The San Diego Padres activated Jackson Merrill from the injured list Tuesday after the outfielder was sidelined for a month with a strained left hamstring.

Merrill was batting fourth against the Yankees and playing center field after joining the Padres on Monday. He returned after playing in a pair of injury rehabilitation games for Double-A San Antonio during the weekend.

Merrill, who last year was selected for the NL All-Star team and he finished second to Pittsburgh pitcher Paul Skenes in the NL Rookie of the Year voting, was placed on the injured list April 8, a week after he signed a $135 million, nine-year contract following a standout rookie season during which he was selected for the NL All-Star team and he finished second to Pittsburgh pitcher Paul Skenes in the NL Rookie of the Year voting. Before landing on the injured list, Merrill was hitting .378 (14 for 37) with three homers and 10 RBIs in eight games.

Yankees demote struggling pitcher Carrasco: Needing another reliever, the New York Yankees designated struggling starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco for assignment. The Yankees recalled Yerry de Los Santos from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre to replace Carrasco.

Carrasco was 2-2 with a 5.91 ERA in eight appearances and made six starts for the Yankees, whose rotation began Tuesday with a 3.92 ERA.

Former Dodgers pitcher Stripling retires: Veteran pitcher Ross Stripling announced his retirement, about six weeks after the Kansas City Royals released him following a monthlong tryout during spring training. Stripling went 40-54 with a 4.17 ERA and four saves in 248 appearances with the Dodgers, Toronto, San Francisco and Oakland. The right-hander was an All-Star for the Dodgers in 2018, going 8-6 with a 3.02 ERA in 122 innings while bouncing between the starting rotation and the bullpen.

Also: Evan Carter was recalled by the Texas Rangers from Triple-A Round Rock, where the outfielder had been all this season after being hurt most of last year following his impressive debut late in the run to their only World Series title in 2023. ... Cincinnati Reds rookie left fielder Tyler Callihan is expected to miss at least two months following surgery to repair his fractured left forearm suffered while attempting a sliding catch a night earlier.