MLB Player News

Astros general manager Dana Brown said Sunday that Tucker (shin) could be activated from the 60-day injured list and "potentially play maybe Wednesday or Thursday" in Cincinnati, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Tucker's lengthy rehab program from a deep bruise in his right shin that first cropped up in early June seems to be nearing its end. The star outfielder reached a major milestone in the recovery process by running the bases at full speed this past week, and he took another major step forward by facing off against live pitching in batting practice Sunday for the third day in a row, per Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. After Sunday's workout, manager Joe Espada concurred with Brown's assessment of the outfielder, telling McTaggart that Tucker is "really, really close" to returning. Espada didn't elaborate much further on the matter, but Tucker looks like he could bypass a rehab assignment and return to the lineup at some point during the final two games of the series in Cincinnati. His return during the final four weeks of the season would provide a major jolt to a Houston squad that has managed to climb its away to the top of the AL West standings without Tucker for the past three months.

Manzardo went 2-for-3 with two solo home runs and a walk during Sunday's 6-1 win over the Pirates.

Manzardo was recalled from Triple-A prior to the game and responded by cracking the first two home runs of his career, each coming off Pirates' starter Mitch Keller. Manzardo had received a cup of coffee with the Guardians earlier this season, collecting 82 at-bats and batting .207 with 10 doubles among 17 hits during his initial 30-game stint with the club. Over 359 at-bats in the minors this season, Manzardo, one of the team's top prospects, slashed .264/.396/.545 with 20 homers, 49 RBI, 65 runs, 20 doubles, a triple and two steals.

Cobb (2-1) earned the win Sunday, allowing one run (zero earned) on two hits over six innings against the Pirates. He struck out six.

Cobb (finger) returned from the 15-day injured list to make just his third start of the season and was lights-out, starting the game by retiring the first 18 batters he faced. In the seventh, Isiah Kiner-Falefa rocketed a ground ball up the middle that caught Cobb's non-pitching hand just above the heel of his glove and resulted in an infield single. Cobb was briefly shaken up but stayed in the game to face one more batter, allowing a single to Bryan Reynolds before being removed after 80 pitches. Following a rough first outing with the Guardians, Cobb has allowed just one earned run and seven total baserunners over his last two outings spanning 11.2 innings. He'll look to continue to spearhead the Cleveland charge towards a division pennant when he makes his next start, currently slated to take place in Los Angeles against the Dodgers.

Manager Joe Espada said that McCormick will be recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land prior to Monday's game in Cincinnati, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

McCormick will likely stick around with the Astros for at least the entirety of the three-game series versus the Reds while fellow outfielder Jake Meyers is away from the team on paternity leave. Before he was demoted to Triple-A last week, McCormick had struggled to a .192/.256/.292 slash line with a 28.8 percent strikeout rate over 243 plate appearances with Houston.

The Astros are expected to place Meyers on the paternity list prior to Monday's game against the Reds, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Meyers, who went 0-for-4 in Sunday's 7-2 win over the Royals, will most likely miss the entire three-game series in Cincinnati before rejoining the Astros in Houston on Friday for the start of a three-game set with the Diamondbacks. The Astros are set to recall Chas McCormick from Triple-A Sugar Land to fill Meyers' spot on the 28-man active roster.

Webb (elbow) is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk on Sunday, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.

Webb, who has been on the 15-day injured list since Aug. 7 with right elbow inflammation, will likely require at least another rehab appearance after Sunday before the Orioles would feel comfortable activating him. The right-hander has been a key late-inning arm for Baltimore in 2024, notching one win, two saves and 12 holds while compiling a 3.08 ERA and 1.17 WHIP over 49.2 frames.

Kavadas is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mariners.

The left-handed-hitting Kavadas' run as a regular in the Angels lineup could be coming to an end; he'll now head to the bench for the second straight matchup with a right-hander. Since getting called up from Triple-A Salt Lake on Aug. 16, Kavadas has gone 3-for-34 (.088 average) with one home run and a 48.6 percent strikeout rate.

O'Hoppe is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mariners.

O'Hoppe is getting a routine day off after he had started behind the plate in the first two contests of the series. Matt Thaiss will handle the catching duties in the series finale.

Crawford is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.

Crawford will receive a breather for the series finale after he had started in each of the Mariners' three games since he returned from the injured list Wednesday. Leo Rivas will step in at shortstop for Crawford, while Victor Robles will serve as the Mariners' leadoff batter.

Moore is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.

Moore had started each of the last four games while going 3-for-11 with two doubles and a stolen base, but he'll retreat to the bench while the Angels send right-hander Caden Dana to the hill. The utility man should continue to pick up regular starts against left-handed pitching, but his playing time versus righties may be more sporadic in September.