MLB Player News

Bellinger is not in the starting lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

Bellinger was scorching hot to begin September, slashing .373/.387/.627 over his first 14 games of the month, but he has cooled off with just three hits in his last five games (20 at-bats). There has been nothing to suggest an injury is in play, so this looks like a breather ahead of the postseason. Jose Caballero will get the start in left field against right-hander Mason Englert.

Acuna (leg) is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Reds.

Acuna was removed from Tuesday's contest after fouling a ball off his left leg. X-rays were negative and Acuna informed the club that he was fine to play Wednesday, per Mark Bowman of MLB.com. However, with the National League East already wrapped up, Atlanta will rest its star outfielder for a day just to be safe. Brewer Hicklen will cover right field Wednesday in Acuna's stead.

The Red Sox reinstated Rafaela (quadriceps) from the injured list Wednesday, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports. The 26-year-old will start in center field and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Guardians.

A right quad strain sent Rafaela to the 10-day injured list earlier this month, but he will return to face lefty Foster Griffin in the second game of the series versus Cleveland. Rafaela bypassed a rehab assignment but has been taking simulated at-bats against the team's Trajekt machine. The 26-year-old sits with a career-best .282/.317/.443 slash line through 135 contests, and he's already matched last year's mark with 3.9 fWAR this season despite having played in 21 fewer games.

Cruz is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's contest against the Cardinals.

The lefty-swinging Cruz will retreat to the bench as the Cardinals send left-hander Matthew Liberatore to the bump. Jake Mangum will patrol center field and will bat ninth for the Pirates.

O'Neill was given a PRP injection in his injured right shoulder recently, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.

O'Neill had already been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a strained right rotator cuff, but the goal of the injection is to speed along the healing process. He's fully expected to be ready to go in time for spring training. O'Neill slashed just .212/.300/.377 over 85 games for the Orioles this season, and he is set to make $16.5 million in 2027 in the final year of his three-year, $49.5 million contract.

Jenkins is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game in San Francisco.

The left-handed-hitting Jenkins is just 1-for-16 with a 1:7 BB:K against lefties thus far, and he will take a seat Wednesday as the Giants send southpaw Cesar Perdomo to the hill. Emmanuel Rodriguez will patrol center field for the Twins.

The Orioles recalled Kjerstad from Triple-A Norfolk on Wednesday.

He was just sent down this past weekend but is back to take the roster spot of the injured Samuel Basallo (concussion). Kjerstad is 4-for-19 with a 0:9 BB:K in 11 games for the Orioles this season and has slashed .289/.337/.462 with 11 home runs across 79 contests with Norfolk in 2026.

Cox went 0-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and a stolen base in Tuesday's 3-2 loss to the Twins.

Cox drew a walk in the first inning before recording his team-leading 15th stolen base of the season, and he also logged an RBI on a fielder's choice in the ninth. The 25-year-old has racked up seven stolen bases in September while batting .260 with 13 runs scored and seven RBI in 83 plate appearances. Overall, he's slashing .272/.317/.412 with 25 runs scored, 16 RBI and four long balls across 152 plate appearances this season.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Wednesday that an MRI on Bateman's right hip came back negative, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.

Bateman is dealing with some inflammation in his hip, but he has a chance to play later this week if he bounces back well in the coming days. While Bateman recuperates, Myles Straw is covering center field for the Blue Jays in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader in Baltimore.

Lile is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's contest in Detroit.

The left-handed-hitting Lile will get a break as the Tigers send southpaw Framber Valdez to the bump. Dylan Crews, Jacob Young and James Wood will be in the outfield, and Andres Chaparro will be the designated hitter for the Nationals.