Kansas City Royals outfielder Andrew Benintendi isn't in the starting lineup for the final game of the team's series against the Chicago White Sox. Hunter Dozier has moved from third base to left field in place of Benintendi, with Hanser Alberto stepping in at third base against White Sox left-hander Carlos Rodon. Dozier is hitting fifth while Alberto is batting seventh. Considering Dozier starts most days for Kansas City, this is essentially Alberto replacing Benintendi in the lineup. The infielder is batting .262 with a .282 on-base percentage, a home run, and a stolen base in 173 plate appearances this season. If you need streaming help on Thursday, you're probably better off looking elsewhere.

Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani had a big day at the plate in Wednesday's win over the Colorado Rockies, going 2-for-3 with a home run, two walks, three RBI, and two runs scored. The home run was his MLB-leading 37th of the year, and he is now slashing an astounding .280/.367/.691 with 81 RBI and 72 runs. Ohtani was slumping a bit after the All-Star break, but he's back on track now, going eight for his last 18. He's a must-start in every league, and that will be the case the rest of the season.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

Baltimore Orioles second baseman/shortstop Ramon Urias continued to produce at the plate in Wednesday's 8-7 win over the Marlins. Urias went 2-for-3 with two doubles, an RBI, and a walk. The 27-year-old has hit for a nice average this season, slashing .284/.353/.418 with four home runs and 23 RBI. However, his lack of power and speed limits his fantasy value at this time.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Aaron Judge went from being a late scratch to hitting a tiebreaking single in a two-run 10th inning to help the New York Yankees beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the second straight day, 3-1 on Wednesday night. Judge was taken out of the lineup about 30 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Although no announcement was made about why, the All-Star right fielder struck out in the fifth pinch-hitting for Estevan Florial. Judge returned to the team Tuesday after going on the COVID-19 injured list July 16. New York also had a big night off the field. The Yankees reached a deal to get All-Star slugger Joey Gallo from the Texas Rangers, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been announced and was subject to approval of medical records of the players involved. Greg Allen was hit by a pitch from Pete Fairbanks (3-4) leading off the 10th, putting runners on first and second. Judge... [More]

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi took his sixth loss of the year Wednesday, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits and two walks in five innings against the Houston Astros. He struck out seven batters Kikuchi was the victim of a tight strike zone as well as an error by shortstop J.P. Crawford which served to elevate his pitch count and perhaps end his outing more quickly than fantasy managers would have preferred. Kikuchi now has a 4.01 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, and 124 strikeouts in 114 1/3 innings and remains a reliable fantasy option in all formats.

CLEVELAND (AP) — Franmil Reyes homered twice, the first a second-inning blast that bounced out of Progressive Field and almost dinged a bicyclist pedaling on a street, and the Cleveland Indians beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Wednesday. Reyes’ leadoff homer in the second glanced off the pedestrian bridge in left field and landed on the plaza area between the ballpark and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The ball traveled an estimated 446 feet. Reyes wasn’t done. He finished off Cleveland’s three-homer inning in the third with his 19th of the season, a 421-foot drive to center. César Hernández and José Ramírez also homered in the inning for Cleveland. Kwang Hyun Kim (6-6) gave up all four homers and lost for the first time since June 20. Zach Plesac (6-3) gave up two runs in five innings. Dylan Carlson homered for St. Louis. BLUE JAYS 4, RED SOX 1, 1ST GAME RED SOX 4, BLUE JAYS 1, 2ND GAME BOSTON (AP) — Rookie starter Tanner Houck struck out seven over four innings and Boston beat Toronto... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Franmil Reyes homered twice, the first a second-inning blast that bounced out of Progressive Field and almost dinged a bicyclist pedaling on a street, and the Cleveland Indians beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Wednesday. Reyes’ leadoff homer in the second glanced off the pedestrian bridge in left field and landed on the plaza area between the ballpark and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The ball traveled an estimated 446 feet. Reyes wasn’t done. He finished off Cleveland’s three-homer inning in the third with his 19th of the season, a 421-foot drive to center. César Hernández and José Ramírez also homered in the inning for Cleveland. Kwang Hyun Kim (6-6) gave up all four homers and lost for the first time since June 20. Zach Plesac (6-3) gave up two runs in five innings. Dylan Carlson homered for St. Louis. BLUE JAYS 4, RED SOX 1, 1ST GAME RED SOX 4, BLUE JAYS 1, 2ND GAME BOSTON (AP) — Rookie starter Tanner Houck struck out seven over four innings and Boston beat Toronto... [More]

