MLB Player News

Royals general manager J.J. Picollo said Monday that Schreiber (knee) is likely to be placed on the 15-day injured list, Joel Goldberg of Bally Sports Kansas City reports.

The Royals haven't provided an updated diagnosis for Schreiber after he was forced out of his relief appearance in Sunday's 7-3 loss to the Cubs with right knee patella tendon discomfort, but the team has apparently already deduced that the right-handed reliever is dealing with more than a day-to-day concern. Schreiber could cede his spot on the Royals' 26-man active roster to right-hander Michael Lorenzen, whom Kansas City acquired from Texas earlier Monday.

Rodon (11-7) got the win Sunday over the Red Sox, allowing two runs on five hits and a walk while striking out seven over 6.1 innings.

Rodon put together another excellent start to help the Yankees take the series in Boston. His only blunder of an inning came in the fourth when he allowed back-to-back home runs to Rob Refsnyder and Connor Wong but was backed by plenty of offense from his guys. Rodon has now exceeded six innings in consecutive starts for the first time since early June and has now allowed three runs or less in 17 of his 22 starts this year. The 31-year-old owns a 4.34 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 129:36 K:BB in 120.1 innings and will aim for his third straight win when he takes the ball at home versus the Blue Jays over the weekend.

Manoah revealed Monday in a social media post that he had the brace removed from his surgically repaired right elbow.

Manoah underwent an internal brace procedure six weeks ago to address ligament damage to his elbow. While Manoah will be out for the season and for the start of the 2024 campaign, he could face a speedier recovery from his procedure than if he had opted for Tommy John surgery, which often entails a 12-to-14-month rehab timeline for pitchers. The Blue Jays likely won't have a better feel for when Manoah might be ready to make his 2025 debut until seeing where he stands in his rehab program next spring.

Royals general manager J.J. Picollo said Monday that a determination hasn't been made whether Lorenzen will serve as a starter or reliever with his new team, Sam McDowell of the Kansas City Star reports.

The Royals acquired Lorenzen from the Rangers earlier Monday, sending left-hander Walter Pennington to Texas in exchange for the righty. Lorenzen offers the flexibility to pitch out of the rotation and in the bullpen, and how the Royals choose to deploy him could depend on what other moves the Royals make prior to Tuesday's trade deadline. Eighteen of Lorenzen's 19 appearances with the Rangers in 2024 have been as a starter, with his lone relief appearance coming Sunday after Jon Gray (groin) was scratched from his start without throwing a pitch.

Pepiot (knee) will increase the intensity of his throwing in a bullpen session Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Pepiot threw a lighter bullpen session Saturday, his first significant activity since landing on the injured list. After Tuesday, Pepiot will throw a simulated game or go on a rehab assignment, though the team has not specified its plans.

Houck (8-7) took the loss Sunday against the Yankees, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits and four walks while striking out two in six innings.

The Yankees jumped on Houck early with three runs in the first frame and tacked on another in the fourth. Houck gave up four of his five hits in the opening inning and then settled in for his third straight outing reaching six innings. Despite attaining this mark, Houck has shown some regression with his command, posting an 11:14 K:BB in 21.1 innings in July. He's struck out two or fewer batters in three of his last four starts after only having done that once in his first 17 starts of the year. Despite all of this, Houck is still eighth in baseball with a 2.79 ERA to go with a 1.11 WHIP and 116:33 K:BB in 129 innings. He lines up to face the Rangers on the road over the weekend his next time out.

The Tigers acquired Vanasco from the Dodgers on Monday in exchange for cash considerations and optioned him to Triple-A Toledo.

Vanasco will fill the spot on the Tigers' 40-man roster that opened up after Detroit traded catcher Carson Kelly to the Rangers on Sunday. The right-hander reached the big leagues for the first time earlier this season with the Dodgers, but he made just two appearances out of the bullpen before being optioned to Triple-A earlier this month and then designated for assignment. Vanasco owns a 3.47 ERA, 1.73 WHIP and 27:21 K:BB in 23.1 innings out of the bullpen at the Triple-A level this season.

Kirk went 1-for-4 with a run scored in Sunday's 7-3 win over the Rangers.

Though his stat line on the afternoon wasn't particularly notable, Kirk made his second straight start behind the dish and should be primed to handle the bulk of the catching duties for the Blue Jays with Danny Jansen having been traded to the Red Sox on Saturday. Kirk's defense and pitch framing are worthy of a starting role, but he hasn't recaptured the form at the plate that allowed him to take home a Silver Slugger award during his age-23 season in 2022. He has shown some improvement at the dish over the past month, however, batting .300 with nine RBI and eight runs in his 16 games.

Wong went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's loss to the Yankees.

Wong was on the latter end of back-to-back solo home runs by he and Rob Refsnyder for the team's only two runs of the evening. Wong's home run set a new season-best for him with 10, and he needs two more RBI to surpass the 36 he had last year. The 28-year-old is having a productive year despite not having an everyday role, slashing .297/.362/.446 with 20 extra-base hits, 35 RBI, 35 runs, five steals and a 20:65 BB:K in 307 plate appearances. Wong will have a new running mate behind the dish for the rest of the season after the Red Sox traded for Danny Jansen from the Blue Jays and designated Reese McGuire for assignment.

Cleavinger (7-2) struck out one without allowing a baserunner in a scoreless eighth inning to earn the win Sunday against the Reds.

Cleavinger entered with the Rays down 1-0 in the eighth inning and turned in his fifth consecutive clean outing. He's also picked up two wins in that span and should be locked into a high-leverage relief role after the departure of Jason Adam.