Rangers Release Josh Sborz
The Rangers have granted reliever Josh Sborz his release from a minor league contract, reports Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. The righty’s deal contained an unspecified June opt-out date. It’s not clear if Sborz formally opted out or if Texas preemptively released him after determining he wouldn’t make the MLB club.
Sborz pitched parts of four MLB seasons with Texas between 2021-24. While he had a mostly nondescript 4.86 earned run average across 150 regular season innings, he carved out a place in team history in October ’23. Sborz worked 12 frames of one-run ball over 10 appearances during the Rangers title run. He was one of Bruce Bochy’s top setup arms and fired 2 1/3 scoreless innings to earn the save in the World Series clinching Game 5 at Chase Field.
Shoulder problems have mostly hampered him since that triumphant moment. Sborz was limited to 16 2/3 innings in 2024. He missed all of last season working back from a debridement procedure, as he encountered a setback during a brief minor league rehab attempt. Texas opted not to tender him an arbitration contract but was able to retain him via minor league deal.
The 32-year-old has been healthy this year but hasn’t pitched well enough to earn a roster spot. Sborz allowed 13 runs across 14 1/3 innings at Triple-A Round Rock. He fanned 17 of 65 opponents (26.1%) but issued nine walks and gave up six home runs. He spent a month working on his mechanics outside of game action before being reassigned to Double-A a couple weeks ago. Texas bumped him back to Round Rock on May 27. He allowed hits to five of 10 batters faced in two innings before the release.
It’d be surprising if Sborz secures a major league deal given his recent form. He’ll presumably look for a new landing spot on a minor league contract in an effort to get on track. Sborz’s 93.4 mph average fastball speed in Triple-A this year is down a couple ticks from his peak.
Pirates Reinstate Carmen Mlodzinski From Restricted List
June 1: Pittsburgh reinstated Mlodzinski from the restricted list during Monday’s off day, reports Jason Mackey of MLB.com. The right-hander tells Mackey he did not consider a trade request and will be available to pitch out of the bullpen for tomorrow’s series opener in Houston.
“I want to do what’s best to help us win baseball games,” Mlodzinski told MLB.com. “Being around these guys, this team, it’s a pretty cool group to be a part of. Of course I want to start and will always want that, but winning games takes precedence.”
May 31: In an unexpected move, the Pirates placed right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski on the team’s restricted list today. Righty Cam Sanders was called up from Triple-A Indianapolis to take Mlodzinski’s spot on the active roster, and Pittsburgh now has an open spot on its 40-man roster.
As a reminder, players aren’t paid for any time spent on the restricted list, nor do they receive any MLB service time. Clubs usually use the restricted list for players who are suspended, or are dealing with a personal issue that keeps them away from the team for an undetermined period of time. Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that Mlodzinski is expected to be available on Tuesday, so it will be just a short absence for the righty.
The reasons for the placement were revealed today by Pirates GM Ben Cherington, who told Beazley and other reporters that Mlodzinski “wasn’t ready to” pitch on Sunday. “Going into the weekend, we understood and communicated with Carmen that at some point this weekend we were going to need him to be ready or we’d have to replace him on the team in fairness to the team, so that’s what happened today.”
The issue seems to stem from the Pirates’ decision to remove Mlodzinski from the rotation when Jared Jones made his return from the 60-day injured list on Friday. Jones joins Paul Skenes, Braxton Ashcraft, Mitch Keller, and Bubba Chandler in the starting five, leaving Mlodzinski as the odd man out. As Beazley noted, Mlodzinski was open about his disappointment while speaking with the media on Thursday, and Mlodzinski has been vocal in the past about preferring to work as a starting pitcher.
Mlodzinski said Thursday that he is “still communicating with the organization and the people in my corner, whether that’s my family or my agency, about what is next,” but Cherington said today that the right-hander hadn’t requested a trade. The Pirates control Mlodzinski through the 2029 season, as the right-hander won’t reach arbitration eligibility until the coming offseason.
