MLB Player News

The Royals optioned McGee to Triple-A Omaha on Monday.

He'll be replaced on the roster and in the bullpen by Lucas Erceg. McGee had been scored up in two out of his previous three appearances for the Royals.

The Royals recalled Erceg from Triple-A Omaha on Monday.

Erceg was sent down one month ago and logged a 1.74 ERA and 13:3 K:BB over 10.1 frames covering nine appearances with Omaha. The 31-year-old has had a disastrous season with the Royals, posting a 6.23 ERA and 31:29 K:BB over 43.1 innings, but he will aim to finish on a high note.

Rice went 1-for-2 with a solo home run and two walks in a 2-0 victory over the Mets on Sunday.

It looked like the Yankees could be in for a big game on offense when Rice went deep to right field leading off their half of the first inning, but only one additional run was scored by either team for the rest of the contest. The long ball continued a nice September for Rice, as he's slashing .368/.467/.605 with three home runs, 10 runs and four RBI through 10 games this month. He's been one of the best hitters in the league this year, ranking ninth among qualified hitters in OPS (.884) and 13th in RBI (90) while tying for fifth in homers (38).

Ballesteros went 1-for-2 with a home run, an additional RBI and a walk in a loss to Washington on Sunday.

Ballesteros kicked off the scoring with a solo shot to center field in the fourth inning. He added a sacrifice fly in the eighth to give the Angels a two-run lead, but the Nationals mounted a late rally to come away with the victory. Ballesteros failed to go deep through his first 25 games after joining the Angels, but he's picked up his power since. Across his past nine contests, the catcher has collected three homers along with seven RBI and a .346/.387/.731 slash line.

The Astros are considering playing Correa (ankle) some at second base when he returns from the 60-day injured list, Ken Rosenthal of Foul Territory TV reports.

On days the club uses Yordan Alvarez in left field, it would open up designated hitter for Jose Altuve, second base for Correa and allow the Astros to keep both Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes in the lineup at the corner infield spots. Correa is expected to play one or two rehab games this week at Triple-A Sugar Land before being reinstated to the Astros' active roster. He's been out since early May due to ankle surgery.

Severino (shoulder) logged a bullpen session Saturday and is expected to have a normal offseason, per MLB.com.

Severino hit the injured list May 30 due to a right shoulder strain that will ultimately keep him out of action for the remainder of the season. While the right-hander won't return to a big-league mound in 2026, he seems to be progressing well in his rehab and reportedly "looked good" in Saturday's session. Severino could opt out of his contract and turn down his $22 million player option for 2027 to hit the open market, but after an injury-marred campaign, he's likely to return to the Athletics. Before hitting the shelf, the 32-year-old posted a 2-6 record with a 4.16 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 65:31 K:BB across 62.2 innings (12 starts).

Burke is expected to pitch in bulk relief behind opener Sean Newcomb in Monday's game against the Guardians, James Fegan of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Over his last three starts, Burke has allowed nine runs while issuing 14 walks in just 10 innings, so the White Sox will deploy the right-hander behind a lefty opener for his upcoming turn through the rotation with the hope of generating better results. Burke has previously made four appearances out of the bullpen this season, delivering a stellar 1.80 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 26:6 K:BB in 25 innings.

Story went 2-for-4 with two RBI in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Royals.

Story allowed the Red Sox to breathe easier with a two-run double in the eighth inning to increase the lead to 4-1. He's hit safely in 12 of 13 games since coming off the injured list, going 18-for-53 (.340) with seven doubles, six RBI and five runs scored.

Contreras started at first base and went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Sunday's 4-1 win over Kansas City.

Contreras was activated off the injured list Sunday, and the Red Sox felt confident using him in the field. In addition to scoring Boston's final run, Contreras showed the hamstring wasn't an issue in the fourth inning, when he reached base on a throwing error and advanced to second.

Bazzana went 2-for-4 with a walk, a home run, three RBI, a stolen base and an additional run scored in Sunday's 9-2 win over Minnesota.

Bazzana helped increase the Guardians' lead with a run-scoring single in the fourth inning followed by a two-run homer in the sixth. He's up to 12 homers with 19 steals in 112 games. Just as it looked like the rookie was starting to fade, Bazzana's bat has awoken in September. Over the last eight games, Bazzana has gone 12-for-26 (.462) with five walks, two doubles, three home runs, 12 RBI and eight runs scored.