MLB Player News

McKinstry is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Astros.

McKinstry will get the afternoon off after he went 5-for-25 with a solo home run, four walks and four additional runs while starting seven of the Tigers' last eight games. Though he appears to have a grasp on a near-everyday role for now, McKinstry's playing time could dry up if he continues to underwhelm at the plate. He's produced a .168/.258/.245 slash line over 165 plate appearances on the season.

Torres (side) remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's contest in Houston.

Torres had to exit Monday's game after tweaking his left side, and he will now miss a second straight start. The Tigers have not ruled out a potential stint on the injured list for Torres, but they will wait at least until Friday following Thursday's team off day before making an IL decision. Hao-Yu Lee will grab another start at second base in Torres' stead.

Gonzalez (shoulder) went 1-for-2 with a walk and a two-run home run for Double-A Portland on Tuesday.

Gonzalez, who opened a rehab assignment with the Sea Dogs, started at second base and played seven innings. It's unclear how many at-bats he'll need while on rehab, but Gonzalez has been taking batting practice off the Trajekt machine, which has helped rehabbing players shorten their rehab times, per Christopher Smith of MassLive.com. He's next scheduled to serve as the designated hitter on Wednesday followed by a day off Thursday. If he responds well, Gonzalez will likely play three consecutive days over the weekend.

Smith started at second base and went 1-for-4 in Tuesday's 12-2 loss to the Twins.

Smith started for the first time since being activated from the injured list Monday. A glute injury landed him on the IL in early May and was followed by a wrist issue and a case of viral meningitis. At the time of his injury, Smith was batting .217 with six RBI through 31 games and his hold on the starting job at second base was tenuous. Ezequiel Duran was making a push for more playing time and nothing has changed since. Lately, Duran has covered shortstop while Corey Seager (concussion) works his way back, but Smith is still in jeopardy of sliding back to a utility/part-time role.

Torres (side) didn't play in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to the Astros.

The veteran second baseman sustained an apparent left side injury during Monday's contest, and it's already cost him one game. During an appearance on MLB Network Radio on Tuesday, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said, "I'm bracing for this being an issue, but I don't know. Hopefully it's just a little cramp or something that caused an issue but that's a total guess," per Jeremy Otto of 97.1 The Ticket. Given the lack of clarity regarding the injury, Torres should be considered day-to-day heading into Wednesday's series finale in Houston, though it wouldn't be surprising if he sits for a second straight game, and perhaps more beyond that.

Donovan (groin) began a running progression Tuesday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

Donovan has been sidelined since suffering a left groin strain in mid-May, and he's now set to start running again. Based on the injury, the running program is the largest hurdle for the 29-year-old to clear, and it's expected to last between 10 days and two weeks. If all goes well, Donovan would then be in a position to begin a minor-league rehab assignment.

Grissom (oblique) had his rehab assignment moved to Triple-A Salt Lake on Tuesday, Taylor Blake Ward of TheSportingTribune.com reports.

Grissom began his minor-league rehab assignment with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga on Sunday, going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored in his only contest with the team. The 25-year-old has been on the 10-day injured list since June 8 while recovering from a left oblique strain, but he appears to be on track to return to the major-league roster in the near future.

Palacios is not in the starting lineup Tuesday against the Dodgers, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Palacios will head to the bench as Tampa Bay squares off with southpaw Justin Wrobleski. Ben Williamson will take over at second base and bat sixth versus Los Angeles.

Peraza isn't in the lineup for Tuesday's game against Arizona, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Peraza will move to the bench Tuesday after going 1-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts in Monday's series opener. Nick Madrigal will take over as the Angels' second baseman and bat fifth.

Smith (glute/wrist/illness) is starting at second base and batting seventh versus the Twins on Tuesday.

Smith was activated from the 10-day injured list Monday and came off the bench versus the Twins, getting his first plate appearance since May 3. Tuesday is the 28-year-old's first start following his activation Monday.