Over 55 innings this season, Mlodzinski has posted a 3.76 ERA in 11 games — nine proper starts and two bulk-pitcher outings working behind an opener. Mlodzinski’s 8.4% walk rate is around league average but he isn’t missing many bats and he is allowing a ton of hard contact. The right-hander’s 50.9% hard-hit ball rate sits only in the second percentile of all pitchers. Still, Mlodzinski’s SIERA is only 4.21, as he has done a good job of limiting the damage of all that hard contact by allowing only three home runs.
A case can be made that Mlodzinski could’ve or should’ve retained a rotation spot over Bubba Chandler, as Chandler has struggled badly with his control while posting a 4.85 ERA across 52 innings. Since Mlodzinski has more experience as a swingman or long reliever, however, the Pirates opted to use that flexibility by moving him into a relief role, with the knowledge that Mlodzinski would likely have an easier time than Chandler in shifting back to a starting gig down the road.
It is understandable why Mlodzinski isn’t happy with the move, but his impending return on Tuesday probably means there aren’t too many hard feelings. Without much leverage in trade demands, Mlodzinski may simply have to move forward as a reliever for the time being, though obviously any number of circumstances (injuries, more struggles from Chandler, etc.) could open up a rotation spot in the future. Having a de facto sixth starter on the roster is also a good way for the Pirates to help keep the entire rotation fresh for what the team hopes will be a push towards a playoff spot.
Rockies Select TJ Shook
The Rockies announced they’ve selected right-hander TJ Shook onto the big league roster. He’ll replace Zach Agnos in the bullpen, as the latter has been optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque. Colorado transferred lefty reliever Welinton Herrera from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list to create a 40-man roster vacancy.
Herrera just landed on the injured list over the weekend with elbow inflammation. Skipper Warren Schaeffer tells Jack Janes of MLB.com that the 22-year-old southpaw has been diagnosed with a torn UCL. That’ll end his season and likely require surgery, though the manager indicated there’s no current timeline on an operation.
Shook’s first big league call comes a few days after his 28th birthday. The 6’4″ righty pitched three seasons at the University of South Carolina. He signed with the Brewers in 2020 after going unselected in that year’s shortened five-round draft. Shook worked as a starter up to the Double-A level. He was traded to the Mets in 2024 for reliever Tyler Jay and moved to the bullpen in the New York system.
The Rockies added Shook last winter in the minor league phase of the Rule 5 draft. He didn’t allow an earned run over 4 1/3 innings this spring and has pitched well with Albuquerque. Shook carries a 2.86 ERA while striking out more than a quarter of opponents across 28 1/3 Triple-A innings. He’s attacking the strike zone and getting a lot of weak contact despite the difficult pitching environment.
Shook has never gotten much prospect attention, as one would probably expect from his transactional history. He’s averaging 92.7 mph with his sinker, below-average velocity for an MLB reliever. Shook has a six-pitch mix but has mostly used the sinker, a cutter, and a changeup. He’s coming off five straight scoreless appearances in Triple-A. Agnos has been bombed for seven runs in each of his past two outings, making it unsurprising the Rockies are sending him out for the time being.
Herrera signed with the Rox as an amateur out of the Dominican Republic in 2021. Baseball America ranked him the #10 prospect in the system coming into 2026, praising his plus fastball-slider combination. He’s a pure reliever who was just called up for his MLB debut on Memorial Day. He worked three scoreless appearances to begin his big league career.
Although he’ll be paid the MLB minimum salary (a prorated $780K) for the rest of the season, it’s obviously a brutal development for Herrera as he tried to carve out a spot in the big league bullpen. The Rockies will need to put him back on the 40-man roster at the beginning of the offseason, assuming they don’t want to expose him to waivers. They could drop him at the non-tender deadline and try to bring him back on a minor league deal. Colorado is still rebuilding and may just elect to keep him on the 40-man all winter, then place him on the 60-day injured list at the beginning of Spring Training.
Carlos Carrasco Elects Free Agency
6:28pm: Carrasco has elected free agency, according to Jesús Cano of The Athletic. It’s likely he’ll re-sign on an MLB or minor league deal within the coming days.
10:53am: The Braves announced this morning that righty Carlos Carrasco went unclaimed on waivers and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Gwinnett. Carrasco has the right to reject the assignment in favor of free agency.
