MLB Player News

Susana (lat) is expected to report to High-A Wilmington on Tuesday to begin a rehab assignment, Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reports.

Susana has resided on Double-A Harrisburg's injured list all season while recovering from right lat surgery and will eventually slot into the rotation for that affiliate once he concludes his rehab assignment at Wilmington. The 22-year-old righty displaced elite velocity before undergoing surgery last September and has seemingly bounced back well from the procedure, with Nusbaum noting that Susana has been regularly hitting triple digits with his fastball during his recent throwing sessions.

The Nationals intend to call up Kent from Triple-A Rochester to make his MLB debut this week, Spencer Nusbaum of The Athletic reports.

One of the top upper-level pitching prospects in the organization, Kent will be summoned from Triple-A to fill the vacancy in the big-league rotation that was created when the Nationals designated Zack Littell for assignment last week. The 23-year-old lefty is in line for his second promotion of 2026, as he opened the campaign at Double-A Harrisburg before moving up to Triple-A on May 21. Over 13 starts with Rochester, Kent turned in a 4.38 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 67:22 K:BB across 63.2 innings. He made his most recent appearance at Triple-A last Wednesday, so he'll presumably slot into the rotation at some point during the Nationals' three-game home series versus the Cubs that begins Tuesday.

Assad tossed a perfect inning of relief Sunday in the Cubs' 10-2 win over the Royals.

Assad had started in both of his previous two appearances, but he looks poised to stick in a relief role after the Cubs acquired Kevin Gausman and Clay Holmes prior to Aug. 3 trade deadline and broke them into the rotation last week. Pitching out of the bullpen for the first time since July 25, Assad made quick work of the Royals, needing just five pitches to retire the side and close out the blowout win. Expect most of Assad's opportunities moving forward to come in lower-leverage situations.

Ortiz went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in Sunday's win over the Reds.

The rookie first baseman took Brady Singer deep in the third inning, providing the first of many insurance runs in a 7-1 victory. Ortiz has held his own since his promotion following the trade deadline, going 5-for-20 (.250) with his first two big-league homers and four RBI, and he should form the strong side of a platoon with Andres Chaparro for the remainder of the year.

Dion (1-0) picked up the win Sunday over the Reds, allowing one hit and striking out one in three scoreless relief innings.

Brad Lord got the start in a bullpen day for the Nationals and worked the first 2.2 innings before handing a 2-1 lead off to Dion, who shut Cincinnati down over 41 pitches (30 strikes) to earn his first big-league win. Acquired from the Guardians in the Foster Griffin deal, Dion has had a promising adjustment to a full-time relief role in 2026, posting a 52:7 K:BB over 37.1 Triple-A innings and delivering a 3.86 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 26:4 K:BB in his first 14 appearances and 23.1 innings at the top level.

Ruiz went 3-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and an RBI in Sunday's win over the Reds.

The 28-year-old catcher extended his hitting streak to six games as he continues a bounce-back campaign. Ruiz hasn't homered since before the All-Star break, but during his 17-game power drought he's still compiled a .278/.350/.352 slash line with four doubles, four RBI and eight runs.

Alvarez went 1-for-3 with a walk, a solo home run and a second run scored in Sunday's win over the Pirates.

The backstop took Kirby Yates deep in the fifth inning, giving the Mets a 10-1 lead. Alvarez has gone 16 straight games without collecting multiple hits, but he's drawn 14 walks during that stretch to fuel a .224/.406/.408 slash line with three doubles, two homers, five RBI and eight runs.

Young went 3-for-5 with a triple, a run scored and an RBI in Sunday's rout of the Pirates.

The 31-year-old hasn't homered in 16 straight games, but Young is still finding ways to contribute. During that power drought, he's managed a .283/.365/.435 slash line with three doubles, two triples, three steals, four RBI and seven runs while being the Mets' primary first baseman against right-handed pitching.

Robert went 2-for-5 with a home run and four RBI in Sunday's win over the Pirates.

The veteran outfielder socked a two-run homer off Jared Jones in the third inning, sandwiched between a first-inning sacrifice fly and a seventh-inning RBI single. Robert snapped an 11-game power drought with the performance, but he's had a quick start to August, going 7-for-23 (.304) in six contests. Over the course of an injury-plagued season, he's managed a .213/.291/.340 slash line with five homers, two steals, 16 RBI and 17 runs in 158 plate appearances.

The Reds optioned Johnson to Triple-A Louisville on Monday.

Johnson received only eight plate appearances over nearly two weeks during his most recent stint in the majors. The Reds will announce a corresponding roster move ahead of Tuesday's game against the White Sox.