MLB Player News

Smith (shoulder) was moved to the 60-day disabled list Monday, Evan Drellich of NBC Sports Boston reports.

The move opens up a spot on the 40-man roster for the addition of William Cuevas. It has no effect on Smith's timeline, as he's already been ruled out for the season after undergoing shoulder surgery.

Littell was called up from Triple-A Rochester on Monday, Mike Berardino of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Littell is coming off a pair of quality starts against Syracuse, allowing just two earned runs while striking out 10 over 12 innings, marking his best back-to-back performance since early May. The 22-year-old is set to serve as a middle reliever for Minnesota moving forward, though he has the ability to make a spot start should it be required. During his lone outing with the Twins this year, he gave up six earned runs off six hits and four walks across three innings versus the White Sox on June 5.

Loaisiga will start Monday's game against the Braves, the Associated Press reports.

Since the Yankees temporarily added a sixth starter (Luis Cessa) to the mix last week and had an open date in the schedule June 28, Loaisiga will return to the mound on six days' rest. The extra time off should prove beneficial for the right-hander, who has already compiled 59 innings between three levels this season, exceeding his total from the previous two years combined. The Yankees haven't specified an innings cap for the rookie, but it's expected the his usage will be scaled back in the second half, when the team should have Masahiro Tanaka (hamstrings) back from the disabled list. Loaisiga shouldn't face any limitations for at least Monday's outing and tentatively lines up for a two-start week, with his second turn expected to come Sunday in Toronto.

Jimenez will step in as the Tigers' closer after Shane Greene was placed on the disabled list Monday due to a right shoulder strain, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Jimenez has appeared in 42 games this season, logging a 2.77 ERA and 1.08 WHIP. His 2.46 FIP and 44:9 K:BB over 39 innings validate the solid ERA, so Jimenez should be a serviceable option at the back of the bullpen while the Tigers wait for Greene to recover from the injury. Prior to allowing a walkoff home run this past weekend, Jimenez gave up three earned runs against the Athletics on June 25, which marked the first time he allowed a run to cross the plate during the month of June. Greene has been a decent closer for the Tigers this year, converting 19 of his 22 opportunities, but Jimenez could establish himself as the club's top ninth-inning option moving forward if he excels over the next couple of weeks.

Barria will be pushed back in the Angels' pitching schedule a couple of days and make his next start Friday against the Dodgers, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Barria had been lined up to start Wednesday in Seattle, but it appears the Angels are now earmarking that spot for Garrett Richards (hamstring), who could be activated from the 10-day disabled list if the team was satisfied with the bullpen session he threw Sunday. While Barria will benefit from making his next start at home, he'll draw a tough matchup against a surging Dodgers offense that ranks 10th in the majors with a 106 wRC+ over the past two weeks. Barria carries a respectable 3.40 ERA and 1.20 WHIP across 55.2 innings this season, but his high home-run rate (1.6 HR/9) and below-average strikeout rate (7.4 K/9) suggest that regression could be coming for the rookie.

Lopez (4-5) picked up the win against the Rangers on Sunday, giving up two earned runs on seven hits over 6.1 innings, striking out six and walking three as the White Sox bagged a 10-5 victory.

It was the second straight victorious decision for Lopez, as well as his fourth quality start in his last six trips to the mound. The 24-year-old right-hander has had a handful of rough outings this season that have prevented him from posting eye-popping numbers, but on the whole he's still managed to provide decent fantasy value, with a respectable 3.68 ERA and 1.30 WHIP to go with 73 strikeouts through 100.1 innings. He's slated to take the mound next on the road against the Astros next Friday.

Diaz struck out the side to earn his 32nd save of the season Sunday against the Royals.

Diaz needed only 15 pitches to earn the save Sunday, his second in as many days. He is 32-for-35 in save opportunities this season and continues to lead the major leagues in saves by a wide margin, all while posting elite indicators: 14.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and a 0.88 WHIP.

Perez was optioned to Double-A Corpus Christi on Sunday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

One of the organization's top pitching prospects, Perez was recalled from Double-A on Friday to provide length out of the Houston bullpen on a temporary basis, but he went unused during his two-game stay with the big club. With the Astros bringing Yulieski Gurriel back from the paternity list Sunday, it was an easy decision to send Perez back to Double-A to create room on the 25-man roster. Perez should resume working in a starting role at Corpus Christi, where he has compiled a 2.20 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 71 strikeouts across 57.1 innings this season.

Johnson will start Tuesday's game against the Nationals, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Johnson went four innings as a fill-in starter for Steven Wright (knee) last Thursday, and manager Alex Cora feels the left-hander could get up to five innings Tuesday. This could be the last start for Johnson with Drew Pomeranz (biceps) nearing a return. He owns a 4.28 ERA and 7.9 K/9 in 40 innings for Boston on the season.

Diaz pitched a clean ninth inning to record the save Saturday against the Royals.

Diaz entered the game in the ninth inning with a two-run lead and had no trouble preserving it, needing just 11 pitches to retire the Royals in order. He now has 31 saves for the season, seven more than any other closer in the majors.