One way or another, Carrasco will likely be back with Atlanta. He’s been designated for assignment by the Braves three other times dating back to last August and has returned on new minor league deals each time. Carrasco also re-signed a minor league deal with the Braves in free agency this past winter. It’s always possible he’ll just accept the outright assignment, but elected free agency and quickly negotiating a new minor league pact gives his camp the opportunity to secure some perks (new opt-out dates, upward mobility clause, slight salary increase, etc.) that aren’t in the current deal.
The 39-year-old Carrasco has pitched well when the Braves have summoned him to the majors this season. He’s tossed 7 1/3 innings and held opponents to a pair of runs on six hits and no walks with four strikeouts. He’s been sharp in Gwinnett, too, logging a flat 3.00 ERA (21 K%, 5.6 BB%) in 30 innings of work there.
Both Carrasco and the Braves front office have been very comfortable with the setup that sees him act as an unofficial 41st man on the roster. He can’t be optioned, so Carrasco is frequently selected to the roster, used as needed, passed through waivers and then returns on a new minor league deal. He’s already picked up 24 days of big league service and salary in 2026 this way, and there’s a good chance he’ll have several similar stint through season’s end.
Rangers Place Chris Martin On IL With Shoulder Impingement
The Rangers announced a series of roster moves prior to tonight’s game. They selected the contract of left-hander Robby Ahlstrom, recalled infielder/outfielder Cody Freeman and recalled right-hander Luis Curvelo. In corresponding active roster moves, they optioned right-hander Gavin Collyer, placed infielder/outfielder Sam Haggerty on the bereavement/family medical emergency list and placed righty Chris Martin on the 15-day IL due to a shoulder impingement. Martin’s move is retroactive to May 31st. To open a 40-man spot for Ahlstrom, left-hander Robert Garcia has been transferred to the 60-day IL. MLBTR covered the Ahlstrom move earlier today.
Martin will celebrate his 40th birthday while on the injured list, as he hits that milestone tomorrow. Despite his age, he has remained an effective reliever, or at least he had until recently. Last year, he made 49 appearances for the Rangers with a 2.98 earned run average. Though he had previously said 2025 would very likely be his last season, he signed up for another campaign, with Texas giving him a $4MM guarantee.
The results have been far worse this time, with the shoulder probably playing a notable role. This is already his second IL stint for a shoulder impingement this year, the first one spanning a little over a month from mid-April to mid-May. Around the IL stints, he has made 12 appearances but has been lit up for a 7.84 ERA. He hasn’t been helped by a .417 batting average on balls in play but his 14.3% strikeout rate and 30.8% ground ball rate are both well south of last year, when he punched out 24.7% of opponents and induced grounders on 42.6% of balls in play.
The Rangers haven’t yet provided any info about how long they expect Martin to be out of action. Ideally, this second IL stint will result in more proper healing, which could lead to better results once he is back on the mound.
As for Garcia, he was placed on the 15-day IL over a month ago, on April 20th. His 60-day count is retroactive to that date, so he will be eligible for reinstatement in a few weeks. A couple of days ago, manager Skip Schumaker said that Garcia is still weeks away, per Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. Whenever Garcia is healthy, he can start a rehab assignment, even if he’s still within that 60-day window. Rehab assignments for pitchers can last as long as 30 days.
Photo courtesy of Jim Cowsert, Imagn Images
Giants Select Buddy Kennedy
The Giants announced that they have selected the contract of infielder Buddy Kennedy. Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle noted that Kennedy was in the clubhouse prior to the announcement. They also announced their selection of right-hander Wilkin Ramos, a move that was previously reported. In corresponding active roster moves, catcher Jesús Rodríguez has been optioned to Triple-A Sacramento and right-hander Joel Peguero has been placed on the 60-day injured list with a left hamstring strain. The Peguero move also opened one 40-man spot. The other was opened by catcher Logan Porter being designated for assignment.
