MLB Player News

Cheng has been removed from Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster to make room for veteran utility infielder Brett Wisely. The 24-year-old shortstop was claimed off waivers from the Pirates last week after hitting .209/.307/.271 with one homer and 18 steals in 107 games for Triple-A Indianapolis. He got into three contests for Pittsburgh last season, going 0-for-7 at the dish.

It sounds like Snell is getting closer and closer to a return from a NanoScope procedure on his elbow. He’ll likely require more than one rehab start, but an August return is definitely in play for Snell based on the timing of this assignment.

He had six plate appearances during his two weeks and change on the roster, walking once. Johnson returns to a .290/.388/.489 line with the Bats in 208 plate appearances this year.

Myers has mostly been used as a platoon center fielder against left-handers this year, hitting .256/.358/.385 overall and .218/.362/.400 against southpaws. He’ll slide right back into that role.

The Yankees, looking for more offensive consistency at catcher, have also been linked to Twins C Ryan Jeffers. Goodman, who still has three years of team control remaining, would likely cost a pretty penny. It’s possible that Austin Wells could have a hot July and get the Yankees off this idea, but if not they could do much worse than Goodman, who already has 27 homers this year and has been an All-Star in both 2025 and 2026.

Ray, who will be a free agent after the season, has a 3.38 ERA in 18 starts with the Giants this year, though he has walked 52 batters in 106 2/3 innings pitched. Rogers believes Ray is “the more important player” available between Ray and Luis Arraez, implying Ray would get the Giants a better return. It certainly would make little sense for the Giants to hold on to Ray barring an extension. The 34-year-old could be the best starter available at the deadline if the Tigers opt to keep Tarik Skubal.

Over the All-Star break, Acuña had been playing in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League. Acuña hit a grand slam yesterday for the FCL Braves. Today he’ll be bumped up to Gwinnett, meaning he’s probably in line to return to the bigs in the next couple of days.

Early had gone for a second opinion on his elbow injury, but it appears that the Red Sox and Early are happy with what they saw. Early has missed about three weeks since being placed on the injured list on July 1 and may require a rehab assignment before he’s ready to return. It’s still great news for the Red Sox that they avoided a major injury here.

Suarez was placed on the Il with a groin strain on July 9, threw over the break, and is scheduled to throw again today. It sounds like everything is trending well for him to get the ball again in Boston’s next series against the Orioles.

Lux needed an injection recently, so it’s likely that his shoulder is still bothering him. Lux hasn’t yet played in the majors in 2026 and had been hitting just .223/.387/.298 in 119 plate appearances during his rehab assignment to Triple-A Durham. It’s the second time this season Lux has been pulled off a rehab assignment.

Joyce had shoulder surgery last year and seemed on track to return to the Angels’ bullpen in May, but he suffered a setback in the middle of that month. He began throwing again at the end of June and has now begun his rehab assignment in earnest. We don’t know much about how he looked on Thursday, but he did hit 102.3 mph on the radar gun, which seems to suggest that his arm is feeling good. He will head out to an affiliate soon, and we can get more information on his rehab performances.