MLB Player News

Koperniak was designated for assignment on Wednesday to free up a spot on the Cardinals’ 40-man roster for Dustin May. He’ll remain on the big league side of camp in spring training where he’ll compete for a spot on the Opening Day roster. Koperniak hit .246/.317/.382 with 14 long balls and 65 RBI in 536 plate appearances at Triple-A Memphis in 2025.

Woodford heads to Tampa Bay as additional organizational depth after being removed from Chicago’s bullpen last week. He’s posted a bloated 7.18 ERA across 26 1/3 innings in the majors this season.

Pasquantino has been on the shelf working his way back from soreness in his surgically-repaired right wrist last month. The 28-year-old first baseman shouldn’t require more than a handful of minor league contests before he’s ready to return to Kansas City.

Morgan heads to San Francisco as emergency catching depth behind Drew Cavanaugh with Daniel Susac hitting the injured list with a fractured kneecap. The 26-year-old’s stint with the Giants figures to be relatively brief since they’ll likely find a more experienced veteran journeyman to handle the backup role for the final few weeks.

Susac is likely to miss the remainder of the season after an MRI revealed a left kneecap fracture that he suffered over the weekend on a foul ball. The 25-year-old backstop was outstanding defensively this season and hit .243/.289/.375 with three homers and two steals in 161 plate appearances over 53 games. He’ll be part of San Francisco’s catching equation for the next few years.

Taillon was replaced by Simeon Woods Richardson after throwing just 61 pitches over four shutout innings. He finished with three strikeouts and also issued three walks. He’s in clear jeopardy of missing his next start against the Yankees on Saturday. It would presumably be Woods Richardson taking his spot in Toronto’s rotation. There should be additional clarity on his status in the coming days.

It shouldn’t take Mateo very long to find a new home after being designated for assignment by Atlanta last week at the trade deadline. The 31-year-old’s speed and defensive versatility should make him a viable bench option on a contender.

Jung hasn’t resumed baseball activities in over a week as his progress from a left calf strain has been much slower than anticipated. It seems unlikely that he’ll be able to ramp up in time to make it back before the end of August.

Lawlar kicked off a minor league rehab assignment last week and will get a couple additional contests under his belt before returning to Arizona. The 24-year-old former top prospect has shown some flashes this season, but he’s been plagued by injuries, which have limited him to just 12 games.

The Dodgers could certainly use Smith back since they’re rolling with Ben Rortvedt and Hunter Feduccia as their catching tandem with Dalton Rushing (elbow) on the injured list. The 31-year-old franchise backstop resumed baseball activities in late July and figures to make it back to Los Angeles by the end of August. He’s going to need a minor league rehab assignment given how much time he’s missed.

Halvorsen provides Los Angeles with a fresh arm heading into Monday’s series opener against the Royals after being acquired from the Rockies in a small trade last month. He’s posted eight strikeouts over 6 1/3 scoreless frames at Triple-A Oklahoma City since the deal. The hard-throwing 26-year-old posted a pedestrian 4.31 ERA, 1.54 WHIP and 66/38 K/BB ratio across 71 innings for the Rockies over the last three years.