Basallo has now played since Sunday, when he had to leave the game after a swing in the second inning. The Red Sox could potentially be using two left-handed starters in this doubleheader, so it’s not clear if Basallo will play at all. Sam Huff will start behind the dish and bat ninth, while Coby Mayo will be at third base and hit fifth.

Caglianone had to be removed from Monday’s game with right shoulder soreness. The good news is that the Royals placed Bobby Witt Jr. (back) on the injured list before this game, but not Caglianone, so he may not need to go on the IL after all. We will find out in another day or two. For now, Starling Marte will start in right field and bat seventh while Isaac Collins will start in left field and hit sixth.