MLB Player News

General manager Dana Brown suggested Sunday that Alvarez (hand) could be activated from the 60-day injured list at some point during the upcoming weekend, though the 28-year-old is more likely to return when Houston begins a 10-game homestand Aug. 26, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Alvarez is slated to kick off a rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi on Tuesday, marking the slugger's first game action since he landed on the IL on May 5 due to what was later revealed to be a small fracture in his right hand. Despite being shelved for more than three months, Alvarez isn't expected to require a lengthy rehab assignment. The Astros plan to have Alvarez serve as Corpus Christi's designated hitter Tuesday, take Wednesday off, and then return to the Double-A lineup to play back-to-back games Thursday and Friday. Alvarez will be reassessed after those three games, and while it's feasible that he could rejoin the Astros for the final contest or two of the weekend series in Baltimore, he's more likely to stay behind in Texas before making his return to the Houston lineup early next week. Though Alvarez's power output could be compromised a bit coming off the hand injury, his eventual addition should provide a lift to the Astros offense down the stretch.

Gomez is scheduled to start Monday's game in Atlanta.

The 25-year-old right-hander will draw a second straight turn through the White Sox rotation after he delivered an excellent performance in his first MLB start this past Tuesday against the Tigers. Gomez collected the win in an 89-pitch outing, striking out seven batters and inducing 16 swinging strikes while permitting one run and allowing four runners to reach base over five innings. Gomez's limited track record in the big leagues makes him a risky fantasy option ahead of what shapes up as a two-start week, but he had found some success at the Triple-A level prior to his call-up last week. Gomez had posted a 2.12 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 64:21 K:BB in 46.2 innings with the White Sox's top affiliate in Charlotte.

Schultz (knee) is progressing, and the White Sox are aiming for him to return in late August, MLB.com reports.

Schultz has been out since July 20 due to discomfort in his right knee, and the team is taking a cautious approach to his return. It was reported that he has made progress, although it is unclear what that has entailed. The White Sox also announced that Schultz will pitch in the Arizona Fall League.

Alexander struck out four and allowed three earned runs on five hits and one walk over 2.1 innings in relief in Saturday's 6-2 loss to the Royals.

The veteran southpaw made a 4.1-inning bulk-relief appearance in his most recent outing Monday against the Tigers, but he was available for a more traditional bullpen role during the White Sox's weekend series in Kansas City. Alexander could be a candidate to make additional starts or bulk-relief appearances over the final six weeks of the season if another opening in the rotation emerges, but for now, the White Sox appear content to proceed with Yoendrys Gomez as their No. 5 starter.

Baldwin went 3-for-4 with a double in Sunday's 6-2 loss to the Royals.

Baldwin has seen his playing time fluctuate since late July and has started 12 of the White Sox's last 14 games. However, the recent returns of Miguel Vargas and Chase Meidroth from the injured list has created some crowding in the infield, which looks as though it will result in Baldwin seeing most of his opportunities in the outfield moving forward. He's still been included in the lineup in three of the last five games while alternating starts with Mike Tauchman, but his playing time may be hard to trust so long as the rest of the lineup remains healthy.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora acknowledged Sunday that Campbell has been productive at Triple-A Worcester of late, but the skipper suggested that the 23-year-old still has work to do before earning another promotion to the majors, Jenn McCaffrey of The Athletic reports. "The same things that he struggled here [in the majors] with -- pitch recognition, covering certain shapes of fastballs," Cora said. "That's something that is hard, because he's not going to get that down there. The [velocity] here is harder. It's faster. Locations are on point here."

Campbell is hitting .323 with a .943 OPS in 26 games for Worcester since the All-Star break, but Cora outlined the areas where the infielder can improve. While an injury to another infielder could open the door for Campbell to rejoin the big club, the rookie otherwise might have to wait until the roster expands in September before getting another call-up to Boston.

Orioles manager Tony Mansolino confirmed prior to Sunday's 12-0 win over the Astros that Jackson will serve as the team's No. 3 catcher behind Adley Rutschman and Samuel Basallo moving forward, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Widely regarded as one of the organization's top prospects, Basallo was called up from Triple-A Norfolk on Sunday and entered the lineup at designated hitter for the series finale with Houston. While Rutschman is likely to see the bulk of the starts behind the plate for the rest of the season, Mansolino indicated that Basallo will be the top choice to handle catching duties when Rutschman needs a day off or is deployed as a DH. With that in mind, Jackson -- who had been serving as Rutschman's top understudy -- appears likely to see his already limited opportunities dwindle further over the final six weeks of the season. Jackson is slashing .227/.292/.591 with three home runs, four RBI and 11 runs over 48 plate appearances for Baltimore since being acquired from the Yankees on July 6.

Sosa went 1-for-5 with a solo home run Sunday against the Royals.

Sosa went deep in his first at-bat of the game to tally his 15th home run of the season. That continued his power tear in August, as Sosa now has six home runs, nine RBI and nine runs scored across 15 games played. Sosa has recently flipped from playing second base to first base, but he should be in for regular at-bats down the stretch unless the White Sox decide to give Curtis Mead additional playing time.

Basallo went 1-for-4 with two RBI in Sunday's 12-0 win over the Astros. He also reached base when he was hit by a pitch.

Called up from Triple-A Norfolk earlier Sunday, Basallo entered the lineup at designated hitter and as the Orioles' No. 6 batter in his MLB debut. The 21-year-old broke through with his first hit in his final plate appearance of the day, singling with the bases loaded in top of the eighth inning to drive in the game's final two runs. Prior to the game, interim manager Tony Mansolino told Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun that the Orioles want to assess Basallo's abilities at catcher over the next six weeks, but Basallo is still viewed as the No. 2 option at the position behind Adley Rutschman. Per Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com, the Orioles plan to have Basallo make his first start at catcher in Monday's series opener in Boston, then use him at DH in Tuesday's series finale. Basallo could also pick up some starts at first base over the final few weeks of the season, though the Orioles may prioritize Coby Mayo and Ryan Mountcastle at that position.

Garcia started at first base and went 1-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and run scored for Triple-A Worcester on Sunday.

Garcia was introduced to first base during pre-game work the last two weeks, per Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic, and Sunday was his debut at the position. There were no fielding issues, and he made a nice pick on a double play. Garcia is hitting at the Triple-A level, sporting a .308 average with a .945 OPS, but there's currently no room for him in Boston's outfield. Expanding his defensive versatility introduces another path to the majors, particularly at first base where the Red Sox are getting by with Abraham Toro and Romy Gonzalez. Of course, the pending signing of Nathaniel Lowe, who was designated for assignment by the Nationals over the weekend, could scuttle the notion of promoting Garcia to the majors and helping out at first base.