Kennedy, 27, signed a minor league deal with the Giants in the offseason. Since then, he has been putting up huge numbers for Triple-A Sacramento. He has matching walk and strikeout rates of 12.4%, which are both great numbers. He also has eight home runs. Even in the hitter-friendly context of the Pacific Coast League, his .321/.424/.543 line translates to a 153 wRC+, indicating he has been 53% better than the league average hitter. He has gotten some help from a .342 batting average on balls in play but would be having a good season even with some more neutral luck.
The Giants will be the latest team to try to benefit from a big league breakout from Kennedy. He has often put up good numbers on the farm, which has led to many major league chances he hasn’t been able to take advantage of. He received 181 plate appearances over the previous four campaigns, spending time with the Diamondbacks, Tigers, Phillies, Blue Jays and Dodgers. He put up a dismal .178/.271/.274 line with those clubs.
Despite that rough performance, it’s understandable why he keeps getting chances. For one thing, his MLB track record thus far consists of a very small sample size. In the minors, dating back to the start of 2024, he has a .285/.386/.458 line and 126 wRC+. He also provides defensive versatility, with professional experience at all four infield spots and left field. He shouldn’t be considered a real shortstop option since he has just ten minor league innings there and none since 2024, but the ability to bounce around to the other spots is valuable.
If he could combine that defensive versatility with some capable big league offense, he would be an attractive piece, but he hasn’t yet been able to cement himself as such. He has exhausted his options, pushing him to fringe roster territory. He had to settle for a minor league deal but has earned another big league shot with the Giants.
The Giants have been using a three-catcher system for a while now, with Rodríguez promoted in early May. At that time, he was sharing the roster with Patrick Bailey and Eric Haase. The Giants then traded Bailey to the Guardians and selected Porter to the roster. Porter was optioned not long after, just before the Giants reinstated Daniel Susac from the injured list. Rodríguez hasn’t been playing much in that setup lately, with just one plate appearance since May 26th. Instead of riding the pine in the big leagues, he’ll get regular reps in the minors while Kennedy gives the major league club a bit more infield depth.
Porter, 30, now heads into DFA limbo. That can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Giants could take as long as five days to explore trade interest, but they could also put him on waivers sooner than that.
He has generally been considered a good defender in the minors. His offense has shown flashes but has been inconsistent. From 2022 to 2024, he had a .267/.387/.433 line and 113 wRC+ on the farm, but he has a .218/.336/.325 line and 81 wRC+ since then. He has received some very brief looks in the majors and produced a .184/.326/.289 line 47 plate appearances.
He is still optionable and could perhaps appeal to a club in need of extra catching depth but he has cleared outright waivers twice before. Since he has been outrighted previously, he has the right to reject further outright assignments in favor of free agency.
As for Peguero, it’s a rough blow. He began the season on the IL due to that left hamstring and missed over a month, getting reinstated in early May. He made 11 appearances since then but is now right back on the IL. His exact timeline isn’t clear but the injury is apparently severe enough that the Giants have placed him directly onto the 60-day IL. He won’t be eligible for reinstatement until the end of July.
He has a 2.41 earned run average in the first 33 2/3 innings of his career, though that number is surely somewhat misleading. His 9% walk rate is around average and his 53.6% ground ball rate is quite good but his 16.4% strikeout rate is subpar. His .240 batting average on balls in play and 74.6% strand rate are both to the fortunate side, which has helped keep some runs off the board. His 3.83 FIP and 4.38 SIERA are perhaps better indicators of his true performance to date.
Those numbers will be locked in for at least another couple of months. In the meantime, Ramos will make his major league debut. If he can succeed, it will soften the blow of Peguero’s departure, at least to some degree.
Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images
Diamondbacks To Reinstate Pavin Smith From 60-Day IL
4:20pm: Arizona has now officially announced Smith’s reinstatement and Tawa optioning. Santana was indeed moved to the 60-day IL as the corresponding 40-man move.
3:3opm: The Diamondbacks are going to reinstate first baseman Pavin Smith from the 60-day injured list, reports John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM Phoenix. Infielder/outfielder Tim Tawa will be optioned as the corresponding active roster move. The Snakes will also need to open a 40-man spot.
Smith played in just two games before left elbow inflammation put him on the 10-day injured list at the end of March. He was transferred to the 60-day IL in mid-April and the team announced that he would require surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow. He had recovered enough to start a rehab assignment a week ago. He hit .333/.364/.381 in five rehab games and is now going to rejoin the big league squad.
