NL Central

Amed Rosario is heading to a new team after being designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Dodgers last week.

The Cincinnati Reds announced Sunday that they have claimed the infielder off of waivers following his short stint in Los Angeles.

The eighth-year veteran was finding his rhythm with the Dodgers, and he'll now look to keep his momentum as he heads to Cincinnati.

Rosario was traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Dodgers at the deadline and played just five games in Los Angeles. On the year, he has a .305 batting average, two home runs and 28 RBI. Should his batting average stay in that range, it would be a career high.

The Dodgers picked up Rosario for some added insurance in case of another injury and while he was a solid addition to the lineup, they no longer needed him with Mookie Betts returning, thus designating him for assignement.

Rosario has proved to be a versatile player this season, spending time at second base, shortstop, third base and right field between the Dodgers and Rays. One such role he could take over with the Reds could be third base, where Noelvi Marte currently plays.

Marte has struggled this year with a .181 batting average, three homers and 12 RBI, and Rosario could serve as an upgrade as the younger player looks to continue developing.

Even with the addition of Rosario, a playoff bid is a longshot for the Reds at this point in the season. Cincinnati is currently sitting in fourth place in the NL Central at 60-63 and would need a strong finish to earn a trip to the postseason.

Livvy Dunne has apparently been working on her Paul Skenes impression lately.

The LSU gymnastics star appeared at Fanatics Fest on Saturday rocking a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform and even a fake mustache like Skenes'. She then did her best to replicate what Skenes does on the mound.

While she doesn't have quite as much velocity as her boyfriend, she did add some flair with a flip afterward, something that we likely won't ever see Skenes do after striking a batter out.

Perhaps Dunne can spend the rest of her offseason in the bullpen with Skenes working on her fastball, and in return maybe Skenes will work on his gymnastics skills.

Skenes is off the a tremendous star in his rookie year with the Pirates. The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 MLB draft has 121 strikeouts, a 2.30 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP in 16 starts, also recording a 7-2 record.

The LSU standout will look to continue his rise to stardom in the final stretch of the season.

Meanwhile for Dunne, she'll make her return to LSU for her fifth season later this year. She helped lead the Tigers to their fifth SEC title and first-ever national championship in 2024 and will look to add to that success this season.

Christian Yelich's 2024 season is officially over.

The Milwaukee Brewers outfielder posted a video to X where he announced that he would be undergoing season-ending surgery on his back. This comes after he said that no surgery was planned in July.

"It just got to the point where it wasn't getting better," Yelich said. "I tried everything I could and I ran out of options. It came time to make a decision, it was the best option that we had. These things happen, you get hurt, you get fixed and then you get back out there."

Yelich went on the injured list July 24 due to back inflammation. This is something he has been dealing with since his time with the Marlins earlier in his career.

He was hitting .315/.406/.504 with 11 home runs, 42 RBIs and 21 stolen bases in 2024. This production was reminiscent of his 2018-2019 MVP form and he was a true game changer for the Brewers.

The 32-year-old will now hope surgery can solve the issue and allow him to return to full health in 2025 and beyond. Milwaukee, meanwhile, will hope his absence does not derail the season.

The Brewers are 69-52 and hold a nine-game lead for the NL Central crown. They are currently in possession of the third division leader spot and would be in line to play the worst Wild Card team in the Wild Card round.

The Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds will meet for a game at one of the most iconic motorsports venues during the 2025 season.

MLB announced on Friday that the Braves and Reds will face each other at NASCAR's famed Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee on August 2.

By scheduling a game at Bristol Motor Speedway, MLB is adding another venue to its list for special events. In recent seasons, the league has scheduled games at the Field of Dreams in Iowa, the historic Rickwood Field in Birmingham, and Williamsport, Pennsylvania, site of the Little League World Series.

The league has also expanded its international schedule with games in London, Mexico City, Tokyo and Seoul.

Bristol is no stranger to special events, as it hosts two NASCAR races per year that draw nearly 150,000 spectators. In 2016, the venue hosted a college football game between Tennessee and Virginia Tech that drew a crowd of 156,990, the largest ever for an NCAA football game.

The Braves have been one of the top teams in the National League over the past few seasons, while the Reds are led by one of the most exciting players in the majors, shortstop Elly De La Cruz.

