Ronald Acuna Jr feels around "70 per cent fit" in his recovery from a long-term knee injury but is happy to continue playing the role of cheerleader for the Atlanta Braves for the time being.
The 23-year-old was ruled out for the season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained in July when attempting an outfield catch against the Miami Marlins.
Acuna was in MVP contention at the time of his injury with a .283 batting average, 24 home runs, 52 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.
While the two-time All-Star has been unable to help the Braves on the field, he has been present in the stands for Games 1 and 2 of his side's National League Championship Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Braves took a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series after coming through in the bottom of the ninth inning for the second consecutive night on Sunday, Eddie Rosario's two-out single securing a 5-4 win in Game 2.
Watching on from the clubhouse has been a frustrating experience for Acuna but, just three months on from surgery on his damaged ACL, he will not rush his return to action.
"Honestly, this is one the hardest moments of my career, to be here at the stadium and not be able to join my team-mates out there," he said through an interpreter.
"There's nothing you can do about that. So for me, it's just about being here and continuing to give support as if I was playing.
"I feel good, but in the same sense, I feel as good as I did about two months ago. It's kind of been a gradual process.
"But if I had to put a percentage on it, I'd say I'm about 70 per cent. But that's just my personal opinion as far as I'm feeling.
"But as far as the return and where I'm actually at, I leave those decisions up to the doctors and trainers.
"I don't have a date in mind. It's a knee. The knee is a big focal point in terms of structure and stability for any athlete. So I'm going to take my time with it for sure."
Yankees slugger Judge goes back on injured list
The New York Yankees will be without slugger Aaron Judge for at least the next 10 days, with the superstar going back on the injured list with a contusion and sprained ligament in his right big toe.
An MRI on Tuesday showed Judge has no break or fracture in his toe, but a sprain will keep him sidelined until at least mid-June.
The 2022 AL MVP sustained the injury while making a highlight-reel catch against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday. He knocked open the door of the visiting bullpen while making the catch and slammed his toe against the concrete at the bottom of the wall.
This is the second time this season that Judge will spend time on the injured list after a right hip strain forced him to miss two weeks in late April/early May.
Judge is putting together another stellar season, batting .291 with an AL-best 19 home runs and 40 RBIs in 49 games.
Blue Jays send struggling Alek Manoah to minors
The 2022 season could not have gone much better for Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Alek Manoah.
The 2023 season, meanwhile, could not have started much worse for the struggling right-hander.
The Blue Jays sent Manoah to the rookie-level Florida Complex League on Tuesday, one day after he managed to get just one out in an 11-4 loss to the Houston Astros.
The 25-year-old has been a major disappointment this season after finishing third in AL Cy Young Award balloting in 2022 and earning a selection to the All-Star Game.
Through 58 innings and 13 starts this year, Manoah has surrendered 45 runs - 10 fewer runs than he permitted all of 2022 in 196 2/3 innings.
He's 1-7 with a 6.36 ERA this year after going 16-7 with a 2.24 ERA in 31 starts last season. As a rookie in 2021, he was 9-2 with a 3.22 ERA in 20 starts.
Among the 96 players in the majors with at least 50 innings pitched this season, Manoah's ERA is the ninth highest while his 1.90 WHIP is second worst.
This is after he compiled the fourth-lowest ERA and 10th-lowest WHIP (0.99), among all qualifying MLB pitchers in 2022.
His latest outing was the shortest out of 64 career starts.
Manoah faced nine Astros and got just one out, allowing six runs and seven hits - including a grand slam - while walking one.
He'll now be working at one of the lowest minor league levels.
Reds call up highly touted prospect Elly De La Cruz
The future is now for the Cincinnati Reds.
Elly De La Cruz will make his highly anticipated major league debut after the Reds called up the touted prospect ahead of Tuesday's series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
With the lethal combination of power and speed, the 21-year-old shortstop is ranked as Baseball America's third-best prospect, and has been crushing the ball in the minors.
In 38 games this season for Triple-A Louisville, Cruz slashed .297/.398/.633 with 12 home runs, 11 doubles and 11 stolen bases. He's also driven in 36 runs and scored 38.
This came after he hit .304 with 28 homers and stole 47 bases in 120 games last year for Class A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga.
Signed as a teenager by Cincinnati out of the Dominican Republic, the tall middle infielder has drawn comparisons to Pittsburgh Pirates shortstop Oneil Cruz.
De La Cruz joins a Reds team that has won three in a row to improve to 27-33, and is surprisingly in the mix in the pedestrian NL Central, sitting 5 /1/2 games behind the first-place Pirates.
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