Richie Martin Scratched With Hand Injury

Baltimore Orioles shortstop Richie Martin (hand) was scratched from the lineup on Thursday with a left hand injury. Jonathan Villar is moving to shortstop, while Jace Peterson mans the keystone and hits ninth against Rays starter Ryan Yarbrough. Consider Martin day-to-day for now. Peterson is a desperation DFS lottery ticket on Thursday, as he's hitting […]

Christin Stewart Activated, Sent To Minors

Detroit Tigers outfielder Christin Stewart (concussion) was activated from the seven-day injured list on Thursday and optioned to Triple-A Toledo. He's expected to be back in Detroit when rosters expand on Sept. 1. In the meantime, Victor Reyes, Travis Demeritte and Harold Castro will continue to see everyday at-bats for the rebuilding club. Stewart has […]

Jeff McNeil Starting Rehab Assignment Thursday

New York Mets infielder/outfielder Jeff McNeil (hamstring) is starting his rehab assignment with Triple-A Syracuse on Thursday and will play in a corner outfield spot for around five to seven innings. The Mets want to see if he can "run around a little bit and still be able to control the effort" before activating him […]

Brian Dozier Back From Paternity Leave

The Washington Nationals activated second baseman Brian Dozier from the paternity list on Thursday. He's back at the keystone and is hitting seventh against Pirates starter Steven Brault. The 32-year-old has been a disappointment in his first year in D.C. with a .236 average, but he does have 19 home runs and 45 RBI at […]

Max Scherzer Activated, Starting Thursday

The Washington Nationals activated starting pitcher Max Scherzer (back) from the injured list on Thursday, and he's making the start against the Pirates. Scherzer last made a start on July 25 against the Rockies and has been on the injured list twice with back issues in the second half. The 35-year-old ace could be on […]

Mark Trumbo Nearing A Return

Baltimore Orioles outfielder Mark Trumbo (knee) expects to play in five rehab games with Triple-A Norfolk around Aug. 27 and then come off the injured list to make his season debut. The 33-year-old has been out all season after having offseason knee surgery. Trumbo hit 47 homers in a season as recently as 2016, but […]

Marcus Stroman Says He'll Make His Next Start

New York Mets starting pitcher Marcus Stroman (hamstring), who left his start early with hamstring tightness on Wednesday, said "I'm going to make that start against the Cubs on Tuesday." Stroman hasn't been quite as effective in his four starts since being dealt to the Mets (4.58 ERA) as he was with the Blue Jays […]

Kyle Freeland Placed On Injured List

The Colorado Rockies placed starting pitcher Kyle Freeland (groin) on the 10-day injured list on Thursday with a left groin strain and recalled pitcher Wes Parsons from Triple-A Albuquerque in a corresponding move. This season couldn't have gone worse for Freeland after he was a breakout in 2018. The 26-year-old left-hander is 3-11 in 2019 […]

Kevin Hogan, Brett Rypien Battling For No. 2 Job

Denver Broncos head coach Vic Fangio said that quarterbacks Kevin Hogan and Brett Rypien "will get the bulk of the play, it not all of it" against the Rams in the preseason game on Saturday and against the Cardinals next Thursday in the preseason finale. Rookie Drew Lock (thumb) is likely to miss Week 1 […]

Panthers Mindful Of Christian McCaffrey's Workload

Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera and offensive coordinator Norv Turner are mindful of running back Christian McCaffrey's workload and want to minimize the punishment he takes this year. "We want him to have his 300 touches," Rivera said recently, referencing the fact that McCaffrey had 219 carries and 107 receptions last season. "We just […]

Pirates Release Francisco Cervelli

The Pittsburgh Pirates released catcher Francisco Cervelli (concussion) on Wednesday. The 33-year-old was on a minor league rehab assignment but had been out since late May and was hitting just .193/.279/.248 with a homer and five RBI in 109 at-bats this season. Cervelli had a career-high 12 homers -- his first time ever with double-digit […]

Cowboys Make New Offer To Ezekiel Elliott

The Dallas Cowboys most recent offer in negotiations with running back Ezekiel Elliott would make him one of the league's two highest-paid running backs, which suggests that the team is offering more than Le'Veon Bell and less than Todd Gurley money. With only two weeks left in the preseason, Elliott continues to hold out, but […]

Matt Carpenter Riding Pine Thursday

St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Matt Carpenter is not in the starting lineup on Thursday. Tommy Edman is at the hot corner and is batting seventh against Rockies starter German Marquez. Carp has been putrid all year (.212/.321/.363 with 11 homers and 33 RBI) and hasn't shown any signs of pulling out of his season-long […]

Patrick Chung Indicted On Cocaine Possession

New England Patriots strong safety Patrick Chung was indicted on a cocaine-possession charge earlier this month, according to assistant attorney Keith Cormier. Chung knowingly possessed cocaine on July 25 in New Hampshire where he owns a home. He's scheduled to appear in court next Wednesday and will be facing a suspension at some point in […]

