MLB Player News

The Tigers designated Hicklen for assignment Wednesday.

He will give up his spot on the 40-man roster to right-hander Troy Melton, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Toledo ahead of his first MLB start Wednesday against the Pirates. The 29-year-old outfielder appeared in one game for Detroit in May but has otherwise spent the bulk of the 2025 campaign at Toledo, slashing .227/.335/.394 with eight home runs and 18 stolen bases over 254 plate appearances.

The Tigers selected Melton's contract from Triple-A Toledo ahead of his scheduled start Wednesday versus the Pirates at PNC Park.

Detroit placed ace Tarik Skubal (personal) on the paternity list to open up a spot on the 26-man active roster for Melton, who will be making his MLB debut Wednesday. As a result of Melton's addition, the Tigers will be running out a six-man rotation this week, but expect the team to scale back to five men once Skubal returns from the paternity list to start Saturday versus Toronto. Whether Melton sticks around for additional starts will likely hinge on how he performs Wednesday, as well as how incumbent No. 5 starter Keider Montero fares in his upcoming outing Friday versus the Blue Jays. The 25-year-old Melton has been unfazed by minor-league competition during his stops at Toledo and Double-A Erie this season, accruing a 2.99 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 101:20 K:BB in 75.1 innings between the two affiliates.

Witt is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs after Royals manager Matt Quatraro said that the shortstop experienced some discomfort in his knee during Tuesday's 6-0 loss, Pete Grathoff of The Kansas City Star reports.

Days off are exceedingly rare for the historically durable Witt, who will exit the starting nine for the first time all season and just the second time dating back to the start of the 2024 campaign. Witt's leg appeared to buckle on him during a plate appearance Tuesday, but he was able to finish out the game, and Quatraro downplayed any concern about the 25-year-old's health when he spoke to the media afterward. The Royals may simply be choosing to hold Witt out of the lineup out of an abundance of caution, as Wednesday's contest is a day game after a night game. Thursday is also an off day for the Royals, so the team is likely hoping that after two days of rest, Witt will be ready to start in Friday's series opener versus the Guardians.

Refsnyder went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 4-1 loss to the Phillies.

He was the only Boston batter to solve Cristopher Sanchez on the night, taking him deep in the fourth inning. It was Refsnyder's sixth homer of the season and first since June 22, and his role as a lefty-killer remains secure -- 95 of his 132 plate appearances this season have come against southpaws, and the 34-year-old has delivered a .288/.379/.563 slash line in that split.

Fitts (1-4) took the loss Tuesday as the Red Sox fell 4-1 to the Phillies, surrendering four runs on six hits over 3.1 innings. He struck out four without walking a batter.

Solo homers by Max Kepler and Kyle Schwarber in the second inning put the game out of reach for Boston, as Cristopher Sanchez was busy tossing a 12-K complete game for Philly. Fitts has served up seven long balls in 17 innings over his five big-league appearances and 17 innings since the beginning of June, fueling a 7.41 ERA, but with Tanner Houck (elbow) shut back down indefinitely and Hunter Dobbins (knee) lost for the season, there's no obvious internal replacement for Fitts in the Red Sox's rotation. He's scheduled to make his next start on the road early next week in Minnesota.

Mize (9-4) took the loss Tuesday as the Tigers were downed 8-5 by the Pirates, coughing up five runs (four earned) on 10 hits and a walk over four innings. He struck out five.

The right-hander tossed 62 of his 86 pitches for strikes and managed to keep the ball in the yard, but Mize still allowed far too much loud contact as six of the 10 hits off him wound up turning into doubles. He's been tagged for 11 runs (10 earned) over his last two starts, but Mize still sports a 3.40 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 82:23 K:BB through 92.2 inning on the year. He'll look to turn things around in his next outing, which is scheduled to come at home early next week against the Diamondbacks.

O'Hoppe is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's contest versus the Mets.

O'Hoppe will sit out Wednesday's matinee after starting at catcher in each of the previous three games. Travis d'Arnaud will be behind the dish and bat seventh in O'Hoppe's stead.

Moncada is not in the lineup for Wednesday's contest against the Mets.

The switch-hitting Moncada is on the bench for the Angels' third straight matchup with a lefty starter (Sean Manaea), so he might be in the strong side of a platoon. Chris Taylor will handle third base and bat ninth as the Angels try to avoid the sweep.

Martinez went 3-for-5 with a double, a run scored and an RBI in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Orioles.

The 23-year-old switch hitter has been on fire since the All-Star break, hitting safely in all five games since play resumed and batting .458 (11-for-24) with four doubles, a homer, four RBI and six runs. With Lane Thomas (foot) making slow progress in his recovery from his latest bout of plantar fasciitis, Martinez could be set for a long stint as Cleveland's primary center fielder.

Ramirez went 1-for-2 with three walks, a solo home run and a stolen base in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Orioles.

The star third baseman took Brandon Young deep in the first inning, and Baltimore pitchers wanted little to do with him after that. Ramirez has been carrying the Guardians' offense since early July, slashing .283/.426/.811 over his last 15 games with eight of his 21 homers and nine of his 30 steals on the season, while adding 18 runs and 18 RBI.