MLB

Carter is out of the lineup for Saturday’s showdown at Globe Life Field and will undergo imaging to determine whether he suffered any fractures when he was hit on the back foot by a slider from Guardians reliever Eli Morgan. He managed to remain in the contest after the incident, which is somewhat encouraging. An update on his status should come later this weekend.

Kelenic will test the free agent waters instead of accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Charlotte. The 26-year-old former top prospect passed through waivers unclaimed after being jettisoned from Chicago’s roster earlier this week. He hit an underwhelming .226/.305/.321 with one homer and four RBI in 59 plate appearances during a 19-game stint with the White Sox this season.

Milwaukee remains optimistic that Priester will make it back from thoracic outlet syndrome without needing surgery, but the results have been abysmal in a pair of rehab starts at Triple-A Nashville recently. The 25-year-old’s fastball velocity has been down in the 91-92 mph range and he’s not where the Brewers want him to be at this stage in his rehabilitation. He’ll attempt to get back on track against some lower-level competition moving forward. He’s nowhere remotely close to being an option for the Brewers at the moment.

Heasley will stick with Tampa Bay as organizational depth after passing through waivers unclaimed earlier this week. The 29-year-old allowed five runs over four innings on Wednesday against the Orioles in his Rays debut.

Baty receives his first day off since May 10. Bo Bichette takes over at third base with Vidal Bruján getting a rare opportunity at shortstop.

Helsley appears to be getting close to heading out on a minor league rehab assignment, but he still hasn’t progressed to facing hitters in a live batting practice session. The hard-throwing 31-year-old stopper has been on the shelf with elbow inflammation since late April. There’s no real urgency to rush him back since unheralded Rico Garcia has done a phenomenal job as Baltimore’s primary ninth-inning option during his absence.

Astros skipper Joe Espada told reporters Javier came out of Friday’s live batting practice session fine from a physical standpoint and will face minor league hitters his next time out. The 29-year-old will likely need a couple outings to build up his stamina and pitch count before returning to Houston’s rotation sometime in June.

It looks like Altuve may be able to jump back into Houston’s lineup without requiring any minor league game action to get back up to speed. How quickly that occurs remains a bit up in the air since he’ll need to face live pitching in a batting practice session prior to being activated. However, it doesn’t sound like he’s too far away. The 36-year-old has made a lightning-quick recovery from an oblique strain that put him on the injured list back in mid-May.

Royals manager Matt Quatraro is shaking things up by moving Carter to the leadoff spot for the second time this season to face Rangers righty Kumar Rocker. Maikel Garcia has been moved to third in the order with Vinnie Pasquantino hitting cleanup. The 22-year-old rookie backstop has been mired in an extended tailspin at the plate, hitting .198 (19-for-96) with one homer, 11 RBI and 32 strikeouts over his last 30 games.

Rangers manager Skip Schumaker delivered a positive update on Seager’s health following the session, which bodes well for his chances of heading out on a minor league rehab assignment at some point in early June. The 32-year-old shortstop has been on the shelf recovering from back inflammation since May 18.