The former seventh overall pick seemingly broke out in the past couple of seasons. Over 2024 and 2025, he put up a big .262/.357/.475 slash line, which translated to a 130 wRC+. However, there were some asterisks in there. For one, the sample size was just 446 plate appearances. In 2024, Smith was still a fringe roster player and was optioned to the minors multiple times, only getting 158 big league plate appearances. Last year, IL stints for a strained oblique and then a strained quad capped him at 288 plate appearances.
He has also done most of his damage with the platoon advantage. A left-handed hitter, he had a .271/.359/.493 line against righties over those two campaigns but just a .184/.340/.316 line versus southpaws. Furthermore, he finished 2025 poorly. He had a .342/.473/.630 line through April but then a .222/.311/.351 line the rest of the way, working around those aforementioned injuries.
Despite the question marks, it seems the Diamondbacks planned on him being at least a strong-side platoon guy here in 2026. They signed the switch-hitting Carlos Santana to join Smith in the first base group. Santana is a switch-hitter and good defender, so he could shield Smith from lefties and also occasionally serve as a defensive replacement, since Smith isn’t considered an especially strong defender.
They haven’t had much of a chance to implement that plan. As mentioned, Smith appeared in just two games before hitting the IL. An adductor strain sent Santana to the IL after just eight appearances.
In the interim, the Snakes have mostly been using utility guys José Fernández and Ildemaro Vargas to cover first base. Vargas, a 34-year-old journeyman, has a strong .295/.321/.465 line on the year. However, that is mostly due to an improbable 24-game hit streak to begin the season, which was technically a 27-game streak when factoring in last season. Since that streak, he has a .198/.225/.255 line in 111 plate appearances. It’s a similar story for Fernández, who had a .325/.349/.470 line at the end of April but hit .181/.224/.236 in May.
Smith could now take up the first base job, at least against righties, and bump those two back into utility roles. Smith could also slot in as the designated hitter. Adrian Del Castillo has been getting most of the playing time there this year but has a line of just .192/.252/.325. Whether he’s at first base or DH, Smith will presumably need a platoon partner. Fernández and Vargas could perhaps help there since Fernández is a righty and Vargas a switch-hitter.
As for the 40-man move, it’s possible Santana gets transferred to the 60-day IL. His 60-day count would be retroactive to his initial IL placement, which was April 6th, so it’s already been almost 60 days. He began a rehab assignment at the beginning of May but last played on May 10th. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic relayed at that time that Santana had re-injured his adductor. He hasn’t yet started a new rehab assignment and presumably isn’t likely to be reinstated in the near term.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
White Sox Release LaMonte Wade Jr.
The White Sox have released veteran first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr., who’d been playing with their Triple-A affiliate. CHSN’s Brooke Fletcher was among those to relay the news. The 32-year-old Wade was performing well in Charlotte, slashing .250/.420/.441 with seven homers, eight doubles, two steals and more walks (22.4%) than strikeouts (21.4%) in 201 trips to the plate.
It might register as a modest surprise that the Sox either cut him loose or (if he had a June 1 opt-out in his contract) granted him his release at a time when Munetaka Murakami just hit the shelf for at least four to six weeks due to a Grade 2 hamstring strain. However, Chicago is taking a look at 2023 first-rounder Jacob Gonzalez in Murakami’s absence. He played first base in his MLB debut but has more experience on the left side of the infield, which could allow Miguel Vargas to man first base more regularly in Murakami’s absence. Gonzalez absolutely earned a look with a massive performance in Triple-A. Perhaps they could’ve found a way to get Wade onto the bench in a reserve role, but that would’ve entailed cutting ties with a veteran outfielder like Derek Hill or Randal Grichuk. The Sox chose not to do so.
Wade originally signed a minor league deal with the South Siders in January. He was released late in camp when the Sox informed him that he wouldn’t crack the Opening Day roster, but he signed a new minor league deal a week later and has spent the entire season thus far with the Knights.
