MLB Player News

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Tuesday in his appearance on Jomboy Media's "Talkin' Yanks" podcast that Williams will be the team's primary closer while Luke Weaver (hamstring) is sidelined.

Weaver is expected to miss 4-to-6 weeks after straining his hamstring while warming up during Sunday's game against the Dodgers. Williams was removed from the closer role in late April but has pitched well lately, yielding just two runs with a 15:2 K:BB over his last 10 innings.

Gipson-Long (elbow/hip) rejoined the Tigers over the weekend and is expected to be activated from the 60-day injured list to start or serve as a bulk reliever Tuesday or Wednesday against the White Sox, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Jack Flaherty got the ball for Monday's series-opening win and Casey Mize is slated to start Thursday's finale, but the Tigers have yet to name starters for Tuesday and Wednesday. Detroit is expected to go with a bullpen game for one of those contests, while Gipson-Long looks on track to cover the majority of the innings in the other game in some capacity. The 27-year-old missed the entire 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April and then left hip surgery in July, but he finally looks to be healthy again after completing an extended rehab assignment. Between stops at Single-A Lakeland and Triple-A Toledo, Gipson-Long tossed 16.1 innings over five starts and logged a 2.20 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 16:2 K:BB. He covered 5.1 frames and threw 53 pitches in his final outing with Toledo on Thursday, so Gipson-Long will likely be operating with a restricted workload when he makes his 2025 Tigers debut Tuesday or Wednesday.

Toro started at third base and went 1-for-4 in Monday's 7-6 loss to the Angels.

Toro, who had been the regular starter at first base, shifted to third base while Romy Gonzalez, fresh off the injured list, started at first. Toro is batting .306 with an .822 OPS over 19 games since his contract was selected from Triple-A Worcester. The two could share the position going forward after Red Sox manager Alex Cora scrapped a plan to give Kristian Campbell starts there.

Yoshida (shoulder) has increased the intensity of his throwing program while playing catch out to 75 feet, MLB.com reports.

Yoshida had been throwing out to 120 feet prior to being shut down in April. The club hasn't pegged an estimated return date for Yoshida, other than this report indicating July at the earliest. Even when Yoshida is ready to go, there's no guarantee he has a spot in the starting lineup.

Butler went 2-for-2 with a three-run home run, an additional run, a double and three walks in Monday's loss to the Twins.

Minnesota jumped out to a six-run lead through two innings, but Butler made a game of it when he launched a three-run blast off Joe Ryan in the fourth inning. The outfielder rounded out a big performance by reaching base in all five of his plate appearances and finished with his third multi-hit effort over his past four games. Butler was batting a paltry .224 through May 16, but he's lifted his average to .260 with a 15-game surge during which he's batted .368 with three homers, 11 RBI, 12 runs and three stolen bases.

Flaherty (4-6) earned the win Monday against the White Sox after allowing one run on four hits and one walk in six innings. He struck out four.

While Flaherty did match a season low in punchouts, he mostly cruised while delivering his third quality start in a row. The veteran right-hander has begun to rebound from a shaky start to the season, which saw him produce a 4.61 ERA through his first eight outings, as he owns a sharp 2.22 ERA, 0.82 WHIP and 26:6 K:BB over his last four outings (24.1 innings). Flaherty is set to face a difficult task this weekend versus the Cubs, who boast an .800 OPS against right-handed pitching since the start of May.

Buxton went 2-for-5 with a double, a run, five RBI and a stolen base in a 10-4 win against the Athletics on Monday.

Buxton plated two runs with a double in the second inning, added a two-run single in the sixth and finished his big day with a sacrifice fly in the ninth. The five RBI marked a season high for the veteran outfielder, who has now driven in at least one run in each of his three games since returning from a stay on the 7-day injured list May 30. Buxton's steal Monday was his 10th of the campaign, making him the 12th big-leaguer to reach 10 homers and 10 thefts so far this season.

Severino (1-5) took the loss against Minnesota on Monday, allowing eight runs on nine hits and one walk while striking out one batter over 5.2 innings.

Severino didn't give up any homers, but four of the nine hits against him were doubles. He also didn't miss many bats, notching a modest eight whiffs and just one punchout while throwing 97 pitches. The eight runs were a season-worst mark for the right-hander, who came into Monday having allowed two or fewer runs in three straight outings. Severino will look to bounce back in his next start, which is lined up to be a home matchup versus Baltimore this weekend.

Ryan (6-2) earned the win over the Athletics on Monday, allowing four runs on six hits and three walks while striking out four batters over five innings.

Ryan was provided with a 6-0 lead through two innings, but he nearly gave it all back when the A's scored four runs over the third and fourth frames. The big blow was a three-run homer by Lawrence Butler that was just the second long ball Ryan has given up over his past four outings. Ryan ran into trouble again in the fifth, loading the bases with no outs, but he was able to induce two popouts and a groundout to prevent any runs and end his start on a positive note. Though the right-hander gave up four runs for the first time since yielding six against Atlanta on April 20, he got enough support to pick up his fifth win across his past seven appearances. Ryan has been excellent in that stretch, posting a 2.20 ERA and 0.85 WHIP with a 48:9 K:BB over 41 frames.

Gonzalez went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI during Monday's 7-6 loss to the Angels.

Out since May 7 with a quad injury, Gonzalez showed just what the Red Sox have been missing in the last month, coming through with a big two-run double in the fifth that pulled Boston within a run and brought his RBI total to eight on the year. The 28-year-old picked up right where he left off after his good start to the season, now slashing .316/.365/.439 in 63 plate appearances.