MLB Player News

Kepler is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game versus the Tigers.

It's tough left-hander Tarik Skubal on the hill for Detroit, so the left-handed hitting Kepler will begin this one on the bench. Manuel Margot is in right field and also hitting leadoff for the Twins.

Naylor is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the White Sox.

After catching two straight games, Naylor will yield to Austin Hedges behind the dish Tuesday. In his last eight games, Naylor is 11-for-29 (.379) with a home run and five doubles.

Astros manager Joe Espada said on Tuesday in an interview with SportsTalk 790 that Garcia's (elbow) next rehab start will come Thursday at Double-A Corpus Christi, Chandler Rome of The Athletic reports.

Garcia threw one inning with the Astros' Florida Complex League affiliate this past Friday in his first rehab appearance. It's not clear what his targeted pitch count is for Thursday's outing, but Garcia will need a handful of rehab starts before becoming an option to join the Astros' rotation. He's making his way back from Tommy John surgery.

Montero is a likely candidate to start in place of the injured Casey Mize (hamstring) after the latter was scratched from a scheduled start Monday with Triple-A Toledo, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.

Mize is expected to land on the 15-day injured list with a strained hamstring, and it looks like Montero will be the choice to take his spot. Mize's next turn had been scheduled for Saturday in Cincinnati, although the Tigers could choose to alter the order of their rotation. Montero has made one start and one bulk-relief appearance for Detroit this season, allowing nine runs with an 11:4 K:BB over 8.2 innings.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said in an interview Tuesday that Mize (hamstring) is a likely candidate to be placed on the 15-day injured list, Jim Duquette of MLB Network Radio reports.

Mize had to depart Sunday's start against the Angels with a left hamstring issue. While the initial hope was that he was merely dealing with a cramp, Hinch said Tuesday that it's more serious than that. Mize would be held out at least through the All-Star break if he is indeed placed on the IL. Matt Manning and Keider Montero are candidates to take Mize's spot in the Tigers' rotation.

Springer went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Monday's loss to the Astros.

The veteran outfielder extended his hitting streak to six games while pilfering his ninth bag of the year in nine attempts. Springer is batting .550 (11-for-20) with two doubles, three homers, four runs and 10 RBI during his heater, but he still has a long way to go climb out of his early season hole -- his .641 OPS is well below his .824 career mark.

Clement went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's loss to the Astros.

The 28-year-old utility player wasn't even supposed to be in the starting lineup, but a late scratch for Isiah Kiner-Falefa (knee) inserted Clement at third base, and he wound up taking Josh Hader deep in the ninth inning to spoil a combined shutout bid for Houston. The long ball was his fourth of the season, setting a new career high, and he's slashing .333/.347/.563 in 49 plate appearances since the beginning of June. Should Kiner-Falefa require an IL stint, Clement could see a big uptick in playing time, although Addison Barger would also be in the mix at third base.

Bush was promoted to Triple-A Charlotte on Monday, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Bush will move up a level in the White Sox minor-league system after he produced a 2.12 ERA and 1.03 WHIP with 78 strikeouts over 80.2 innings in 14 starts with Double-A Birmingham this season. With Chicago completely out of the postseason picture and expected to be sellers at the trade deadline, it's possible that Bush could find his way to the major-league roster down the road if he impresses at the Triple-A level.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said that Guerrero (finger) wasn't available to pinch hit Monday versus the Astros after being a late scratch from the lineup, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

Guerrero was initially in Monday's lineup but had to be scratched after he "wasn't comfortable squeezing the bat" pregame, per Schneider. The fourth and fifth fingers on his right hand remain swollen as a result of a hit-by-pitch in Sunday's game against the Yankees. Guerrero will attempt to swing a bat again Tuesday before it's decided whether he can return to the lineup.

Alvarez went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer and a walk in Monday's 3-1 victory over the Blue Jays.

The Houston designated hitter provided two insurance runs by launching a 397-foot homer off Zach Pop in the ninth inning to extend the Astros' lead to 3-0. Alvarez has opened July nicely on the tails of a scorching June in which he hit .349 (30-for-86) with seven homers, 19 RBI and 20 runs scored. The 27-year-old's been the heart and soul of the Houston lineup this season, as expected, slashing .294/.372/.528 in 352 total plate appearances.