Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Kyle Tucker was removed from Monday's game against the Minnesota Twins in the second inning because of low back spasms.
Tucker walked with one out in the second and ran lightly to second base on Tommy Edman's single to right field. Then, Tucker was replaced by pinch runner Alex Call. Tucker stayed in the dugout, standing up next to dugout fence before heading into the clubhouse after the inning was over.
Justin Verlander will be sidelined for weeks with a left hamstring strain just days before the 43-year-old was set to return for the Detroit Tigers from a separate injury.
Verlander had been on the injured list since April with left hip inflammation and was scheduled to start Sunday before sustaining the hamstring injury during a bullpen session Wednesday.
"This is not a matter of days," said AJ Hinch. "It's a matter of weeks. We're going to need a full rehab process to get him back to throwing again. Obviously, frustrating news for him and for us, given the excitement that was building around his start on Sunday."
Verlander described the injury as sudden, cutting short a bullpen outing that had otherwise gone well.
"My hip actually feels fairly good," said Verlander, according to MLB.com. "All of a sudden, my hamstring was bugging me and I had to cut my bullpen short. Anytime I'm not able to get my work in, it means something's definitely off, so we decided to get it looked at, and there's a strain. Just really unfortunate, man. It just sucks. I don't know how else to say it."
The three-time Cy Young winner and 2011 American League MVP is the oldest active player in MLB. In his lone start this season, Verlander allowed five runs and six hits over 3⅔ innings in a loss at Arizona.
Detroit also placed outfielder Wenceel Perez on the injured list with facial fractures after he was struck by an exercise band that came unhooked during a postgame workout in Houston.
The Los Angeles Angels placed center fielder Mike Trout on the 10-day injured list Thursday with a right hamstring strain, ending a stretch in which the veteran had appeared in 74 of the team's 75 games this season.
Trout said he hurt the hamstring running to first base during Wednesday's win over the Arizona Diamondbacks, a game in which he hit a home run and drove in three runs.
The 34-year-old told reporters he has no set return timeline but expressed optimism about a brief absence.
"From last night to today, it's a night and day difference, so that's positive for me," Trout told reporters, per MLB.com. "I was a little worried last night, but had a plane ride and just sitting down after playing, so that kind of came into effect. But feels way better today, so. I'm not overly concerned about it, but I'm going to do everything I can, in that training room and the weight room to get back."
Trout is batting .234 with 17 home runs, 36 RBIs and an American League-best 54 runs scored this season. His 66 walks rank second in the majors. The three-time AL MVP and 11-time All-Star has not appeared in more than 130 games in a single season since 2019.
In All-Star fan voting through Sunday, Trout ranked second among AL outfielders with 926,601 votes, trailing only New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who is also currently on the injured list.
Jose Siri is expected to handle center field duties during Trout's absence. In a related move, the Angels recalled infielder Christian Moore from Triple-A Salt Lake. Moore is hitting .333 with nine home runs and 45 RBIs at the minor league level this season.
The Toronto Blue Jays placed right-hander Max Scherzer on the injured list Wednesday with back spasms, hours before the 41-year-old was scheduled to start against the Boston Red Sox. It marks his second IL stint of the 2026 season.
Scherzer has posted a 10.23 ERA across 22 innings this year, surrendering nine home runs while dealing with four separate ailments: a thumb, forearm, back and ankle. He has made just one start in the past seven weeks, lasting 3 1/3 innings against the Philadelphia Phillies.
The spasms surfaced Monday morning in Boston, Scherzer said, and treatment over Toronto's off day was not enough to clear him for Wednesday's start. The Blue Jays recalled right-hander Chad Dallas to cover the rotation spot.
"I'm frustrated as heck," said Scherzer. "I wanted to get in that rhythm, I wanted to be out there pitching, get going, because my arm feels like it's in a really great spot right now."
Despite the struggles, Scherzer remains confident in his ability to contribute.
"I absolutely have the utmost belief that I can be out there," he said. "I can be pitching, I can be helping the team win. Nothing that has happened has changed any course of that. Just got to get through this."
Toronto is not facing an immediate decision with Scherzer sidelined. Shane Bieber, a former Cy Young winner, reached 80 pitches in a Triple-A rehab outing Wednesday and is expected to join the club in Chicago this weekend, with a strong chance of making his 2026 debut shortly after.
"I just have another thing I got to deal with and get over," Scherzer said. "These things happen when you're 41 years old and trying to pitch."
The Atlanta Braves have shut down right-hander Spencer Strider for four weeks due to inflammation in his right elbow, the team announced Monday.
