MLB Player News

Cruz went 1-for-4 with a stolen base and a strikeouts in a 3-2 loss to the Cardinals on Thursday.

Cruz reached base on a single in the first and proceeded to steal second but failed to score. Cruz doesn't run often, but he's successful when he does, as he's only been caught stealing once in 12 attempts since the beginning of 2023. The 25-year-old is slashing .240/.294/.425 with 12 homers, 37 RBI, and seven steals this season.

Reynolds went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Cardinals.

Reynolds took Andre Pallante deep on the first pitch of the fourth, providing the only run for the Pirates until the 10th inning. Reynolds has found his power stroke of late, with six of his 14 home runs this season coming over his last 18 games. He's carried a hot bat since the beginning of June, slashing .319/.372/.588 with seven homers and 18 RBI over his last 29 contests.

Pallante came away with a no-decision in Thursday's win over the Pirates. He allowed one run in seven innings, giving up four hits and striking out five.

The right-hander gave up a solo home run to Bryan Reynolds in the fourth, which turned out to be Pallante's only hiccup Thursday. For the third time in his career and the first this season, he went at least seven innings in a start. He's been a dependable option for the Cardinals since being inserted into the rotation in May, pitching to a 3.34 ERA over seven starts. Outside of his starts versus the Astros and Giants, in which he gave up a combined 11 earned runs, Pallante has given up only two earned runs over his other five starts this season.

Leiter (forearm) threw a 30-pitch bullpen session Wednesday, Jared Wyllys of CHGO Sports reports.

Leiter is tracking toward a live batting practice session later this week and a return to the Cubs' bullpen next week. The reliever is eligible for activation July 9, and it sounds like he could be back by then without a rehab assignment.

Wynns cleared waivers Thursday and accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Louisville, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

The 33-year-old backstop was dropped from the 40-man roster Tuesday following the return of Tyler Stephenson but will remain in the Reds' farm system instead of testing his luck in the open market. Wynns has slashed .250/.309/.410 in 110 plate appearances with the Bats, and he would be the first choice to return to Cincinnati should Stephenson or Luke Maile need to miss an extended period of time.

The Dodgers optioned Petersen to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Petersen allowed four runs over two relief innings Wednesday versus the Diamondbacks, so he's being sent out in favor of a fresh arm. Nick Ramirez will absorb the roster spot.

The Dodgers recalled Ramirez from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday.

Ramirez hasn't pitched in the majors since May 16, though he has posted a 3.09 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over 11.2 innings in Triple-A since then. He'll now return to Los Angeles to give the Dodgers another fresh bullpen arm, replacing Michael Petersen.

Quintana came away with a no-decision in Thursday's loss to the Nationals. He did not allow a run over seven innings, giving up four hits and three walks.

For the first time this season, Quintana went through a game without allowing a run, but he got no run support on his way to the no-decision. He joins Tylor Megill as the only two Mets pitchers to throw seven shutout innings this season. Quintana has picked up a quality start in three of his last four appearances and has lowered his ERA to 4.22 in the process.

Law threw a scoreless ninth inning to get his first save of the season in Thursday's 1-0 win over the Mets.

The Nationals' regular closer, Kyle Finnegan, had thrown in each of their last three games, which explains Law getting the save opportunity Thursday. The 33-year-old has been serviceable this season with a 3.18 ERA in 51 innings but doesn't offer much fantasy upside while primarily working as a middle reliever.

The Nationals optioned Meneses to Triple-A Rochester on Thursday.

Through 313 plate appearances, Meneses has slashed just .231/.291/.306 -- his worst season at the plate in his three-year MLB career -- and he'll now attempt to right the ship in the minors. Meanwhile, the Nationals will likely turn to Harold Ramirez or Ildemaro Vargas to start at first base until Joey Gallo (hamstring) is able to return from the injured list.