MLB Player News

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Monday that Casas (ribs) could be close to turning a corner in his recovery, Ian Browne of MLB.comreports.

Cora was relaying what he was told by a trainer and didn't divulge further details, but it's an encouraging update after the skipper indicated over the weekend that Casas was not close to beginning a rehab assignment. A return timeline still appears very much up in the air for the first baseman, who has been sidelined since late April with a strain and torn cartilage in his left rib cage.

Schanuel (calf) is starting at first base and batting second in Monday's series opener against the Mariners, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Schanuel began Sunday's game in the dugout after exiting early Saturday due to left calf tightness. However, the lefty-hitting first baseman was able to pinch hit Sunday, going 2-for-2 with an RBI single in an 8-5 win over Oakland. Schanuel will face off against Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller on Monday.

Smith is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Rockies.

The left-handed first baseman will be on the bench for the second day in a row while the Red Sox face off against a southpaw (Austin Gomber). Romy Gonzalez will fill in for Smith at first base.

Torkelson is slashing .229/.347/.375 with five home runs, a 14.8 percent walk rate and a 30.6 percent strikeout rate over 173 plate appearances at Triple-A Toledo since his June 3 demotion.

Though he's now been at Triple-A for a month and a half, Torkelson hasn't provided any evidence that he's made enough progress with his plate approach to return to Detroit. After turning in a .129 ISO in 229 plate appearances with the Tigers prior to his demotion, Torkelson has shown only slightly more pop at against lesser pitching (.146 ISO), and his strikeout rate is actually six points higher than what he posted in the majors. Expect the Tigers to continue to get by with a committee of players at first base until Torkelson starts producing at a level that warrants a call-up.

The Mariners are expected to recall Locklear from Triple-A Tacoma this week to take over as the club's everyday first baseman, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Seattle is pulling the plug on incumbent first baseman Ty France, who was placed on irrevocable outright waivers Sunday. The Mariners may have to wait until France is claimed or clears waivers before adding Locklear to the roster in a corresponding move, so it's not immediately clear if Locklear will be available for Monday's series opener versus the Angels. In any case, Locklear will be back in the big leagues soon, and he should have a decent amount of leash in an everyday role as the Mariners look to him to provide a spark to a dormant offense. Locklear owns an .887 OPS over 334 plate appearances on the season between Tacoma and Double-A Arkansas and slashed .200/.250/.433 in 32 plate appearances with the Mariners during his first stint in the big leagues back in June.

The Mariners placed France on irrevocable outright waivers Sunday, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

France is now eligible to be claimed by the 29 other teams in the league, but if no team is willing to foot the bill on the money remaining on his $6.78 million salary for 2024, the Mariners can send him to the minors. That being said, France has the option to decline reporting to the minors as a result of his MLB service time. Additionally, there's a possibility that he clears waivers and remains a member of Seattle's roster, something that happened with the Blue Jays' Kevin Kiermaier earlier in July. France has produced a disappointing .223 average with eight home runs, 31 RBI and 28 runs scored over 88 games with Seattle so far this season. Tyler Locklear is expected to be called up from Triple-A Tacoma and will get full-time at-bats at first base, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.com.

Smith is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Dodgers, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Smith started the first two games of the second half -- including Saturday against lefty Justin Wrobleski -- but the first baseman will sit Sunday as another lefty in James Paxton takes the mound. Romy Gonzalez will start at first base and bat leadoff in the series finale versus Boston.

France is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Astros.

France has gone 0-for-10 with three strikeouts over his past four games and will sit for Sunday's series finale versus Houston. Luke Raley will receive a start at first base while Dylan Moore mans left field.

Schanuel (calf) is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Athletics but expects to be available as a pinch hitter, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The 22-year-old exited Saturday's contest with calf tightness but believes he'll be back in the lineup Monday in Seattle. Brandon Drury is shifting to first base Sunday while Luis Guillorme receives a start at the keystone.

Canha is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Canha's playing time had been trending down heading into the All-Star break due to lingering wrist soreness and general ineffectiveness at the plate, but he picked up starts in both of the Tigers' first two games in Toronto, going 2-for-7 with a home run and two walks. He'll take a seat Sunday while the Tigers clear room in the lineup for Justyn-Henry Malloy at designated hitter and Bligh Madris at first base, but manager A.J. Hinch hasn't seemed to cut bait with Canha as a near-everyday player just yet.