MLB Player News

Littell (6-6) was charged with the loss Wednesday against the Red Sox after giving up four runs on eight hits and no walks in six innings. He struck out six.

Littell's control remained nearly impeccable, as he issued one walk or fewer in his 10th straight start, but his struggles containing the long ball resurfaced. The 29-year-old right-hander served up a whopping four homers for the second time already this year, and he now inauspiciously leads the majors in homers allowed (21). Littell still owns a steady 3.84 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 58:11 K:BB across 86.2 innings, and he'll aim to reduce the hard contact the next time he's scheduled to take the hill, likely next week versus the Orioles.

Leiter (4-3) took the loss against Minnesota on Wednesday, allowing four runs on five hits and four walks while striking out three batters over four-plus innings.

Leiter gave up a three-run homer to Byron Buxton in the third inning to account for most of the damage against him. The right-hander also struggled with his control, throwing just 51 of 87 pitches for strikes and issuing four free passes. Leiter had been pitching well entering Wednesday, posting a 2.20 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over five starts since his previous loss May 8, so he has earned himself a lengthy leash in terms of the security of his rotation spot. He'll look to get back on track in his next start, which is projected to be a matchup at home versus Kansas City.

Festa (1-1) earned the win over Texas on Wednesday, allowing two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four batters over six innings.

Festa finally picked up a victory in his fifth start of the season and also notched his first quality start. In fact, Wednesday marked the first time over his five outings that the right-hander has completed more than 4.2 frames. It was certainly a promising turnaround after Festa surrendered eight runs across 3.2 innings against the A's in his previous start. Festa has an opportunity to lock down a rotation spot with Pablo Lopez (shoulder) and Zebby Matthews (shoulder) both out for an extended period, and Festa's performance Wednesday could go a long way toward achieving that goal. He'll try to take another positive step the next time he takes the mound, which tentatively lines up to be on the road against Cincinnati.

Perez went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 6-3 defeat to the Yankees.

The veteran slugging backstop has struggled at the plate for most of the year -- he has a .638 OPS in 2025 -- but he's gotten back on track recently. Across his last 17 games (74 plate appearances), Perez is slashing .286/.324/.500 with four homers, three doubles and 12 RBI. Perez has played 64 of Kansas City's 68 games this year while bouncing around at catcher, first base and designated hitter, so he remains locked into an everyday role.

Williams notched the save in Wednesday's 6-3 victory over the Royals, recording the final two outs while fanning one.

The Royals made things interesting by scoring three runs in the ninth inning, which prompted manager Aaron Boone to summon Williams to put out the fire and earn his eighth save of the year. The 30-year-old right-hander is currently functioning as New York's closer while Luke Weaver (hamstring) sits on the injured list, and the former is slowly rounding into form following a dreadful start to the year. Over his last 12.2 innings, Williams owns a 2.13 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 18:2 K:BB with four saves.

The Red Sox designated Van Belle for assignment Wednesday, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.

Just two days after being selected to the active roster, Van Belle will now be booted off the Red Sox's 40-man roster before getting a chance to make his MLB debut. His roster spot will be given to Jorge Alcala, who was acquired in a trade with the Twins on Wednesday. Van Belle could attract interest from other teams in need of pitching after starting the Triple-A season with a 2.47 ERA ,1.06 WHIP and 41:7 K:BB through 51 innings.

Mayer went 2-for-4 with a pair of solo home runs in Wednesday's 4-3 win over the Rays.

Wednesday marked the first multi-homer game of the 2021 first-rounder's major-league career. Mayer has been primarily working on the strong side of a platoon with Abraham Toro at third base, and the former is slowly beginning to flash his slugging potential. Mayer is slashing .250/.313/.523 with three long balls, four doubles and four RBI over 44 plate appearances, and he should continue to see the majority of the action at the hot corner as long as Alex Bregman (quadriceps) remains on the injured list.

The Red Sox traded Lugo to the Twins on Wednesday in exchange for Jorge Alcala, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Lugo has spent the entire season with the Red Sox's High-A affiliate, where he's slashed .265/.327/.430 with four homers, 20 RBI, 16 runs scored and four steals through 44 games. The 21-year-old infielder will likely remain in High-A upon moving to the Twins organization and will aim to join Double-A Wichita by the end of the season.

Duran went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 4-3 win over the Rays.

It was the fifth round tripper of the campaign by Duran, who last homered back on May 24. Although the speedy outfielder has taken a bit of a step back in the power department so far -- he's slugging .428 this year after slugging .492 in 2024 -- he's been plenty productive despite the decrease in pop. Duran is batting .271 with 18 doubles, seven triples, 38 RBI, 38 runs scored and 14 stolen bases through 299 at-bats, and he's tied for the American League lead in three-baggers.

The Twins traded Alcala to the Red Sox on Wednesday in exchange for Andy Lugo, Phil Miller of The Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Alcala finished the 2024 season with a 3.24 ERA and 1.03 WHIP across 58.1 innings. He hasn't come close to replicating that same success to begin the '25 campaign, however, as he currently owns an 8.88 ERA and 1.81 WHIP through 24.1 frames. He'll now join a Red Sox bullpen that is in need of some depth after being bitten by the injury bug over the past couple of weeks, though the 29-year-old righty will likely be limited to low-leverage work until he finds his footing.