MLB Player News

The Astros designated Johnson for assignment Monday.

Johnson went 2-for-14 at the plate during his brief time in the majors. His spot on the 26-man active roster will be taken over by Zach Cole, who was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land.

The Astros recalled Cole (toe) from Triple-A Sugar Land on Monday.

Cole came up short in his bid for a spot on the Opening Day roster and then fractured a toe early on in the season with Sugar Land. Though he had been on Sugar Land's 7-day injured list, Cole is healthy again after going 5-for-20 with three extra-base hits and five walks during a six-game rehab assignment with Single-A Fayetteville. The Astros have been mixing and matching in center field and left field since Jake Meyers (oblique) and Joey Loperfido (quadriceps) landed on the shelf, and Cole should push for reps at one or both of those positions. He'll draw the start in left and will bat eighth in Monday's series opener versus the Dodgers.

Ward is absent from the lineup for Monday's game versus the Yankees.

It's the first day off this season for Ward, who is in a mini slump with just two hits over his last seven games (though he does have a 9:5 BB:K over that stretch). Colton Cowser will start in left field and bat seventh while Ward grabs a breather.

Springer (foot) remains out of the lineup for Monday's game in Tampa Bay.

Springer had to depart Saturday's contest versus the Twins after being hit in the left foot by a pitch, and he will now miss a second straight start. He is considered day-to-day but is available to pinch-hit Monday, per Brian Murphy of MLB.com. Daulton Varsho is filling in at designated hitter Monday, and Yohendrick Pinango will get another look in the leadoff spot.

Mullins is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

With a lowly .415 OPS on the season, Mullins ranks last among baseball's 179 qualified hitters. While Mullins continues to struggle at the plate, the Rays will likely shield him from lefties such as Eric Lauer, who will start Monday's game for the Blue Jays. And unless Mullins shows some signs of life in his future starts, it may not be long until the Rays pull the plug on him as a regular part of the lineup against right-handed pitching.

Fraley is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

With a lefty (Eric Lauer) on the bump for the Blue Jays, the Rays will go with Ryan Vilade over the left-handed-hitting Fraley in right field. Fraley had started in each of the Rays' last five games, going 3-for-14 with a double, a walk and an RBI over that stretch.

Carpenter is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Red Sox, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

The left-handed-hitting Carpenter will hit the bench for the series opener while southpaw Payton Tolle takes the hill for Boston. Detroit will go with Riley Greene, Matt Vierling and Wenceel Perez as its starting outfield from left to right.

Sanchez went 3-for-5 in Sunday's win over the Twins.

All three hits were singles and none of them led directly to any run production, but it was still Sanchez's first multi-hit performance since April 14. The 28-year-old outfielder has delivered his usual numbers through his first 33 games as a Blue Jay, slashing .250/.289/.404 with four homers, a steal, 11 runs and 15 RBI, but there are signs he could find another level over the summer -- his 93.2 mph average exit velocity and 11.3 degree launch angle are both career bests, as is his 17.5 percent strikeout rate.

Judge went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, an additional run scored and a walk in an 11-3 victory against Baltimore on Sunday.

Judge broke a 1-1 tie in the third inning with a two-run blast to center field. The reigning AL MVP is establishing himself as an early candidate for the award again in 2026, as he's tied for the league lead with 13 homers while adding 23 RBI, 30 runs, five stolen bases and a .264/.403/.628 slash line. Judge has been particularly hot over his past seven games, batting .400 (10-for-25) with four home runs and six RBI.

Collins went 2-for-2 with a double, two RBI and a walk and was caught stealing in Sunday's victory over the Mariners.

Collins was a productive offensive contributor in the win, tallying a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning before adding an RBI double in the sixth inning. The left fielder owns a .680 OPS across 29 games, which isn't anything special, though he has been trending upward of late. Over his past seven games, the 28-year-old is slashing .292/.379/.500 with three extra-base hits, five RBI, a run and a stolen base with a 4:4 K:BB.