MLB Player News
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Josh Rojas 3B | CHW
Mariners' Josh Rojas: On base three times in loss
Rojas went 2-for-3 with a walk in a loss to the Red Sox on Monday.
Rojas served up his first multi-hit effort since July 2 while also drawing his fourth walk in the last three games. The 30-year-old remains locked into a near-everyday role, and he's in the midst of a brief but promising upswing that's seen him produce a .286 average and .474 on-base percentage over his last five games.
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Josh H. Smith SS | TEX
Rangers' Josh Smith: Moves to leadoff
Smith hit leadoff and started at third base in Monday's 6-3 win over St. Louis, going 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Smith was in the field at third base even though Josh Jung was activated off the 60-day injured list Monday. While that was surprising, so was Smith's slotting in the leadoff spot while Marcus Semien was dropped to third in the order. Texas manager Bruce Bochy told Kennedi Landry of MLB.com that the tweaked batting order was in relation to Jung's return. It's unclear if more tweaks are expected once Jung is in the starting lineup, or if the changes will be reflected against both right-handed and left-handed starters.
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Maikel Garcia 3B | KC
Royals' Maikel Garcia: Records 24th steal
Garcia went 2-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and two runs scored in Monday's 8-5 win over the White Sox.
Since Garcia was dropped from the leadoff spot July 7, he's batting .327 (16-for-49) with three extra-base hits and three steals over 15 contests. He's hit atop the order twice in that span, but has most often batted eighth and occasionally seventh. It appears he's doing more with less, and his speed makes him an interesting fantasy option even without the leadoff gig. Garcia has a career-high 24 steals to go with six home runs, 45 RBI, 64 runs scored, 18 doubles, five triples and a .238/.287/.350 slash line over 104 contests this season.
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Addison Barger SS | TOR
Blue Jays' Addison Barger: Belts first career homer Monday
Barger went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run in Game 1 of Monday's doubleheader against Baltimore.
Barger didn't start either contest and didn't play at all in Game 2, but he enjoyed an MLB milestone n the matinee with a three-run homer -- his first career long ball -- in the fifth inning. The outfielder entered that contest in the second frame as a result of Justin Turner being pulled after he was dealt to the Mariners in a trade. Barger has played sporadically while with the big-league club, and that doesn't figure to change much in spite of Toronto's roster shakeup given his .174/.197/.261 slash line on the season.
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Jordan Westburg 2B | BAL
Orioles' Jordan Westburg: Enjoys massive day in doubleheader
Westburg went 5-for-8 with a home run, three doubles, four RBI, three runs and a walk against Baltimore across both games of Monday's doubleheader.
Westburg racked up three doubles in the first game and added a two-run homer int he nightcap, and he accumulated 11 total bases over both contests. The shortstop had been pretty cold coming into the twin bill, batting .167 (4-for-24) over his previous six games. On the season, Westburg is slashing .273/.320/.505 with 18 homers, 25 doubles, five triples, 58 RBI, 54 runs and six stolen bases over 99 contests.
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Ke'Bryan Hayes 3B | CIN
Pirates' Ke'Bryan Hayes: Two steals in win
Hayes went 0-for-2 with two walks, two stolen bases and one run scored in Monday's 5-3 win over the Astros.
Hayes is still looking for his first extra-base hit since the All-Star break, and he's batting just .200 (7-for-35) over 10 games in that span. He made an impact with speed Monday, logging his first two steals since July 7. The third baseman has slumped to a .239/.293/.298 slash line with 10 steals, three home runs, 23 RBI, 33 runs scored and nine doubles over 81 contests this season.
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Sabin Ceballos 3B | SF
Giants' Sabin Ceballos: Headed to San Francisco
San Francisco acquired Ceballos and left-handed reliever Tyler Matzek (elbow) from Atlanta on Monday in exchange for right-handed reliever Luke Jackson and outfielder Jorge Soler, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Ceballos was selected with the 94th overall pick in the 2023 First-Year Player Draft and had produced a .259 average with three home runs, 30 RBI, 54 runs scored and nine stolen bases over 328 at-bats in 84 games with High-A Rome this season. The deal was essentially a salary dump for the Giants, with Ceballos representing a fringe prospect who probably won't hit for enough power to play third base regularly at the highest level.
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Jeimer Candelario 3B | LAA
Reds' Jeimer Candelario: Launches 17th home run
Candelario went 1-for-4 with a solo homer in Monday's 7-1 win over the Cubs.
Candelario took Nate Pearson deep in the eighth inning for one of three Reds homers on Monday. Candelario broke out of a minor slump that saw him go 3-for-36 over his last nine games. The 30-year-old now has 17 home runs this season, one behind Elly De La Cruz for the team lead. Candelario remains a fixture in the Reds lineup, hitting .228/.284/.440 with 50 RBI and four stolen bases through 94 games.
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Jose Ramirez 3B | CLE
Guardians' Jose Ramirez: Goes deep twice in win
Ramirez went 3-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI in Monday's 8-4 win over the Tigers.
Ramirez got extra-base hits in his first three at-bats Monday, his first homer traveling 451 feet, which is the longest of his career. Ramirez now has 26 home runs this season and 242 for his career, tied with Albert Belle for second in franchise history behind Jim Thome. It was Ramirez's 25th career multi-HR game, one behind the franchise record shared by Belle and Thome. Ramirez is in the midst of another stellar season hitting .276/.330/.527 with 26 homers, 85 RBI and 20 stolen bases through 103 games.
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Jose Tena 3B | WAS
Nationals' Jose Tena: Headed to Washington
Washington acquired Tena, infielder Rafael Ramirez and left-hander Alex Clemmey from Cleveland on Monday in exchange for outfielder Lane Thomas, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.
Tena will head to Washington after producing a .295 average with 17 home runs, 63 RBI, 54 runs scored and 14 stolen bases over 90 games with Triple-A Columbus this season. The 23-year-old will likely report to Triple-A Rochester with his new organization, but he'll have a good shot at seeing time in the majors later on this season.