MLB Player News

The Red Sox placed Criswell on the COVID-19 injured list Friday.

Criswell will be sidelined for at least seven days due to the sickness. He was slated to start Saturday's game against the Astros, but the Red Sox will now have to look elsewhere and could turn the contest into a bullpen game. Since moving to the bullpen July 28, Criswell has made four appearances, allowing three runs over 6.2 innings. Brad Keller was recalled from Triple-A Worcester in a corresponding move.

The Red Sox recalled Keller from Triple-A Worcester on Friday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Keller has allowed 10 runs over 16.2 frames during his time in Boston this season. He would seem to be a good bet to eat up some innings Saturday versus the Astros in what could be a bullpen game for the Red Sox.

The Red Sox recalled Booser from Triple-A Worcester on Friday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Booser was just sent down Wednesday but is back to take the roster spot of Brayan Bello, who went on paternity leave. Booser, a lefty reliever, holds a 2.77 ERA and 1.13 WHIP in 38 appearances with the Red Sox this season.

The Red Sox placed Bello on the paternity list Friday, but he will return in time for his scheduled start Monday against Texas, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Bello will spend his weekend away from the team for personal reasons, but the expectation is he'll be back for Monday's start. In his last six outings, Bello has a 2-0 record, though he's logged a 5.08 ERA with 38 strikeouts over 33.2 innings. Cam Booser will temporarily join the 26-man roster and supply the bullpen with an additional arm.

Topa (knee) has thrown six scoreless innings at Triple-A St. Paul during his current rehab assignment, but the Twins aren't yet to activate him from the injured list while he's shown decreased velocity in the minors, Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

It's telling that the Twins have not activated Topa from the IL despite several injuries on the pitching staff in the past week. Topa hasn't pitched in the majors this season due to a small tear in the patellar tendon of his left knee, which required a platelet-rich plasma injection in mid-May. He started a rehab assignment July 23. It's not clear how much longer he'll need at Triple-A, or what kind of progress he'll need to show to be activated.

Story (shoulder) will take batting practice on the field Monday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Story underwent surgery for a fractured left shoulder in mid-April and the feeling at the time was that it was likely to end his 2024 campaign. However, the shortstop's rehab has come along more quickly than expected and Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Friday that he's "truly believing" Story will make it back before the end of the season. There are still many hoops for Story to jump through, of course, and there is no timetable for his return, but it's an exciting development for the Red Sox.

Sosa is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Cubs.

After making seven straight starts -- four at second base, two at third base and one at DH -- Sosa will take a seat for Friday's series opener. During that stretch, Sosa went 4-for-27 (.148) with one run and two RBI.

Lowe (knee) is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Orioles.

Lowe fouled a ball off his right knee in the first inning of Thursday's game and was removed shortly after. With his X-rays coming back negative, Lowe can be considered day-to-day moving forward. Dylan Carlson, Jose Siri and Jonny DeLuca fill the outfield from left to right Friday.

McCormick is not in the lineup for Friday's game in Boston, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

It marks the second straight game on the bench for McCormick, who is still looking for his first hit in August. Mauricio Dubon is getting another start in right field for the Astros.

The Angels optioned Leblanc to Triple-A Salt Lake on Friday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Leblanc joined the Angels' active roster Saturday and went 1-for-6 across two games with the team. However, with Taylor Ward returning from the paternity list, Leblanc will be returned to Salt Lake.