MLB Player News

Walker went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in an 8-5 win against the Tigers on Monday.

Walker put the Astros on the board with a two-run shot to left-center field in the fourth inning. The long ball was his fourth of the season, three of which have come over his past eight games. Walker is still slashing a modest .192/.273/.354 on the campaign, but he's shown improvement with a .267 batting average and six RBI to go along with the three homers over the aforementioned eight-game stretch.

Altuve went 2-for-4 with a home run and three total RBI in Monday's 8-5 victory versus Detroit.

Altuve had been slumping coming into the contest, batting just .143 with eight strikeouts over his previous seven games. He got a rare day off Sunday and appeared to benefit from the reset, as the veteran second baseman collected his first multi-hit game Monday since April 18. Altuve's long ball was his first since April 7, and his three RBI equaled the amount he had compiled over his previous 14 contests combined.

Flaherty (1-3) took the loss against Houston on Monday, allowing four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out four batters over five innings.

Flaherty was given an early 3-0 lead, but he coughed up two runs on a Christian Walker homer in the bottom of the fourth inning. Another Astros two-run blast -- this time by Jose Altuve -- in the sixth frame gave Houston its first lead and set Flaherty up for his third straight defeat. The veteran righty hasn't pitched all that poorly during the three-loss streak, and Monday's outing marked the first time this season he's surrendered more than three runs in a game, but his ERA has increased from 1.62 to 3.34 during that stretch. Flaherty will look to get back in the win column his next time out, which lines up to come on the road against the Angels this weekend.

Hader earned a save against the Tigers on Monday, allowing one hit and striking out two batters in a scoreless inning of work.

Hader inherited a three-run lead in the ninth frame and went right after each batter he faced, throwing 12 of his 14 total pitches for strikes. The veteran closer did give up a two-out double, but that proved to be a minor inconvenience as Hader wrapped up his eighth save in eight chances. After posting a disappointing 3.80 ERA last season, Hader has been dominant so far in 2025, allowing just one run on seven hits while registering a 19:3 K:BB over 14 innings covering 12 appearances.

Blanco allowed three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out six batters over five innings in a no-decision against Detroit on Monday.

All three runs Blanco allowed came via the long ball, as Kerry Carpenter hit a two-run shot against him in the third inning and Riley Greene added a solo homer in the fourth. Otherwise, Blanco was pretty solid, as he surrendered just one other hit and induced a healthy 19 swinging strikes. The right-hander has completed at least five frames and given up three or fewer runs in five of his six appearances this season, and his lone ugly outing was a four-run, 1.2-inning start against Minnesota on April 6.

Martin (hamstring) has started running and is potentially a week away from playing in games, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Martin suffered the injury while pursuing a flyball in the outfield April 10 while playing for Triple-A St. Paul. Martin had produced a .419/.526/.452 slash line over 38 plate appearances at Triple-A before the injury.

Keaschall may not need surgery on his fractured right ulna bone, but is still expected to miss two months or more, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports. "It's probably going to be a couple months before he's back into playing games," said Twins head athletic trainer Nick Paparesta.

He suffered a right forearm fracture after getting hit by a pitch in the first inning of Friday's game. Keaschall will undergo weekly X-rays to check his progress and to confirm he won't need a plate inserted in his arm to heal properly.

Castro (oblique) worked out Monday and could be activated from the injured list when eligible Thursday, the Minnesota Star Tribune reports.

Castro will hit from the left side, which was hindered by his oblique injury, on Tuesday. If all goes well the Twins will then figure out his next course of action but it sounds like he may not need to go on a rehab assignment. He originally strained his right oblique on April 16.

Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said that Lopez will start Tuesday's game against the Rangers, Jessica Kleinschmidt of Baseball America reports.

Lopez has worked out of the bullpen in all three of his appearances with the Athletics and hasn't recorded more than five outs on any occasion, but he had been getting stretched out as a starter at Triple-A Las Vegas before being recalled Saturday. The lefty covered five innings in both of his most recent two appearances and delivered his best outing yet prior to his promotion, striking out 10 batters and allowing no runs on four hits and two walks in an April 12 contest. Lopez could end up getting multiple turns through the big-league rotation while J.T. Ginn (elbow) is on the shelf.

Greene went 2-for-4 with two home runs and three RBI in Monday's 8-5 loss to the Astros.

Greene launched a solo home run in the fourth inning, then went deep again with a runner on in the eighth. It's the first multi-homer game of the season for the talented young outfielder, and he has three long balls in his last three games. Greene hit a total of three home runs in his previous 25 games before the recent hot streak.