MLB Player News

Morales went 3-for-5 with a double, a solo home run and an additional run scored during Washington's 9-5 win over Atlanta on Tuesday.

Morales was promoted from Triple-A Rochester ahead of Tuesday's game, when he served as the designated hitter. He struck out swinging in his first plate appearance in the opening frame, but he bounced back in the third, smacking the second pitch he saw from AJ Smith-Shawver deep to left-center field for a solo home run. It was an impressive big-league debut for Morales, who figures to see a fair amount of playing time the rest of this season at DH and at first and third base.

The Cubs selected Murray's contract from Triple-A Iowa on Tuesday.

Murray has put together a fine season at Iowa, slashing .294/.395/.500 with 16 home runs, nine stolen bases and a 69:110 BB:K over 118 games. He's primarily a corner infielder but can handle left field as well. Murray is starting at designated hitter and batting eighth Tuesday versus the Brewers in his major-league debut.

Ward is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game in Boston.

Ward has been dreadful since being acquired by the Mariners at the trade deadline, slashing .121/.227/.152 across 19 contests. As a result, he might find himself on the short side of a platoon moving forward. Lazaro Montes has been called up and is slotted in at designated hitter for Seattle on Tuesday.

The Nationals selected Morales' contract from Triple-A Rochester on Tuesday.

Morales earned a promotion to the big leagues by collecting a .286/.363/.519 batting line with 25 home runs and a 43:111 BB:K over 104 contests this season with Rochester. The 24-year-old has split his time between first and third base this season, and he should see fairly regular playing time down the stretch between those two positions and designated hitter.

Suarez won't be available Tuesday and Wednesday for the remaining two games of the Reds' series versus the Padres in order to take the U.S. naturalization test, Theo DeRosa of MLB.com reports.

After signing with the Tigers in 2008 as an international free agent out of Venezuela and kicking off a 13-year MLB career in 2014, Suarez is now looking to make the United States his permanent home. He'll complete an interview and take a written English language exam and an oral civics test over the next two days as he looks to obtain citizenship. Following the Reds' off day Thursday, Suarez will likely make his return to the lineup in Friday's series opener versus the Brewers.

Pederson is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Athletics.

The left-handed-hitting Pederson will retreat to the bench while the Athletics send southpaw Gage Jump to the hill for the series opener. Elias Diaz will replace Pederson as the Rangers' designated hitter.

The Red Sox recalled Gasper from Triple-A Worcester on Monday, and he'll start at first base and bat second in the team's series opener versus the Mariners.

Boston optioned Gasper to Triple-A on Sunday, but he'll wind up rejoining the big club just one day later after Willson Contreras (hamstring) was placed on the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move. The Red Sox will plug Gasper in right away at Contreras' spot in the field, though Nick Sogard could also be in the mix for starts at first base while Contreras is on the shelf. Gasper has acquitted himself well at the plate over his various stints in the big leagues this season, slashing a collective .278/.374/.466 with five home runs, 19 RBI and 17 runs across 45 games.

Bell went 2-for-4 with two RBI, a run scored and a stolen base in Sunday's 5-1 win over the White Sox.

Bell delivered RBI singles in each of his first two plate appearances and added his second stolen base of the season after going seven consecutive seasons without recording a single steal. The veteran has been locked in throughout August, batting .311 with 20 RBI across 24 games. Bell has also cut down significantly on his strikeouts during the hot stretch, posting an 11.7 percent strikeout rate compared to his 20.3 percent mark for the season.

Herrera went 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a stolen base in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Pirates.

Herrera was on the front end of a double steal during the seventh inning after his RBI double against Camilo Doval. While speed isn't a huge part of Herrera's game, he's up to eight steals this season, though this one was his first since Aug. 3. The 26-year-old hit .241 in August, which is right in line with his .243 average for the season. Herrera has added a .733 OPS, 14 home runs, 55 RBI, 82 runs scored, 24 doubles and one triple across 137 contests.

Rice is out of the lineup for the Yankees' series finale against Boston.

Despite recording multi-hit performances in three of his last four games, Rice will sit out Sunday's pivotal matchup with the Red Sox. Paul Goldschmidt will lead off and play first base, while Luis Garcia will slot in as the DH and cleanup for New York.