CLEVELAND (AP) — Franmil Reyes homered twice, the first a second-inning blast that bounced out of Progressive Field and almost dinged a bicyclist pedaling on a street, and the Cleveland Indians beat the St. Louis Cardinals 7-2 on Wednesday. Reyes’ leadoff homer in the second glanced off the pedestrian bridge in left field and landed on the plaza area between the ballpark and Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The ball traveled an estimated 446 feet. Reyes wasn’t done. He finished off Cleveland’s three-homer inning in the third with his 19th of the season, a 421-foot drive to center. César Hernández and José Ramírez also homered in the inning for Cleveland. Kwang Hyun Kim (6-6) gave up all four homers and lost for the first time since June 20. Zach Plesac (6-3) gave up two runs in five innings. Dylan Carlson homered for St. Louis. BLUE JAYS 4, RED SOX 1, 1ST GAME BOSTON (AP) — Robbie Ray pitched six strong innings, Randal Grichuk homered and drove in three runs, and Toronto Jays beat Boston in... [More]

Kansas City Royals outfielder Andrew Benintendi had a strong offensive game in the team's 5-3 loss to the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday. He went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. This was his second consecutive two-hit game as he went 2-for-4 with a home run on Monday. July has been a quiet month overall for Benintendi. Over 15 games this month, Benintendi is slashing .217/.226/.433 with three home runs, seven RBI and 10 runs. He's really cooled down after a strong May in which he slashed .340/.377/.443. He's batting .269 with a .253 xBA on the year. He can be rostered in five-outfielder leagues and AL-only leagues, but in other formats, he's fine to leave on waivers.

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox reinstated reliever Aaron Bummer from the 10-day injured list and recalled right-hander Reynaldo López from Triple-A Charlotte on Friday. The AL Central leaders also optioned relievers Matt Foster and Jace Fry to their top farm club. Bummer, 27, had been sidelined by a strained right hamstring. The left-hander is 1-4 with a 3.26 ERA and two saves in 32 games heading into Friday night's series opener against Houston. López has been working as a starting pitcher, but he will work out of the bullpen with Chicago. The 27-year-old right-hander made five relief appearances in his first 92 big league games. López went 1-3 with a 6.49 ERA in eight starts with the White Sox last year. He spent the first part of this season with Charlotte, going 1-6 with a 7.62 ERA in 10 starts. “He earned a spot. His velocity is up, making a lot of good pitches,” manager Tony La Russa said, “and he gives us some length in the bullpen.” La Russa also said López could start one... [More]

CHICAGO (AP) — The Chicago White Sox reinstated reliever Aaron Bummer from the 10-day injured list and recalled right-hander Reynaldo López from Triple-A Charlotte on Friday. The AL Central leaders also optioned relievers Matt Foster and Jace Fry to their top farm club. Bummer, 27, had been sidelined by a strained right hamstring. The left-hander is 1-4 with a 3.26 ERA and two saves in 32 games heading into Friday night's series opener against Houston. López has been working as a starting pitcher, but he likely will work out of the bullpen with Chicago. The 27-year-old right-hander made five relief appearances in his first 92 big league games. López went 1-3 with a 6.49 ERA in eight starts with the White Sox last year. He spent the first part of this season with Charlotte, going 1-6 with a 7.62 ERA in 10 starts. The White Sox also announced that veteran utilityman Jake Lamb is going to Charlotte to begin a rehab assignment. Lamb, 30, is coming back from a strained right quadriceps. Foster, 26, was a key part of Chicago's bullpen last season as a rookie, but he has struggled this year. The right-hander is 2-1 with a 6.15 ERA in 26 games. The 28-year-old Fry opened this season on the IL after he had an offseason microdiscectomy. He made two appearances with the White Sox, allowing three runs in two innings. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DENVER (AP) — The Latest on the All-Star Game on Tuesday night at Coors Field (all times local): 4:20 p.m. The skies were gray overhead and there was occasional drizzle during batting practice ahead of Tuesday night’s All-Star Game at Coors Field. There was a chance severe weather would come through Denver ahead of the scheduled first pitch at 6:15 p.m. Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels was set to become baseball’s first two-way All-Star, hitting leadoff for the American League as its designated hitter and also the AL’s starting pitcher. The AL entered with seven straight wins and 19 of the last 22, with the infamous 2002 tie thrown in. This year’s game originally was scheduled for Atlanta but was moved by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred in response to a Georgia voting law that critics say will negatively affect communities of color. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

