MLB Player News

The Rays recalled Alexander from Triple-A Durham on Sunday.

The left-hander was optioned to Durham on Thursday but will quickly return to the big leagues with Jeffrey Springs (elbow) headed to the injured list. Alexander has a 5.66 ERA and 1.35 WHIP in 19 appearances (seven starts) for the Rays this season, and he could work as a starter or bulk reliever down the stretch in place of Springs.

The Rays placed Springs on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to left elbow fatigue.

The left-hander lined up to take the mound early this week in Philadelphia, but he'll instead head to the IL due to the elbow issue. Springs will be eligible to return from the injured list in late September, potentially in time for a couple starts, but there's a real chance he won't return with the Rays six games back of the final wild-card spot. If he is done for the season, the 31-year-old will close the campaign with a 3.27 ERA, 1.36 WHIP and 37:11 K:BB across 33 innings (seven starts).

Devers went 1-for-2 with a double, two walks and a run scored in Saturday's 7-5 win over the White Sox.

Devers, who hit out of the second spot in the order behind Jarren Duran for a third consecutive game, doubled and scored a run as part of Boston's four-run first inning. That was a response to the White Sox taking a 2-0 lead in the top half of the frame. "We hit the ball hard," Red Sox manager Alex Cora told Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic following the game. "The two lefties (Duran and Devers), we're going to run with that from now on, it doesn't matter, I just feel comfortable with them." Devers had slumped (1-for-24) since a three-game absence due to discomfort in his shoulders, but he's gone 3-for-6 with two walks over the last two games after going hitless out of the two-hole Thursday.

Judge went 0-for-3 with a walk, a run and a stolen base in Saturday's 2-0 win against the Cubs.

That's 11 straight contests without a long ball for Judge, who slugged seven homers in six games prior to the sudden power outage. The 11-game homerless stretch is the longest of the campaign for the star outfielder and has stalled his pursuit of a second career 60-homer season, though his ability to get hot and tally long balls in bunches puts the accomplishment still within reach. Judge has struggled as a whole during the power drought, slashing .175/.327/.250 with a 34.7 percent strikeout rate, though he does have three doubles, three RBI and two stolen bases.

Horwitz went 4-for-5 with a double, two homers, three RBI and three runs scored in Saturday's win over Atlanta.

Horwitz was a problem for Atlanta all night, smacking a leadoff homer in the second to put Toronto on the board, along with a second leadoff shot in the fourth to kick off a three-run inning for the Blue Jays. The infielder didn't stop there, however, adding an RBI double and a single in the contest to give him his first four-hit performance of the campaign. Horwitz has now tallied multiple hits in three of his last six starts, batting .423 (11-for-26) with three homers, six RBI and six runs scored over that stretch. He's also hit safely in each of his last three starts.

Rafaela started in center field and went 0-for-4 in Saturday's 7-5 win over the White Sox.

The return of shortstop Trevor Story was initially expected to move Rafaela to second base, but Red Sox manager Alex Cora put him in the outfield. Rafaela is fighting it right now and is 5-for-40 (.125) over his last 12 games.

Scherzer (shoulder) allowed one walk, hit a batter and struck out eight over four scoreless innings in a rehab start for Triple-A Round Rock on Saturday.

Scherzer mowed down the opposition with three perfect innings before the walk and hit-by-pitch in the fourth frame. The right-hander believes the nerve issue that impacted his shoulder has been remedied, per MLB.com. If he responds well to his next throwing session following Saturday's rehab start, Scherzer could return from the 15-day injured list to rejoin the Rangers on their road trip this upcoming week.

Houck isn't expected to make his next start until Friday against the Yankees in New York after manager Alex Cora said Saturday that the right-hander will be pushed to the back of the Red Sox's pitching schedule, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

The Red Sox want to build in some more rest for Houck in advance of his next start while the 28-year-old has largely struggled since the All-Star break. In his nine outings in the second half, Houck has turned in four quality starts while pitching to a 4.78 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 38:21 K:BB over 52.2 innings. In order to facilitate the extended break for Houck, the Red Sox will call up a pitcher from the minors to start Sunday's series finale versus the White Sox, while rotation members Brayan Bello, Kutter Crawford, Nick Pivetta and Cooper Criswell all appear set to make their next turns before Houck takes the hill again.

DeGrom (elbow) allowed one hit and struck out five over four scoreless innings in a rehab start for Double-A Frisco on Saturday.

DeGrom made his fourth rehab start, and the four innings were the most he's thrown. The right-hander, who was scheduled to throw 60 pitches, was too efficient, dispatching the opposition on just 49 throws. The Rangers plan to have deGrom return from the 60-day injured list to make his season debut in the majors at some point during Texas' road trip to Arizona and Seattle that begins Tuesday and runs through next Sunday.

Berrios (15-9) picked up the win over Atlanta on Saturday, allowing one run on five hits and one walk over six innings while striking out five.

Berrios was efficient throughout his time on the mound, allowing just two hits and a walk through the first four innings before surrendering an RBI single to Michael Harris in the bottom of the fifth. That would be the only run he'd allow in the contest while going on to log his sixth consecutive quality start. The right-hander has also won each of his last six starts, posting a 36:6 K:BB over that stretch. His 15 wins on the campaign have him tied for third in the majors with Seth Lugo.