Wade has appeared in each of the past seven big league campaigns, mostly with the Giants, and is a lifetime .236/.341/.390 hitter in the majors. His most recent work was well shy of his career marks, however; in 282 plate appearances between San Francisco and Anaheim last year, he posted a dreadful .167/.271/.254 batting line (52 wRC+) with a career-worst 24% strikeout rate. Wade grades out below average at first base (his primary position) and in the outfield corners, and he’s never hit left-handed pitching very well.
It’s a limited skill set, but Wade’s work in Charlotte shows what he’s capable of at his best: piling up walks to support a substantial on-base percentage with enough power to offset what’s typically a pedestrian batting average. Teams looking for some lefty-swinging corner help — ideally at first base but possibly at DH and/or in an outfield corner — could take a look and hope that his strong showing in the upper minors is a precursor to a return to form in the majors. It’s also possible he simply returns to the White Sox, depending on what the market has to bear. This time last year, the White Sox granted reliever Dan Altavilla his release when he triggered an opt-out, only to re-sign him on a big league deal 48 hours later.
Giants To Select Wilkin Ramos
The Giants are calling up right-hander Wilkin Ramos, reports Ari Alexander of 7News Boston. San Francisco will need to open space on both the active and 40-man rosters for Ramos, who will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game.
Ramos, 25, was an international signing of the Athletics back in 2017. The following year, he was the player to be named later in the deal which sent righty Tanner Anderson to the A’s. By the end of 2022, Ramos was just about to turn 22 and hadn’t yet climbed higher than Single-A. The Mets then grabbed him in the minor league phase of the 2022 Rule 5 draft. He climbed to Triple-A in 2024 but posted a 5.40 earned run average at that level. He didn’t have a roster spot at the end of that season and became a minor league free agent. The Bucs brought him back by signing him to a minor league deal for 2025 but he had a 6.60 ERA in his Triple-A appearances last year.
He became a minor league free agent yet again and signed a minor league deal with the Giants for the 2026 season. He has been with Triple-A Sacramento and putting up good numbers in a multi-inning role. He has logged 27 frames over 17 appearances with a flat ERA of 2.00. His 23.5% strikeout rate and 6.5% walk rate are both a bit better than average while his 61.4% ground ball rate is massive. He is averaging over 94 miles per hour with both his four-seamer and sinker while also throwing a high-70s curveball.
The Giants have been impressed by that performance and will give him a shot to face major league hitters. The San Francisco bullpen has been decent this year, despite a curious offseason. The club traded away Camilo Doval and Tyler Rogers at last year’s deadline, then lost Randy Rodríguez to Tommy John surgery. To address those notable subtractions, their offseason additions were mostly injury reclamation types. Despite the strange tactic, the relief corps has a collective 3.69 ERA on the year, putting them 12th out of the 30 big league clubs.
They will inset Ramos into the mix to see if he can strengthen the group. Since this is his first MLB call, he has a full slate of options and can be easily sent back to Sacramento in the future if he struggles or if they simply need fresh arms at some point.
Photo courtesy of Matt Kartozian, Imagn Images
Reds Place Elly De La Cruz On Injured List, Promote Edwin Arroyo
2:12pm: Francona said De La Cruz will probably miss two to four weeks, per Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.
11:36am: The Reds announced Monday that they’ve placed star shortstop Elly De La Cruz on the 10-day injured list due to a strained right hamstring and recalled top infield prospect Edwin Arroyo from Triple-A Louisville for his major league debut. Cincinnati also selected the contract of lefty Brandon Leibrandt and designated right-hander Yunior Marté for assignment in a corresponding move. Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reported that the Reds would place De La Cruz on the IL and promote Arroyo shortly before the formal team announcement.
De La Cruz suffered his hamstring injury in Sunday’s game. Upon driving a ball into the right-center field gap for what looked like an easy double — if not a triple, given his speed — he instead pulled up at first base in obvious pain (video link). A quick visit from the training staff concluded with an early exit from the game. He subsequently underwent an MRI that revealed the strain. Cincinnati has not yet provided a possible timeline for his potential return or revealed the grade of hamstring strain with which De La Cruz has been diagnosed. Manager Terry Francona will likely provide more details prior to tonight’s game against the visiting Royals.