Fans will certainly be pumped to watch Atlanta and Cincinnati battle it out at Bristol next year.

There's no denying that Cincinnati Reds star Elly De La Cruz brings an edge every time he steps up to the plate, and the shortstop had no issue calling himself the most exciting player in the majors.

"You're sitting right in front of him," De La Cruz said when ESPN's Jeff Passan asked who the most exciting player is. "...Because I love the game and I enjoy playing baseball. The fans seem like they enjoy watching me play."

De La Cruz has taken a major leap in his second year in the majors. The 22-year-old has 18 home runs (including one inside-the-park home run) and 45 RBI through 109 games, both totals being career-highs, and he has a .255 batting average.

But what makes De La Cruz so exciting isn't necessarily what he does at the plate, but what he does once he's on base. The speedy shortstop has a majors-leading 57 steals so far this season and the player closest to him, Brice Turang, only has 32 stolen bases.

It seems like every time he gets on base he goes for a steal, and he's successful more often than not. Since 2018, just two players have reached the 50+ steal mark, reigning MVP Ronald Acuña Jr. being the other alongside De La Cruz.

Acuña had 73 stolen bases last year, which was the most since 1992. With plenty of time left in the season, De La Cruz could surpass that mark. While he's still early into his career, De La Cruz being the first player to reach 100 steals in a season since 1987 doesn't seem to unrealistic.

For now, he'll look to help the Reds as they continue their rebuild. Barring a miraculous finish to the season, Cincinnati will miss the postseason for a fourth consecutive year. With a young star like De La Cruz, the Reds could be on their way to a bright future.

As a handful of teams eye Jameson Taillon, the Chicago Cubs starting pitcher said he hasn't had to veto any potential trades yet, per The Athletic's Patrick Mooney.

Taillon has a 10-team no-trade list, meaning he can veto trades to certain teams. With the trade deadline looming, Taillon will have to approve of whatever team the Cubs want to trade him to, if any.

"I haven't had to say yes or no to anything," he said.

Last week, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported that the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox are both interested in Taillon, though the team hadn't yet decided whether it would be a buyer or a seller at the deadline.

Taillon, who is in his second year with the Cubs, has a 3.35, 82 strikeouts and a 7-6 record. He would be of great assistance to a pair of teams looking to make a postseason run like the Yankees and Red Sox.

While it's been a disappointing 51-57 season for the Cubs, they are just six games back from the final wild-card spot, so a postseason run is still very much on the table for Chicago.

Cubs president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said the team had no plans to pursue rental players at the deadline, indicating it won't make any major sacrifices in return for a shot at a deep postseason run.

Still, it's unclear whether Chicago is a buyer or seller, as it landed an All-Star in Isaac Parades from the Tampa Bay Rays on Sunday. In the hours ahead of Tuesday's deadline, the Cubs' position will become clearer, and Taillon's future will be decided.

The Milwaukee Brewers reportedly made a move to fortify their starting rotation on Monday.

According to Robert Murray of FanSided, the Brewers acquired starting pitcher Frankie Montas from the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds will receive outfielder Joey Wiemer and pitcher Jakob Junis in return, per Joel Sherman of the New York Post.

There had been previous buzz that Montas was drawing interest from the Baltimore Orioles, but now he's staying in the Midwest.

Montas joined the Reds on a one-year deal worth $14 million with a $20 million mutual option for the 2025 season. However, the veteran right-hander has struggled throughout this year with a 4-8 record in 19 starts while posting a 5.01 ERA, a 1.44 WHIP and 78 strikeouts in 93.1 innings pitched.

Montas underwent shoulder surgery in February 2023 that cost him virtually all of last season. He appears to still be working his way back to form, but the Brewers appear to be confident that he will be a worthy acquisition.

Milwaukee leads the NL Central with a 60-45 record. The team has been trying to overcome a string of injuries on its pitching staff, as starters Joe Ross (back) and DL Hall (knee) are both on the 60-day injured list. Reliever Trevor Megil, who was the team's primary closer in the absence of two-time All-Star Devin Williams, was placed on the 15-day IL on Monday with a back injury. Williams made his season debut on Sunday after dealing with a back injury of his own.

The Brewers are hoping that Montas will provide depth as their other pitchers continue to recover ahead of the chase for the playoffs.

Isaac Paredes is headed to the Friendly Confines.

