MLB Player News

Langford went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBI in Saturday's 6-0 win over the Royals.

Langford provided insurance when he launched a grand slam in the eighth inning, giving the team a six-run lead heading into the final frame. Until this week, the rookie had been held to one inside-the-park home run, which was uncharacteristic for the prospect that carried 70-grade power. That all changed this week; Saturday's granny was the second outside-the-park home run this week for Langford, who is 7-for-15 with four extra-base hits and nine RBI over the last four contests. Since returning from a three-week stint on the injured list in May, Langford is slashing .299/.341/.481 with eight extra-base hits, 19 RBI and six steals over 21 games.

Smith started at third base and went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in Saturday's 6-0 win over Kansas City.

Smith made a second consecutive start in the field after serving as a designated hitter for a pair of games. He had been dealing with a hamstring injury that forced him to miss four games before returning as the DH. Now that he's back in the field, the question becomes how long he will be there. Third baseman Josh Jung (wrist) rejoined the team Friday and will take live batting practice Tuesday. If all goes well, Jung could be activated off the 60-day injured list afterward. The Rangers would like to keep Smith's bat in the lineup; he's batting .304/.393/.469 over a career-high 259 plate appearances. The lefty hitter could serve as the primary DH; he owns an .857 OPS against lefties and an .863 OPS against righties this season.

Texas manager Bruce Bochy said Saturday that Jung (wrist) will be shut down for the weekend before he resumes taking live batting practice Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Bochy noted that Jung has experienced residual soreness in his surgically repaired right wrist since he rejoined the club Friday, but the Rangers don't seem to view it as a setback and simply opted to have him rest up over the weekend. Jung could be activated from the 60-day injured list later this week if his wrist responds well to Tuesday's live BP session.

Bliss went 3-for-4 with two doubles, a run and two RBI in a 9-0 victory versus Miami on Saturday.

Bliss plated a run with a fourth-inning single and wrapped up the scoring in the contest with an RBI double in the eighth. It was the second consecutive three-hit game for the infielder after he went 3-for-3 with an RBI on Friday. Prior to the pair of three-hit contests, Bliss had needed 19 at-bats over nine games to collect his previous three base knocks. While he offers some intriguing upside on the basepaths -- Bliss swiped 28 bags in 50 games at Triple-A prior to his late-May call-up and has four thefts in five attempts over 20 contests in the majors -- it's not clear what role he might have with the Mariners when Jorge Polanco (hamstring) returns from the IL.

Canzone went 4-for-5 with a home run, three total runs and two total RBI in Saturday's 9-0 win against the Marlins.

Canzone knocked in a run with a fourth-inning single and added a 415-foot solo homer in the fifth. He finished with a season-high four hits -- in fact, he hadn't even had a three-hit game prior to Saturday. Canzone has shown some intriguing power with seven homers over 119 plate appearances after going deep six times across 182 plate appearance as a rookie last year.

Tucker (shin) ran on a treadmill Friday but still has not resumed on-field work, MLB.com reports.

Manager Joe Espada was optimistic that Tucker would ramp up his activity over the weekend, though that has yet to occur. Tucker will likely miss the entirety of Houston's series against the Rockies to start next week.

Gilbert (5-4) earned the win over Miami on Saturday, allowing four hits and one walk while striking out six batters over eight scoreless innings.

Gilbert's superb stat line was just a tad less impressive than in his previous outing, when he allowed two hits and struck out nine over eight scoreless frames against Texas. The right-hander has been on a roll throughout June -- he's tossed four quality starts in four outings this month while posting a 1.21 ERA over 29.2 innings. Perhaps most impressive is Gilbert's 28:1 K:BB over that span.

Kopech allowed one hit and walked one while striking out two across a scoreless ninth inning Saturday against the Tigers.

Kopech entered the game with a four-run lead and allowed consecutive batters to reach base with two outs. He managed to escape to turn in his second consecutive scoreless appearance, though he's still allowed eight earned runs across his last 8.1 frames. Those struggles have called Kopech's role as closer into question, though he did enter Saturday's game after John Brebbia.

Jansen earned a a save against the Reds on Saturday, allowing one hit in a scoreless inning.

Jansen worked around a two-out single to close out his 10th straight successful save. The veteran closer has posted a 22:3 K:BB over 18.2 innings during that span while posting a 2.41 ERA. Jansen continues to get the job done in his 15th MLB season -- he's converted 14 of 15 save opportunities while registering a 2.49 ERA and 1.07 WHIP over 25.1 frames.

Pivetta took a no-decision Saturday against Cincinnati, allowing three runs on six hits and one walk while striking out five batters over 4.1 innings.

All three of the runs allowed by Pivetta came via the long ball -- Spencer Steer tagged him for a two-run homer in the first inning, and Elly De La Cruz launched a solo shot in the third. Pivetta didn't damage his ERA too dramatically, but he exited after 4.1 innings after racking up 96 pitches. It was the third time over his past six starts that he's failed to complete five frames, though the right-hander also has a pair of seven-inning quality starts during that span.