DENVER (AP) — The gold-plated necklace Fernando Tatis Jr. wore for the All-Star festivities was both flashy and eye-catching — just like his game. The San Diego slugger nicknamed “El Niño" — he wore it proudly on the chain — is certainly a home-run hitting, bat-flipping show of force. Even more, he exudes cool as he becomes the ambassador of fun for the game of baseball. Talented young stars such as Tatis, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., along with his Toronto teammate Bo Bichette, Juan Soto of Washington, Ozzie Albies of Atlanta and of course pitching/hitting phenom Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels are taking the game by storm. They'll be on full display Tuesday night at the All-Star Game — and can't-miss entertainment. Ever the showman, Tatis even hinted that, should he go deep, he not only will turn in a memorable bat-flip but grandly shimmy his way down the baseline as well. Nothing personal to whichever pitcher may surrender that particular long ball, either. Infusing a little fun is... [More]

SEATTLE (AP) — The Seattle Mariners reinstated left-hander Yusei Kikuchi from the injured list Monday, making him eligible to participate in the All-Star Game. Kikuchi was selected to the American League All-Star team for the first time in his career and is Seattle’s lone representative. The Mariners placed Kikuchi on the injured list Sunday but did not disclose an injury and manager Scott Servais said he could not comment but wasn’t concerned about Kikuchi’s status. Seattle used the open roster spot to promote top catching prospect Cal Raleigh, who made his major league debut Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels. The Mariners optioned infielder Donovan Walton to Triple-A Tacoma and designated for assignment reliever Will Vest in order to reinstate Kikuchi. Kikuchi has been one of the top left-handers in baseball this season, his third since signing with the Mariners and moving to the major leagues from Japan. He’s 6-4 with a 3.48 ERA and 98 strikeouts. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

SEATTLE (AP) — All-Star pitcher Yusei Kikuchi of the Seattle Mariners was placed on the injured list on Sunday. However, it's possible that he could still participate in the upcoming All-Star Game festivities in Denver. Manager Scott Servais said he couldn’t comment on Kikuchi’s status “for a number of different reasons,” but that he was “not that concerned with where’s he’s at.” “I still think he’s planning on heading over to the All-Star Game,” Servais said. No other details were available about the pitcher’s status. The Mariners promoted promising catching prospect Cal Raleigh to take his place in the lineup. Raleigh will make his debut later Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels. He’ll catch a bullpen day from the Mariners staff. Kikuchi has been one of the top left-handers in baseball this season, his third since signing with the Mariners and moving over to the major leagues from Japan. He’s 6-4 with a 3.48 ERA and 98 strikeouts. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani has hit his MLB-leading 32nd homer for the Los Angeles Angels, breaking Hideki Matsui's record for homers in a major league season by a Japanese player. Ohtani surpassed Matsui's full-season record before the All-Star break with his solo shot to right in the fifth inning against Boston on Wednesday. Matsui set the mark with the Yankees in 2004. Matsui issued a statement through the Angels immediately after Ohtani broke his mark, praising the achievement as "just a passing point for a hitter like Shohei. “I was once considered a long ball hitter in the majors, but I believe that he truly is a long ball hitter,” Matsui said. "Furthermore, he is an amazing pitcher. He exceeds what is considered conventional for a major league player, and there is no one else like him. I hope he continues his success this season as he carries the hopes and dreams of many fans and young children. As a baseball fan myself, I can’t wait to see what he is able to do next.” Ohtani... [More]

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Catcher Yasmani Grandal was placed on the 10-day injured list Tuesday by the Chicago White Sox with a torn tendon in his left knee. Grandal was injured during an at-bat in Monday's loss in Minnesota. Chicago estimated Grandal will be out approximately four to six weeks. “It was a twist that he made as he made his swing," White Sox manager Tony La Russa said. “Something got caught. It didn’t free up to make a turn on it. It got caught and something popped. I’m anxious to get a full diagnosis. He’s on his way to Chicago, maybe in Chicago already, and we’ll know more tomorrow.” Grandal was hitting just .188 as Chicago's starting catcher, but he had a .388 on-base percentage in 63 games to go with 14 home runs and 38 RBIs. Seby Zavala, 27, was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte and was with the team for Tuesday's game in Minnesota. Zack Collins started Tuesday at catcher. “He was as productive as any position player we have for the last month or so," La Russa said of Grandal.... [More]