The Tampa Bay Rays are trading the All-Star third baseman to the Chicago Cubs for a return that includes Christopher Morel and prospects Ty Johnson and Hunter Bigge, the team announced Sunday.

The move comes as Paredes had been linked to teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees and Houston Astros ahead of the 2024 MLB Trade Deadline.

Paredes is hitting .247/.355/.438 with 16 home runs and 55 RBIs in 2024. He has been playing third base for the majority of his games in 2024, but has seen time at first base and designated hitter as well. Additionally, he has played shortstop and second base earlier in his career.

The move allows the Rays to recoup assets like Morel, who has multiple years of control and is in need of a change in scenery. He is hitting just .199 in 2024, but notably has 18 home runs and 51 RBIs.

Paredes also has multiple years of control and will be a long-term investment for Chicago. This is important, as the current playoff chances for the Cubs are not very high.

Chicago is 50-56 and currently sits in last place in the NL Central. The team is six games out of the final Wild Card spot and while a run is technically possible, it certainly is not likely enough to trigger a true rental.

The acquisition of Paredes bolsters the Cubs infield and also could allow the team to sell of other pieces like outfielder Cody Bellinger without seeing too much of a decline in the lineups production.

The 2024 MLB Trade Deadline is set for July 30 at 6 p.m. ET.

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt isn't having his best season, but he was able to bask in the moment after reaching his 2,000th career hit.

"This hasn't been my best year—it's probably been my worst year in the big leagues performance-wise—but hopefully I can change that going forward," said Goldschmidt,. "That's the goal. At some point -- maybe after the season or when my career is over—that's when I can say, 'Oh, that's pretty cool to have accomplished that.'"

Goldschmidt hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the 10th inning for his 2,000th hit, but the Cardinals still fell to the Nationals 10-8 on Friday. He is one of five active players with 2,000 hits, joining Freddie Freeman, Jose Altuve, Joey Votto and Andrew McCutchen.

In his 13th MLB season, Goldschmidt is in the midst of the worst hitting stretch of his career. He's hitting .227/.286/.379 with 15 home runs and 40 runs batted in through 100 games.

Largely healthy throughout his career, he has played in at least 145 games in eight of the last nine full seasons.

Reaching the 2,000-hit mark may be the thing needed to turn Goldschmidt's season around. He's not only struggled to put the ball in play, striking out 125 times this season, but he's also been walking at a significantly lower rate than previous seasons.

As he approaches his 37th birthday, it's fair to wonder if Goldschmidt is simply losing the battle to father time. That said, he still has plenty of milestones remaining in his career if he chooses to keep playing.

The Houston Astros are interested in potentially acquiring Chicago Cubs starter Jameson Taillon ahead of the MLB trade deadline, according to Chandler Rome, Ken Rosenthal and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic.

USA Today's Bob Nightengale previously reported on Sunday that the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox have "had talks" with Chicago regarding Taillon.

With the Cubs currently sitting 5.5 games back from the final National League wild card spot, they may choose to move the 32-year-old right-hander.

On Tuesday, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com listed Chicago among the teams that may look to "thread the buy/sell needle" prior to the deadline. This could result in the departure of Taillon, who'll be turning 33 years old in November.

The Cubs might look to capitalize on his current trade value, as he's accumulated a career-best 2.96 ERA through his first 17 starts in 2024. He also recorded a 7-5 record, accumulating 78 strikeouts compared to 21 walks.

Rome, Rosenthal and Mooney noted on Thursday that the Astros are interested in Taillon as he would fill a need for the team during the 2024 season and beyond. He currently has two more years left on his contract before he hits unrestricted free agency in 2027.

While the Astros still hold a narrow one-game lead in the AL West, starting pitching has not been the team's strong suit following a string of injuries. Houston has an ERA of 4.24 among starters in 2024, representing the No. 19 mark in the majors (via MLB.com).

Astros general manager Dana Brown was honest about his interest in acquiring some rotation help during a Monday appearance on MLB Network Radio.

"Try to go big and see if there's a deal that makes sense for the organization," Brown said (h/t CBS Sports' R.J. Anderson). "If that doesn't work, we'll go down to mid-level and hopefully we can land something there. But it doesn't hurt to ask."

The Astros will likely continue to register interest in Taillon ahead of the trade deadline on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET.