MLB Player News

Donovan isn't in the Cardinals' lineup Friday against the Cubs, Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

After going 0-for-5 at the plate Thursday, Donovan will take a seat for the beginning of Friday's contest. Willson Contreras will take over as the Cardinals' designated hitter, allowing Andrew Knizner to start behind the dish and bat eighth.

Castro is absent from the lineup Friday versus the Athletics.

Alan Trejo will start at second base and bat eighth against southpaw JP Sears. He and Castro continue to work in a platoon at the keystone for Colorado.

The Dodgers optioned Hernandez to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.

Hernandez has struggled mightily during his limited chances in the majors this season, going just 3-for-22 with four RBI. He's been much more effective in the minors, where he's slashing .260/407/.385 through 216 plate appearances. Hernandez's departure will clear a spot on the active roster for Amed Rosario, who was acquired in a trade with Cleveland on Wednesday.

Rojas (back) has gone 7-for-18 with a home run, a stolen base, four RBI and three runs since being activated from Triple-A Reno's 7-day injured list Saturday.

Rojas was sidelined at Triple-A for just over three weeks due to the back injury. Since losing out on a regular starting role at third base for the Diamondbacks and getting optioned to the minors June 19, Rojas is slashing .277/.346/.404 over 52 plate appearances with Reno.

Gorman went 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBI during Wednesday's 11-7 win at Arizona.

Gorman went 0-for-4 in his return to the lineup Tuesday after missing two games with a back issue, but he busted out with two homers and his fifth three-hit game of the season Wednesday. The 23-year-old has enjoyed a strong start to the second half with five homers and a .359/.405/.821 slash line in 11 games since the All-Star break.

Albies went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run in Wednesday's loss to the Red Sox.

Albies accounted for all of Atlanta's run production in the contest, launching a three-run shot off Boston starter Brayan Bello in the sixth inning. It was his second long ball in his past three contests following a 12-contest homerless drought between July 5 and July 22. Albies is tied for 11th in MLB with 24 home runs and ranks eighth with 72 RBI on the campaign.

Hoerner went 2-for-3 with a walk, two RBI, a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 10-7 win over the White Sox.

Hoerner has three multi-hit efforts and four stolen bases over his last four games. Wednesday's contest was his first in that span without an extra-base hit. The infielder continues to hit well, batting .280 on the year and .340 (17-for-50) since the All-Star break. He owns a .733 OPS, 25 steals, seven home runs, a career-high 57 RBI and 57 runs scored through 93 contests overall.

The Dodgers agreed Wednesday to acquire Rosario from the Guardians in exchange for right-hander Noah Syndergaard (finger) and cash, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Rosenthal relays that a review of both players' medical records is all that stands in the way of the trade being finalized. After an 11-home run, 18-steal 2022 campaign in which he also hit .283, Rosario is slashing a disappointing .265/.306/.369 with just three long balls and nine steals in his final year before reaching free agency. He'll represent an upgrade over Miguel Rojas at shortstop against left-handed pitching, as he has an .822 OPS versus southpaws in 2023. Rojas could still play quite a bit against righties, however, given that he's regarded as the much stronger defender of the two players.

Peguero is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Padres, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Peguero has served as the Pirates' primary shortstop since he was called up from Triple-A Indianapolis on July 17, but he'll give way Wednesday to Alika Williams, who is making his first MLB start. In six games with Pittsburgh, Peguero is hitting just .158 and has struck out in 10 of his 20 plate appearances. Peguero's early struggles could prompt the Pirates to pull the plug on him as an everyday player and send him back to Triple-A if he's unable to get going anytime soon.

Miller is not in the starting lineup Wednesday versus the Reds.

Miller will head to the bench after he went 1-for-8 with a strikeout over the first two games of the series. Abraham Toro was called up from Triple-A Nashville on Monday and he will take over at first base and bat sixth against Cincinnati.