An injury to the 24-year-old De La Cruz is about as impactful an injury absence as possible for Cincinnati. The switch-hitting dynamo was putting together perhaps the best season of his exciting young career, delivering a .280/.346/.509 slash (134 wRC+) with a dozen homers, 13 doubles (14, were it not for this injury), five triples and 10 steals. He’s hitting for power at the highest rate of his career, and after struggling immensely from the right-handed batter’s box through the first three seasons of his career, De La Cruz was having a breakout showing in that regard as well (.299/.342/.642 in 73 plate appearances versus southpaws).
If there’s a silver lining for Reds fans, it’s that the De La Cruz injury serves as a catalyst for the promotion of Arroyo — one of the hottest-hitting prospects in all of Minor League Baseball at the moment. A fellow switch-hitter, Arroyo is just 22 years old but was laying waste to Triple-A pitching with a .323/.383/.562 batting line through an even 250 plate appearances. He’s homered 11 times and added nine doubles, five triples and nine steals. He’s been hitting at a particularly absurd level over the past month: .368/.406/.705.
Originally drafted by the Mariners with the No. 48 overall pick back in 2021, Arroyo was traded to the Reds as part of the deal sending Luis Castillo back to Seattle. He was a consensus top-100 prospect at the time. His stock dipped in subsequent seasons, in no small part due to a shoulder injury that required surgery and wiped out his entire 2024 season. However, Arroyo’s torrid 2026 output has thrust onto the tail end of the top-100 lists at MLB.com and Baseball America. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel listed him as the top riser in Cincinnati’s system just this morning, noting that Arroyo’s power looks to be back in full force after an understandable dip last year in the return from that shoulder operation. Arroyo hit just three long balls in 120 games last year.
Arroyo has primarily been a shortstop in his professional career, but he’s played some second base and third base in recent seasons as well — likely in recognition that shortstop isn’t going to be opening up in Cincinnati anytime soon, so long as De La Cruz remains healthy. He’ll step into De La Cruz’s shortstop spot for the time being, but if Arroyo hits the ground running, it’s not at all out of the question that he could parlay this initial call to the majors into a more prominent role at third base and/or second base once De La Cruz returns. Neither third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes nor second baseman Matt McLain has hit at all this season — and that’s egregiously true in the case of the former (.142/.195/.225 in 128 plate appearances). Hayes is currently on the injured list a disk injury in his back, continuing a long history of back ailments.
The 33-year-old Leibrandt is the son of former big league pitcher Charlie Leibrandt. He’s pitched in parts of two minor league seasons: the 2020 campaign with Miami and the 2024 season with Cincinnati. He’s allowed nine runs in 15 1/3 major league frames. The younger Leibrandt has been tagged for a 5.23 ERA in 11 Triple-A starts this season, though a disproportionate amount of the damage against him came in his most recent start. Leibrandt logged a solid enough 4.29 ERA through his first 10 starts before being tattooed for six runs in just 1 1/3 innings against the Twins’ Triple-A club last time out.
Injuries have thinned out both the Cincinnati bullpen and rotation. The Reds have Hunter Greene, Rhett Lowder and Brandon Williamson all on the injured list. Depth starters like Chase Petty, Julian Aguiar and Jose Franco have pitched poorly in Triple-A. The Reds already brought veteran Chris Paddack aboard following his release in Miami; he’s allowed a total of nine runs with eight strikeouts against seven walks across a trio of five-inning starts. In the bullpen, relievers Graham Ashcraft, Emilio Pagan and Pierce Johnson are on the injured list; Ashcraft was recently placed directly on the 60-day IL due to a UCL sprain.
Marté, 31, was just called up last Friday when Ashcraft hit the IL. The journeyman right-hander appeared in one game, faced six batters and allowed five of them to reach. He wound up being charged with four runs in one-third of an inning. Marté has pitched in parts of four MLB seasons, totaling 113 2/3 innings with a 5.94 ERA. He throws hard and can miss bats but has regularly shown shaky command while struggling to limit damage against left-handed hitters in particular. He’ll be traded, placed on waivers or released within the next five days.