Strider visited with Dr. Keith Meister on Monday to determine next steps after having an MRI and was placed on the injured list Saturday. Strider will undergo a follow-up MRI after the four weeks of rest and -- if the scan is clear -- he'll begin throwing again.
Spencer Strider's MRI revealed inflammation in his ailing right elbow, and the Atlanta Braves won't know the next step for their right-handed pitcher until the results are viewed by Dr. Keith Meister.
Strider was placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday, less than 24 hours after he left his start against the New York Mets.
"You always expect to see inflammation when somebody's hurting," Braves manager Walt Weiss said before Sunday's series finale against the Mets. "So we just want to let Dr. Meister get a look at it and get his diagnosis."
Cleveland Guardians star third baseman Jose Ramirez fractured his left hamate bone on a swing Saturday and will be sidelined indefinitely, a major setback for the two-time defending AL Central champions.
Ramirez was injured leading off the fifth inning of Cleveland's 3-1 win over the Detroit Tigers. Manager Stephen Vogt confirmed the break after the game, following imaging tests on the 33-year-old.
"He had a similar injury I think to his right hand a few years ago," said Vogt. "He tried to go back out. He knew the position we were in, grabbed his glove and said 'Maybe I can still play defense,' but he couldn't squeeze his glove. Hosey wanted to get back out there to help us win that game. He just couldn't."
Ramirez, a seven-time All-Star and the face of the Guardians' franchise, previously fractured his right hamate bone in 2019, the only other injured list stint of his career. He missed roughly one month following surgery after an initial timeline of up to seven weeks.
The switch-hitter entered Saturday batting .238 with 10 home runs and 33 RBIs this season. A career .274 hitter, Ramirez has finished in the top four of MVP voting five times and holds numerous franchise records.
Cleveland also lost outfielders Chase DeLauter and Angel Martinez to injuries in the first two innings. DeLauter suffered a bruised right rib cage colliding with the outfield wall, while Martinez sustained a foot bruise after fouling a ball off it.
With Ramirez out, Vogt shifted Rhys Hoskins from first base to left field, a position the veteran had not played since 2018 with the Philadelphia Phillies.
"We're working through the logistics and what the next steps are so we'll know more tomorrow or the next day," said Vogt. "These things can get complicated."
It remains unclear whether DeLauter and Martinez will also require injured list placements.
The Guardians are in first place in the AL Central with a 39-33 record.
Two-time American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal will return from the injured list Saturday against the Cleveland Guardians, Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch announced Thursday. Skubal has not pitched in the majors since April 29.
The left-hander underwent surgery on May 6 to remove a loose body from his left elbow. Initial projections called for a two-to-three month absence, but Dr. Neal ElAttrache employed the NanoNeedle Scope 2.0, a smaller arthroscope never previously used on a major league pitcher. The less invasive procedure allowed Skubal to resume throwing within days and advance rapidly to full bullpen sessions.
"I don't know if it will be a normal start or if it will be abbreviated," said Hinch. "But just getting him back into the routine and into the fold is a tremendous boost for this team and this rotation and our organization."
Skubal tuned up Sunday on a rehab assignment at High-A West Michigan, throwing five scoreless innings on 54 pitches. His fastball reached 99 mph, and he threw an estimated 15 additional pitches in the bullpen afterward.
"If anything, we're being conservative," said Skubal. "Four weeks after surgery was four or five days ago. Technically, if we wanted to, I could have been back then. I think we've taken this with the right approach. Not aggressive. If anything, we're being conservative."
Skubal's return carries significant implications beyond the mound. The Tigers sit 12 games below .500 following a 6-22 May, though Detroit has won six of its past eight. If the club cannot climb back into contention, Skubal could emerge as the top available asset ahead of the August 3 trade deadline. He is also in a contract year and widely expected to command a record-setting payday this offseason.
"I'm obviously happy with modern technology, modern medicine and the ability for him to do his work step by step," said Hinch. "I'm thrilled this was on the best-case scenario side of things, getting him back so quickly."
The Chicago Cubs are expected to be without starter Jameson Taillon until after the All-Star break due to a strained left hamstring.
The right-hander exited Sunday's game against San Francisco in the second inning. He was placed on the 15-day injury list Tuesday before opening a three-game series with the Colorado Rockies.
Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal pitched five scoreless innings Sunday in the two-time Cy Young Award winner's first minor league rehabilitation appearance since undergoing elbow surgery last month.
Skubal struck out six and allowed two hits for High-A West Michigan against Dayton. Forty-four of his 54 pitches were strikes, with his fastball reaching 98 mph.
"Velocity was good," Skubal told reporters. "Execution was good. I feel like I threw a ton of strikes. I was in the zone a lot today. Good day."
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