MLB Player News

Rendon is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers.

Rendon started the previous eight tilts but managed just a .598 OPS over that stretch. Charles Leblanc will draw a start at third base and bat seventh while Rendon gets some rest.

O'Hoppe is absent from the lineup for Thursday's contest against the Rangers.

It's a routine day off for O'Hoppe, who had started each of the last two games and four of the last five. Matt Thaiss will do the catching in the series opener Thursday.

Duran got the save in Thursday's 4-3 win over the Rays, striking out two in a perfect ninth inning.

Duran entered the game to protect a one-run lead, and he struck out the first two batters he faced and then induced a weak grounder to end it. Following a rough stretch in August, Duran has been better as of late with four straight clean outings in which he's only allowed one hit and racked up four saves in the process. The 26-year-old closer is now 22-for-24 in save opportunities this season with a 3.45 ERA.

Julien went 1-for-4 with a three-run homer in Thursday's 4-3 win over the Rays.

Julien took Taj Bradley deep in the second inning for his eighth home run of the season and his first since April 25. Julien's blast snapped a 54-game homerless streak, which was the longest of his career entering Thursday. Since his most recent call-up in the middle of August, the 25-year-old is hitting .282 over 19 games, but he hasn't started against a lefty since Aug. 16 and he even sat out against a righty Wednesday.

Bradley (6-10) took the loss against the Twins on Thursday, allowing four runs on six hits and one walk while striking out 10 batters over seven innings.

Bradley pitched well Thursday against the Twins, but a pair of home runs cost him, and he came away with his 10th loss of the season. Bradley has now allowed a homer in each of his last five games, and he becomes the first Rays pitcher to allow 20 or more homers in back-to-back seasons since 2016-17. Following a dominant nine-start stretch from early June to late July, Bradley has pitched to an 8.92 ERA with six losses in his last seven outings. 

The Astros are skipping Blanco's next turn in the rotation, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Blanco had been on turn to start Sunday against the Diamondbacks, but Justin Verlander will move up to take the ball on regular rest that day instead. Houston has an upcoming stretch of 16 games without an off day later this month, and they plan to return Blanco to the rotation sometime during that stretch. However, it's anticipated the righty will eventually move to the bullpen on a permanent basis prior to the postseason.

Lopez (14-8) earned the win Thursday against the Rays, allowing three runs on seven hits and one walk over 6.2 innings. He struck out nine.

Lopez's streak of three straight outings without allowing a run ended Thursday against the Rays, but he still managed to pick up his 14th win, which is tied for the third most in the American League. Lopez's scoreless innings streak ended at 23.1, which is the longest single-season streak by a Twins pitcher since Tyler Duffey in 2019. The 28-year-old has eight quality starts over his last 10 appearances and has a 2.27 ERA in that span.

The Blue Jays designated Cuas for assignment Thursday.

Cuas will end up as the odd man out of Toronto's 40-man roster after the team claimed Emmanuel Ramirez off waivers from Miami on Thursday. The 30-year-old Cuas owns a 7.71 ERA and 1.78 WHIP across 16.1 innings between the Cubs and Blue Jays this season, and his minor-league performance hasn't been much better (6.67 ERA through 27 IP).

Toussaint cleared waivers Thursday and was sent outright to Triple-A Charlotte, Vinnie Duber of AllCHGO.com reports.

Toussaint was dropped from Chicago's 40-man roster Tuesday after accumulating a 7.43 ERA and 2.30 WHIP across 23 innings with the big-league squad. He'll remain with the organization as minor-league bullpen depth, though his chances of making it back to the majors before the end of the year are slim.

Moore has a left meniscus injury that will be "treated conservatively," though he could return to play this season.

Moore exited a Double-A game Friday after hurting his left leg, and the Angels announced Wednesday that he suffered a meniscus injury. The organization indicated that the 21-year-old will get conservative treatment before trying to ramp up his baseball activity but didn't rule him out from returning in the regular season. That's a bit surprising considering that the Double-A campaign ends on Sept. 15.