MLB Player News

Atlanta optioned Williams to Triple-A Gwinnett on Monday.

The super-utility player was called up from Gwinnett on June 25, but he appeared in just five games over his two weeks with the big club, logging seven at-bats in total. Atlanta opted to replace Williams on the 26-man active roster with Eddie Rosario, who could settle into a regular role in the outfield while Michael Harris (hamstring) is on the injured list.

Pirates manager Derek Shelton disclosed that Cruz was removed from Monday's 8-2 win over the Mets in the bottom of the eighth inning due to his hamstring tightening up when he rounded the bases in the sixth inning, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Cruz went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run -- his 14th of the season -- and an additional run scored before exiting the contest. After reaching on a base hit in his final at-bat in the bottom of the sixth, Cruz apparently tweaked his hamstring either while advancing to second on Rowdy Tellez's infield single or while coming around to score on Nick Gonzales' double. Cruz played the next two innings in the field before he was replaced when his next turn in the batting order came up in the eighth, due to what Shelton said was out of an "abundance of caution." Based on Shelton's comments, Cruz might have been dealing with cramping rather than a hamstring strain, but fantasy managers will still want to keep close tabs on the shortstop's status heading into Tuesday's series opener in Milwaukee.

The Tigers optioned Kreidler to Triple-A Toledo on Monday.

Javier Baez (back) was reinstated from the 10-day injured list, so Kreidler will head back to Triple-A since his playing time was about to dry up. Kreidler should receive everyday reps at a variety of positions at Toledo. He hit .125 with one home run and two stolen bases over 40 at-bats with the Tigers following his June 11 promotion.

The Tigers reinstated Baez (back) from the 10-day injured list Monday. He'll start at shortstop and bat seventh in the Tigers' series opener versus the Guardians.

Detroit optioned infielder Ryan Kreidler to Triple-A Toledo to clear room on the 26-man active roster for Baez, who missed a month of action while recovering from lumbar spine inflammation. Baez proved his health while playing in rehab games with Toledo on four consecutive days last week and will immediately step back into an everyday role in the middle infield for Detroit. Before landing on the shelf, Baez had been among baseball's least productive regulars, accruing a .183/.209/.247 slash line with one home run and six stolen bases over 53 games. Despite his reputation and past production, the 31-year-old looks to be little more than an accumulator -- and a low-end one, at that -- rather than a true fantasy asset at this stage of his career.

Rojas went 2-for-2 with two doubles, a walk, a run and a stolen base Sunday in a loss to Milwaukee.

Rojas logged two of Los Angeles' three extra-base hits, doubling in each of the fourth and sixth innings. The shortstop is batting .359 with six doubles, four RBI and a stolen base over his past 11 games to boost his season batting average to .291. Rojas has been playing on a near-everyday basis since Mookie Betts went down with a fractured bone in his left wrist June 16. Though Betts could return in late July or early August, Rojas may not lose his spot in the lineup at that point, as manager Dave Roberts stated early this month that he may consider moving Betts to second base in order to ensure Rojas continues to start at shortstop, per Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times.

Cruz went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer and an additional run scored in Monday's 8-2 win versus the Mets.

The Pittsburgh shortstop smashed a 431-foot, two-run blast off Christian Scott in the fourth inning to open the game's scoring. It marked Cruz's second homer of July, as he's batting .333 (8-for-24) with four runs scored and five RBI across seven games this month so far. Overall, the 25-year-old is slashing .247/.303/.444 with 40 runs scored and 41 RBI in 330 total plate appearances.

Baez (back) has joined the Tigers at Comerica Park and is expected to be activated from the 10-day injured list prior to Monday's game versus the Guardians, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Baez recently played four rehab games with Triple-A Toledo, going 4-for-12 with a home run. The veteran shortstop has been sidelined since mid-June with lumbar spine inflammation and had turned in an ugly .183/.209/.247 batting line over 196 plate appearances prior to landing on the IL.

Correa (finger) will start at shortstop and bat second in Monday's game against the White Sox.

Correa was lifted in the first inning of Sunday's 3-2 win over the Astros after he was hit on his right hand by a pitch in his lone at-bat of the day. Fortunately, X-rays cleared Correa of any structural damage, with the Twins labeling his injury as a finger contusion. The injury apparently isn't inhibiting Correa in batting practice Monday, so he'll be ready to go as the Twins kick off a six-game week to close out their pre-All-Star-break schedule.

Jimenez went 2-for-3 with a run scored in Sunday's extra-inning win over the Mariners.

Getting the start at second base and batting eighth, Jimenez banged out his first career hit in the second inning before reaching base again in the seventh and coming home on a George Springer homer. Jimenez will likely head back to Triple-A Buffalo when Isiah Kiner-Falefa (knee) gets healthy, but the 23-year-old could find a permanent spot on the MLB roster if the Blue Jays ship out veterans at the trade deadline.

Moore entered Sunday's extra-inning loss to the Blue Jays as a pinch runner in the eighth inning and remained in the game in left field, going 1-for-1 with a single and a stolen base.

Moore was able to leg out an infield single in the 10th inning and then was part of a double steal with Ryan Bliss, but the pair was ultimately stranded by a J.P. Crawford popup and Cal Raleigh flyout that ended the game. Moore had started the first two games of the series and three of the last four games overall, and Sunday marked his third straight game with a single. However, Moore hasn't been making as much impactful contact as usual lately, as he has just one extra-base hit (a triple), in his last 10 games.