MLB Player News

Pena (hamstring) will start at shortstop and bat leadoff in Monday's game against the Marlins, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Pena will make his return to the starting nine after the Astros opted to keep him on the bench for Sunday's 5-2 loss to the Orioles while he managed a right hamstring cramp. Since coming off the injured list July 10 after he had been shelved with a calf strain, Pena has gone 5-for-17 (.294 average) with two walks, three runs and one RBI in five games.

Monasterio is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Orioles.

Monasterio will be back on the bench after he made two straight starts against left-handed pitchers to close out the Red Sox's weekend series with the Rays, going 3-for-6 with three doubles, two walks, two runs and one RBI between those contests. Tsung-Che Cheng will cover shortstop Monday and still appears to have a hold on the strong side of platoon at the position.

Santana (hamstring) began a rehab assignment Friday with the Florida Complex League Rays, Ian Cundall of Baseball America reports.

High-A Bowling Green placed Santana on the 7-day injured list June 6 with a hamstring strain. Known for his slick defense at shortstop, the switch-hitting Santana slashed .309/.379/.393 with a career-high three home runs and career-best 10.3 percent strikeout rate while notching 21 steals in 47 games prior to the injury.

Pierce had left shoulder surgery recently and is likely done for the season, Ian Cundall of Baseball America reports.

Pierce was a league average hitter (100 wRC+) in 34 games for Single-A Charleston prior to the serious shoulder injury. He slashed .252/.336/.390 with four home runs, six steals and a 28.6 percent strikeout rate in 34 games and is expected to have a normal offseason.

Witt (back) will start at shortstop and bat second in Monday's game against the Giants.

The All-Star shortstop was held out of the starting nine for Sunday's 19-2 loss to the Padres due to general back tightness, though manager Matt Quatraro emphasized that Witt was merely kept on the bench as a precaution. Witt's back has apparently responded well to the day of rest, and he should be available for the entirety of the Royals' seven-game week, barring an aggravation of the injury.

Triple-A Rochester placed King on the 7-day injured list July 3 with a left oblique strain.

King has split his age-23 season evenly between Double-A and Triple-A, although he was notably more impressive at Double-A (163 wRC+) than for Rochester (102 wRC+). He has a .306/.385/.504 slash line, 10 home runs, nine steals and a 20 percent strikeout rate in 68 games. Since getting to Triple-A, King has started 26 games at shortstop and seven games at second base.

Kreidler will start at shortstop and bat ninth in Monday's game in Cleveland.

The Twins will include Kreidler in the starting nine for the third game in a row, and he looks poised to operate as the team's everyday shortstop for the time being after Tristan Gray was optioned to Triple-A St. Paul on Monday. Kreidler maintains a respectable .738 OPS over 151 plate appearances on the season, but he's slashing just .162/.205/.189 with zero home runs or stolen bases, four runs and one RBI while striking out at a 28.2 percent clip over 12 games thus far in July.

Crisantes has been promoted from Double-A Amarillo to Triple-A Reno, Chase Ford of MiLB Central reports.

Crisantes earned the promotion after slashing an impressive .319/.413/.548 with five home runs and a 19:29 BB:K in 35 games with Amarillo. The 21-year-old has played second base exclusively this season, which lessens his chances of a promotion later this season since that's Ketel Marte's position with the big club.

The Twins optioned Gray to Triple-A St. Paul on Monday.

Gray had started just one of the last four games and four of the past 11 contests. He'll head to St. Paul, while Ryan Kreidler assumes the bulk of the starts at shortstop for the Twins. Gray's demotion frees up a spot on the active roster for the return of Byron Buxton (hip) from the injured list.

Perdomo went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and a walk in Sunday's extra-inning win over the Cardinals.

Perdomo's lone hit was a memorable one, as his line drive to left field in the seventh inning was misplayed by Jose Fermin and resulted in an inside-the-park homer. It's been a fairly pedestrian July for Perdomo, who's hitting just .204 with two homers, five RBI, 10 runs and three stolen bases across 13 games. The shortstop has taken a step back from his breakout 2025 campaign, slashing .238/.355/.358 with seven homers, 36 RBI, 48 runs and 15 stolen bases across 95 contests in 2026.