Pirates bring Jack Branningan up to big leagues

It didn’t take Reyes long to find a new opportunity after being jettisoned by the Padres last week. The 32-year-old journeyman infielder has appeared in 259 career games in the big leagues since 2018. He’ll provide Los Angeles with some emergency depth at Triple-A Salt Lake heading into the second half of the season.

Unroe has spent 13 seasons in the minors since being selected in the second round of the 2013 MLB Draft and has yet to reach the majors. The 30-year-old infielder heads to Triple-A Charlotte as organizational depth for the White Sox heading into the second half of the year.

It sounds like a precautionary move since Caissie was replaced by Griffin Conine in right field to open the second inning. The 24-year-old rookie has hit .239/.297/.459 with 12 homers, 50 RBI and four steals in 246 plate appearances over 79 games in his Miami debut. He’s delivered borderline top-50 value among fantasy outfielders this season.

Dingler is likely headed for X-rays to rule out any potential fractures after taking a foul tip off his right hand behind the plate during the early stages of Wednesday’s game at Comerica Park. He finished 1-for-1 with a run scored prior to leaving the contest in the second inning. Clearly, the Tigers weren’t going to take any chances by letting him continue. There should be a definitive update on his status following the contest. The 27-year-old was named to the American League’s roster for next week’s Midsummer Classic, his first All-Star Game selection.

It’s a significant relief that Kurtz isn’t dealing with an injury after he appeared to jam his hand trying to field an errant throw from teammate Zack Gelof in the opening frame. He was replaced by Jeff McNeil at first base in the second inning. The 23-year-old on-base machine is slated to start next week’s All-Star Game at first base for the American League. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day heading into Thursday’s series finale in Detroit.

Padres manager Craig Stammen told reporters X-rays came back negative on Machado’s foot after fouling a ball off it during Tuesday’s contest at Petco Park. The 34-year-old receives an extremely rare day off with Sung-Mun Song taking over at the hot corner in his absence. Fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. He’s endured an abysmal first half at the plate by his usual standards, slashing .188/.282/.404 with 18 homers, 51 RBI and two steals in 374 plate appearances through 89 games.

Rengifo receives the call to replace an injured Samad Taylor (oblique) on San Diego’s bench after latching on with the organization back in late June. The versatile 29-year-old was cut loose by the Brewers last month after hitting .205//280/.254 with zero homers and three steals across 209 plate appearances in 57 games. He’s a part-time role player at this stage of his career.

So much for Taylor avoiding a trip to the injured list. The Padres are going to give him some extra time off heading into next week’s All-Star break. The 27-year-old wraps up a strong first half with a .330/.410/.398 slash line with one homer, 11 RBI and six steals in 102 plate appearances over 26 games. He’s certainly looked like a viable reserve outfielder.

It’s a significant relief that Warren won’t require elbow surgery after hitting the injured list with a forearm strain prior to Wednesday’s game against the Royals. The 30-year-old middle reliever has forged a respectable 4.63 ERA across 35 innings this season. There is no timetable for his return yet.

The cycle continues. Carrasco is poised to elect free agency and re-sign with Atlanta on a new minor league pact. He’ll remain stationed on the doorstep of the majors until he’s needed to gobble up innings as a mop-up reliever. Nothing to see here.