MLB Player News

Going unprotected here are left-hander Frank Mozzicato, the seventh overall pick in the 2021 draft, and outfielder Gavin Cross, the ninth overall pick in the 2022 draft. They both needed to be protected from the Rule 5 draft for the first time, but the Royals are exposing them. It was a pretty obvious call in Cross’s case, but there might be a slight chance of Mozzicato getting taken. Kurdna figures to make his major league debut at some point during 2026, and he has a chance to be a back-end starter. Zobac had a mess of a 2025 season, and while he’s still starting now, he projects better as a reliever.

Bautista needed just eight pitches, six of them strikes, to collect three outs. He had just one whiff and sat 94.8 mph on his sinker, but he had much better command of his arsenal in this one. He likely needs a few more appearances, but there is a chance that he could rejoin the Orioles as soon as next week if he continues to pitch well.

There is some speculation that Gonzalez was removed for an impending call-up. Since being sent to Triple-A on August 4th, Gonzalez has gone 30-for-79 (.380) with three home runs, 20 RBI, 14 runs scored, and a 15/8 K/BB ratio. The Red Sox were forced to rush him back from shoulder surgery quickly in July due to injuries on the big league club, but it seems like the 30-year-old just needed some more time to get his timing back. He could be an option for the Red Sox instead of Andruw Monasterio, who has been struggling of late.

Houck threw 20 pitches, which was the plan from the start of the day, but he threw only eight for strikes. He walked two and induced a flyout and an RBI groundout. The 30-year-old is 13 months removed from Tommy John surgery and was making his first appearance in an official game, so some rust was expected. He will move up to Triple-A for his next rehab appearance, and we’ll get some more data on his velocity and pitch shapes.

Gonsolin threw 64 pitches in this one, with 66 percent of them landing for strikes. His four-seamer sat just 91.9 mph, but he commanded it well and got a few whiffs. The splitter was his best swing-and-miss offering, and he commanded that well too. He also showed off slightly different movement profiles on his curve and slider, which could be worth keeping an eye on. Coming off last year’s elbow surgery, it seems likely that Gonsolin could be up with the Royals for his next start or the one after.

Thorpe is making his way back from Tommy John surgery and hoping to make a handful of starts for the White Sox down the stretch. He threw 62 percent of his pitches for strikes in this one but had just a 10 percent swinging strike rate and didn’t get a single whiff on his four-seamer, which sat just 91.6 mph. His changeup got plenty of whiffs outside of the zone, and he got a few on his slider as well, but it’s hard to get overly excited right now about a low-velocity right-hander whose main weapon is a changeup. The 25-year-old was part of the Juan Soto trade that sent him from the Yankees to the Padres and then was later sent from the Padres to the White Sox as the headliner in the Dylan Cease trade.

Michael Lorenzen will be available to go long, but the Jays might try to get through the game using primarily short relievers if it stays close. Spencer Miles, who threw two innings as the only reliever used by the Jays on Tuesday, should be the lone unavailable member of the pen.

The Dodgers still want Smith getting plenty of rest after his long IL stint with a neck injury. He’ll get two days off with the off day Thursday and then play two out of three this weekend.

Kent was only on the roster for Tuesday’s game, when he pitched two scoreless innings against the Padres.

Flores had four hard-hit balls tonight, including a barrel that turned into a flyout. His ability to help the Pirates as a catcher remains in question, but his bat is pretty potent. He’s hitting .243/.318/.525 in 110 plate appearances.

The Pirates led 5-0 after one and 7-0 after two, and Chandler did an unusually nice job staying around the zone afterwards, walking none and allowing only four hits. It’s the first time in 28 starts this year that he’s gone without walking a batter. The win makes him 7-9 with a 4.25 ERA. He’s slated to face the Cubs on Sunday.