MLB Player News

The Astros acquired Kikuchi from the Blue Jays on Monday in exchange for outfielder Joey Loperfido, right-hander Jake Bloss and infielder Will Wagner, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.

Kikuchi will head to Houston after producing a disappointing 4.75 ERA and 1.34 WHIP with 130 strikeouts over 115.2 innings in 22 starts with Toronto this season. The left-hander has struggled to a 6.87 ERA over his last 12 starts, but he'll look to get back on track with the Astros. Kikuchi will return to the AL West after spending the first three years of his major-league career with the Mariners from 2019 through 2021.

Sheets will start in right field and bat cleanup in Tuesday's game against the Royals.

Sheets will pick up his third straight start, despite going 1-for-9 with four strikeouts in the final two contests of the White Sox's series with the Mariners over the weekend. Though the lefty-hitting Sheets could still regularly sit out against left-handed pitching, he should have a clearer path to steady playing time versus righties after the White Sox traded away Tommy Pham to the Cardinals earlier Tuesday.

Lee is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the White Sox.

Lee will get a breather for the series opener versus Kansas City after he had started behind the plate in three of the previous four contests. Chuckie Robinson will handle catching duties for the White Sox on Monday.

Frazier is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the White Sox.

Frazier finds himself on the bench for the third game in a row and for the second time against a right-hander (Chris Flexen). With Frazier getting on base at just a .167 clip since the All-Star break, his brief run as the Royals' everyday leadoff hitter looks to be over.

Schneider will start in left field and bat cleanup in the second game of Monday's doubleheader with the Orioles.

After starting at second base and going 1-for-4 with three strikeouts in the Blue Jays' 11-5 loss in Game 1, Schneider will stick in the starting nine for the nightcap. He's now picked up eight starts in the Blue Jays' last 10 contests, and he should have a path to a regular spot in the lineup after Justin Turner was traded to the Mariners earlier Tuesday.

Kirk is out of the lineup for the second game of Monday's doubleheader with the Orioles.

Kirk will take a seat for the second game of the twin bill after he went 3-for-4 with a trio of base hits in the Blue Jays' 11-5 loss in the first contest of the day. Though Brian Serven will get the nod behind the dish for the nightcap, Kirk looks like the Blue Jays' clear No. 1 catcher moving forward following the recent trade of Danny Jansen to the Red Sox.

The Guardians acquired Thomas from the Nationals on Monday in exchange for left-hander Alex Clemmey and infielders Jose Tena and Rafael Ramirez, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.

Cleveland will get a high-impact right-handed bat in Thomas, who is hitting .326 against southpaws this season. He also brings plenty of speed with 28 stolen bases, though he has been caught stealing an MLB-high 12 times. Thomas is under club control through 2025 and should immediately supplant either Will Brennan for an everyday spot in the Cleveland outfield. Since the beginning of July, Thomas has slashed .287/.398/.379 with 11 stolen bases, eight doubles and six RBI across 100 plate appearances.

Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Monday that Gray (groin) could miss up to a month of action, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Gray tweaked his groin during warmups and had to be scratched from Sunday's scheduled start versus the Blue Jays before officially landing on the 15-day injured list Monday. It's not clear what grade the strain is, but it's evidently bad enough that the Rangers aren't expecting him back for several weeks. Dane Dunning, Jose Urena and Cody Bradford are options to fill Gray's rotation spot for now, but the Rangers are expected to get Tyler Mahle (elbow) back soon and Jacob deGrom (elbow) hopefully not long after that.

Scott will serve as the Astros' opening pitcher for Monday's game against the Pirates, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Scott will be making his first start in the majors since the 2023, when he opened one game apiece as a member of the Red Sox and Athletics. He'll likely pitch only one or two innings in what will be a bullpen game for the Astros after the team scratched scheduled starter Jake Bloss and dealt him to the Blue Jays shortly before first pitch. Across 45 outings this season, Scott has a 1.45 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 50:23 K:BB across 49.2 innings.

Wallner is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Mets.

The lefty-hitting Wallner will hit the bench for the second time in three days while the Mets send a southpaw (Jose Quintana) to the hill. Wallner has been running hot at the plate lately, as he's recorded at least one hit -- including four extra-base knocks -- in each of his last five games while also drawing three walks.