MLB Player News

The Athletics selected Kurtz's contract from Triple-A Las Vegas, and he's starting at first base and batting seventh in his MLB debut against the Rangers on Wednesday.

Reports first surfaced Monday indicating that Kurtz was on the move to the big leagues, but the Athletics waited until they had a matchup Wednesday with a right-handed starting pitcher (Kumar Rocker) before making the 22-year-old's call-up official. Despite the brief delay in his promotion, the left-handed-hitting Kurtz is expected to be given the chance to play regularly against both right- and left-handed pitching as he begins his major-league career. In leagues where he's still available on the waiver wire, Kurtz is worthy of a look for teams in need of power production after he slashed an impressive .321/.384/.655 with seven home runs and seven doubles over 20 games with Las Vegas prior to his call-up.

The Athletics recalled Harris from Triple-A Las Vegas on Wednesday.

With Jacob Lopez heading down to the minors and Jose Leclerc (lat) landing on the injured list, the A's will promote Harris and Grant Holman to replenish their bullpen depth. Harris has made six appearances at Las Vegas this season, giving up five earned runs across 9.1 innings while striking out 12 batters and walking five. He'll presumably work in middle relief while with the big club.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde confirmed Wednesday that Young will start Friday in Detroit, Andy Kostka of TheBaltimoreBanner.com reports.

The Orioles had left open the possibility that Kyle Gibson could take the ball Friday, but the club has ultimately sided with Young. The rookie right-hander made his major-league debut last weekend against the Reds, permitting three runs over four innings. Young is not guaranteed any additional starts with the big club beyond Friday.

Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said Wednesday that Rodriguez (elbow) has been diagnosed with a mild right lat strain, Jacob Calvin Meyer of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Rodriguez initially went on the 15-day injured list to begin the season due to right elbow inflammation before developing the lat issue last week. He's feeling better and plans to resume a throwing program in a couple weeks. Rodriguez dealt with what was described as a mild right lat strain during the second half last season and wound up missing two months, so despite Hyde's optimistic comments, fantasy managers may not want to count on the right-hander making his 2025 debut anytime soon.

Dingler went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 6-0 win over the Padres.

Dingler has been a pleasant surprise for the Tigers in the absence of Jake Rogers (oblique), as the former is batting .277 with a .780 OPS and three long balls across 18 games. Last regular season, Dingler batted just .167 with a .505 OPS and one home run in 27 appearances.

Torres went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 6-0 win over the Padres.

Torres got the scoring started for Detroit, mashing his second home run of the season two batters into the game. The infielder has fit in nicely with the Tigers, as he's recorded at least one hit in 10 of his 13 appearances so far this season, and he's sporting a healthy .283 batting average to go along with a .748 OPS.

Blanco (Achilles) went through full pregame activities with the Royals on Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Blanco resumed working out with the big club for the first time since he received a platelet-rich plasma injection April 4 to alleviate pain in his right Achilles tendon. The outfielder is facing an unclear timeline for his return and will likely have to complete a minor-league rehab assignment before being activated from the 10-day injured list.

Clement is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game in Houston.

Clement started the first two games of the series but will grab a seat for Wednesday's finale after going 1-for-6 with a strikeout. Will Wagner is at third base and batting eighth as the Blue Jays try to avoid the sweep.

Malloy went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a double, two total RBI and a second run scored in Wednesday's 6-0 win over the Padres.

Malloy extended Detroit's lead to 2-0 with a 389-foot blast off Kyle Hart, his first homer this season. He'd add a second RBI in the seventh with a double off Adrian Morejon. Malloy has gone 3-for-7 in his last two games after going 0-for-8 in his previous five contests. He's now slashing .208/.365/.333 with eight RBI and eight runs scored through 63 plate appearances while starting primarily against left-handed pitching.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Wednesday that Giolito (hamstring) is tentatively scheduled to return from the 15-day injured list to make his season debut May 1 in Toronto, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Giolito will be making his Red Sox debut as well, after he signed with the team in December 2023 but missed the entire 2024 season following internal brace surgery on his right elbow. A left hamstring strain is what currently has Giolito on the IL, and he will have to come out of his fifth rehab start with Triple-A Worcester on Friday with no issues before officially being cleared to join Boston's rotation next week.