MLB Player News

The Astros placed Loperfido on the 10-day injured list Sunday due to a right quadriceps strain.

The 26-year-old sustained the quad injury during Friday's 9-4 loss to the Cardinals. Loperfido will be eligible to be reinstated April 28, and Astros general manager Dana Brown said during a radio appearance Sunday that he's optimistic that the 26-year-old outfielder will be ready to return at that time, per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. In the meantime, the Astros will likely lean on Brice Matthews, Dustin Harris and Shay Whitcomb to pick up reps in left field in Loperfido's absence.

O'Hearn is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays.

The left-handed-hitting O'Hearn hasn't been a strict platoon player for the Pirates this season, but after he played eight of 13 innings in Saturday's 8-7 loss, he'll get a breather for Sunday's matinee game while southpaw Shane McClanahan toes the rubber for the Rays. Jake Mangum will pick up a start in the outfield in O'Hearn's stead.

Stanton is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Royals.

Stanton will hit the bench for the second Sunday in a row, as the Yankees will give the veteran slugger some rest after he had started each of the last six days while going 3-for-25 (.120 average) with one home run, two RBI and an additional run over that stretch. Ben Rice will replace Stanton in the lineup as the Yankees' designated hitter.

Isbel is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Yankees.

The Royals will stock up some extra right-handed bats to counter Yankees southpaw Ryan Weathers, so Isbel will hit the bench along with fellow left-handed hitters Carter Jensen and Jac Caglianone. Isbel had started each of the last four games but went 1-for-10 at the dish, bringing his season average down to .265.

Caglianone is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Yankees.

After a stretch of four consecutive starts, the left-handed hitter will exit the lineup Sunday while the Yankees send southpaw Ryan Weathers to the bump. Starling Marte will take Caglianone's spot in right field and bat sixth.

Baker was charged with a blown save Saturday against the Pirates, allowing one run on two hits and one walk with two strikeouts in one inning.

With the heart of the order due up for the Pirates in the bottom of the eighth, manager Kevin Cash called on Baker to protect a 5-4 lead. He yielded a leadoff walk to Brandon Lowe and an infield singled to Ryan O'Hearn before Nick Yorke tied the game with a single. It was Baker's second blown save of the season, though he'd previously recorded four of the Rays' previous five saves. Baker now owns a 4.32 ERA and 9:3 K:BB across 8.1 innings and currently remains Tampa Bay's leading candidate for saves.

Murakami went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and three walks in Saturday's 7-6 extra-innings loss to the Athletics.

Murakami entered play Saturday with a putrid .063 average and 4:10 BB:K across 21 plate appearances against left-handed pitching. Facing lefty Hogan Harris in the top of the seventh inning, Murakami took him deep to center field. Both of his hits against left-handers this season are home runs, and overall the Japanese slugger is slashing .209/.386/.522 with seven homers, 14 RBI, 15 runs scored and a 20:29 BB:K across his first 88 major-league plate appearances. Murakami still needs to cut down on his 33 percent strikeout rate, but a 23 percent walk rate and his power have made up for the swing-and-miss thus far.

Kurtz went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run and three walks in Saturday's 7-6 extra-innings win over the White Sox.

With the Athletics trailing 6-4 in the bottom of the seventh, Kurtz took Jordan Leasure deep for a two-run shot to tie the game. It was just Kurtz's second homer of the season, and he's now driven in six runs over the last three contests. After batting .083 over the first seven games of the season, Kurtz has five multi-hit games over his last 13 contests and is now slashing .235/.429/.368 with two long balls, nine RBI, nine runs scored, two stolen bases and a 23:30 BB:K across 91 plate appearances.

Rice went 1-for-3 with two walks and a solo home run in Saturday's 13-4 win over the Royals.

Kansas City tried to pitch around the red-hot slugger, but Rice got ahold of a Noah Cameron fastball in the third inning and drove it 398 feet into the second deck in right field. Rice has gone yard in three straight games, and on the season he's slashing .339/.468/.774 with six doubles, seven homers, 17 RBI and 19 runs in 20 contests.

The Astros claimed Harris off waivers from the White Sox on Saturday.

Harris was designated for assignment by the White Sox on Wednesday, but he'll now be a part of the Astros organization after being claimed Saturday. The veteran outfielder has no minor-league options remaining, so he'll be added to the Astros' 26-man active roster and could join the club as soon as Sunday. Prior to being DFA'd, Harris appeared in six games for the White Sox, going 3-for-12 with two steals, one RBI and two runs scored.