MLB Player News

The Red Sox knew this would be a short outing; it really ought to have been his second minor league rehab start as he makes his way back from a strained pec. Fitts did a nice job, though, allowing just two hits, walking one and striking out two. Perhaps knowing that he’d be a shorter night, he showed great velocity, averaging 95.9 mph and topping out at 97.1 mph with his fastball. He had averaged 94.7 mph previously this season. It’s unclear if Fitts will get another start right away next week, but he seems like one of Boston’s top five options.

No word yet on the financial terms. Doyle is one of the more intriguing pitching prospects from the 2025 MLB Draft class after a standout collegiate career in the SEC at Tennessee. The hard-throwing 21-year-old righty, who was selected fifth overall earlier this week by the Cardinals, figures to move extremely quickly through St. Louis’ system given the rapid ascent we’ve seen from fellow elite college arms in recent years. There’s a chance he’s the top pitcher from the draft class and might be the first one to reach the majors. He’s a top-50 range prospect for dynasty purposes.

Peterson will report to Triple-A Jacksonville as organizational relief depth for Miami after making four appearances for Atlanta. The 31-year-old righty holds a pedestrian 5.47 ERA across 26 1/3 innings (20 appearances) in the majors since 2024.

The procedural move frees up a spot on Miami’s 40-man roster to acquire reliever Michael Petersen from Atlanta. Tinoco has been out since early June recovering from a forearm strain. There is no timetable for his return.

Hughes has been jettisoned after compiling a bloated 6.33 ERA and 29/13 K/BB ratio across 27 innings (21 appearances) this season for Triple-A Iowa. The 29-year-old southpaw was a key component of Chicago’s bullpen as a rookie back in 2022, but he’s never been able to replicate that success in subsequent years. He made 15 appearances last year for the Diamondbacks. There’s probably a team out there willing to roll the dice since he’s left-handed and has big-league experience.

One of the ancillary components of the Matt Olson trade with the Athletics back in 2022, Salinas returned to Atlanta last offseason on a minor league contract. The 24-year-old righty was a notable pitching prospect a couple seasons ago but never wound up reaching the majors. He’s been cut loose after posting a disastrous 7.71 ERA across 4 2/3 innings (five appearances) this season for High-A Rome.

Brantly will presumably stick around as emergency organizational catching depth after passing through waivers unclaimed. The 36-year-old veteran backstop appeared in three games earlier this season for the Marlins before suffering a lat strain in his right shoulder.

O’Loughlin opted out of his minor league deal with Colorado after struggling to a bloated 6.91 ERA across 41 2/3 innings (17 appearances, 10 starts) this season for Triple-A Albuquerque in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. The 25-year-old southpaw made four relief appearances last year for the Athletics during his first taste of the majors.

Wilkerson triggered the opt-out in his minor league pact with Cincinnati after posting a respectable 4.17 ERA across 95 innings (18 starts) for Triple-A Louisville. The well-traveled 36-year-old righty returned stateside this season following a two-year stint overseas in Korea with the Lotte Giants. He last appeared in the big leagues during the 2019 campaign when he made a career-high eight relief appearances for the Brewers.

No surprise here after Burger missed the final two games of the first half with a lingering quad issue. The 29-year-old slugger has been snake-bitten by injuries this season in his Rangers debut, landing on the injured list on three separate occasions already. No word yet on the severity of the strain, which will determine how much time he misses, but it doesn’t figure to be a lengthy absence. It’ll likely be some combination of versatile Josh Smith and bench infielder Ezequiel Duran filling the void at the cold corner for a couple weeks.

The procedural move puts Sheets back on San Diego’s active roster for Friday’s second-half opener against the Nationals. He finished the first half of his Padres debut with 14 homers over 92 games before heading out on paternity league over the weekend.