Keke Coutee Still Sidelined

Houston Texans wide receiver Keke Coutee (ankle) is still out with his sprained ankle. It's now fair to wonder if Coutee will even be ready for Week 1 or how effective he might be early in the year if he does suit up. The second-year wideout is quickly developing a reputation for being injury-prone and […]

Ryan Pressly Out 4-6 Weeks

Houston Astros relief pitcher Ryan Pressly (knee) will undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right knee on Friday, according to general manager Jeff Luhnow. Pressly is expected to return in four to six weeks. The 30-year-old has only three saves this year, but he's been relevant in deeper leagues for his ratios, as he's been excellent […]

Jose Suarez To Start On Friday

Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher Jose Suarez will be called up in order to start against the Astros on Friday, taking the rotation spot of Griffin Canning (elbow). Suarez, a 21-year-old left-hander, has an ugly 6.75 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and 53 strikeouts and 22 walks in 53 1/3 innings over 11 starts and one relief […]

Astros Calling Up Another Top Prospect

The Houston Astros are calling up infield prospect Abraham Toro-Hernandez from Triple-A Round Rock on Thursday, according to sources. Toro, 22, has done nothing but hit at Double-A Corpus Christi and Round Rock in 2019, slashing a combined .324/.411/.527 with 17 home runs, 80 RBI and four steals in 114 games. He was hitting .424 […]

J.D. Davis Breaking Out In 2019

New York Mets outfielder J.D. Davis, who won the Pacific Coast League batting title by hitting .342 last year, is a student of the game and studies the way opposing pitchers attack him. Davis had a .194 average in 66 games over two years with the Astros before being traded earlier this year. He started […]

JuJu Smith-Schuster Wants To Be More Of A Deep Threat

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, who ranked among the NFL leaders in receptions and yards in 2018, is now the team's top target with Antonio Brown gone, and he wants to evolve to become more of a dangerous deep threat. “Being able to catch the deep balls down the field, those go balls, those […]

Amari Cooper Not Worried About Injury

Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Amari Cooper (foot) said he's confident he'd be effective if he had to play in the regular season. “Real effective,” Cooper said from his locker at the Star on Tuesday. “I’m not really worried.” He's dealing with plantar fasciitis, something that he's had experience with before. Cooper has been seeking treatment […]

Anthony Miller Taking A Step Back

Chicago Bears wide receiver Anthony Miller (ankle) hasn't practiced since Aug. 10 due to a sprained ankle and also missed most of the team's work at organized team activities and minicamp while recovering from offseason shoulder surgery. The 24-year-old has plenty of potential but could start off slow in 2019 because of his lack of […]

Cardinals Sign Michael Crabtree

The Arizona Cardinals officially signed free-agent wide receiver Michael Crabtree to a one-year deal on Wednesday. The 31-year-old will have to prove himself to make the roster in the next two weeks, but he does offer some intrigue in head coach Kliff Kingsbury's offense if he sticks around, although he'll have to compete with rookies […]

Nick Chubb Could See More Work In Passing Game

Cleveland Browns running backs coach Stump Mitchell talked up running back Nick Chubb on Wednesday. "I think he’s going to be special like he was last year," said Mitchell. "He’ll be used a little more in the passing game than he was last year. Nick just continues to improve on the skillset that he has, […]

Cardinals Close To Signing Michael Crabtree

The Arizona Cardinals are closing in on signing free-agent wide receiver Michael Crabtree, according to sources. The Cards released former first-rounder Kevin White on Wednesday, and it looks like Crabtree is who they'll replace him with. It remains to be seen how Crabtree might fit in head coach Kliff Kingsbury's offense behind Larry Fitzgerald and […]

Brandon Lowe Suffers Setback On Rehab Assignment

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Brandon Lowe (quadriceps) left the game at Triple-A Durham on Wednesday with a left quadriceps strain. It's unrelated to the bruised right leg he was recovering from initially. He's heading back to Tampa for tests, which means he'll miss even more time, although how much longer is unknown as of now. […]

Ryan Shazier Is High On Devin Bush

Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier has been impressed with rookie linebacker Devin Bush, who the Steelers traded up to get with the 10th overall pick. "I think he's going to make a lot of splash for us. He's going to be a big-time player for us," Shazier said. Shazier continues to make progress in his […]

Felix Hernandez To Start Saturday

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Felix Hernandez (shoulder) will return from the injured list to start on Saturday against the Blue Jays. King Felix, hardly baseball royalty these days, will be making his first start since May 11. The veteran right-hander and future Hall of Famer doesn't have much left in the tank, though, and you'll […]

Stephen Piscotty Back In Lineup Wednesday

Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin said that outfielder Stephen Piscotty (ankle) was pulled on Tuesday due to soreness in his ankle, but the outfielder is back in the starting lineup on Wednesday and is hitting sixth against Yankees left-hander J.A. Happ. Piscotty has been a pretty big disappointment in 2019, hitting .246/.308/.403 with 12 home […]

Deivi Garcia Moving To Bullpen

The New York Yankees are moving their top prospect, starting pitcher Deivi Garcia, to the bullpen for the rest of the year. The 20-year-old is currently pitching with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The move is a way to limit the young hurler's innings, and it'll be a way for the Yankees to see if they'd like to […]