Last updated: Monday, September 7, 2026. Rosters expanded on September 1 and all 30 clubs added two players. The first week of the month produced one new debut worth logging, the Reds selecting Carlos Jorge on Friday. The table grows as further call-ups are announced through September.
Tuesday, every MLB active roster grows from 26 to 28 – and the season’s final month of debuts, bullpen reinforcements and auditions begins. This tracker logs the notable September call-ups league-wide as clubs announce them: the top prospects getting first looks, the fresh arms joining pennant races, and the contract selections that ripple through 40-man rosters.
The modern expansion is small by design – two spots, one extra pitcher allowed – which makes every addition a real decision. The rules and the moves, all here.
MLB ROSTER TRACKER
MLB September Call-Ups Tracker 2026
Every notable roster-expansion move, starting Sept 1
THE DATE
Tuesday, Sept 1
Active rosters expand from 26 to 28
THE LIMIT
+2 players
Max 28, with a 14-pitcher cap
THE POOL
40-man only
Call-ups must already be on the Reserve List
WHO COMES UP
Prospects & arms
Debuts, pennant-race depth and September auditions
September call-ups tracker
Notable call-ups league-wide, updated as clubs announce. Highlighted rows are the debuts that matter most for the playoff races
Team
Player (Pos)
The story
Padres
Ethan Salas (C)
The headline call-up. The No. 1 prospect in the system, 20 years old and now the youngest player in the majors, hit .326 with a .949 OPS in 24 Triple-A games after starting the year in Double-A. San Diego is chasing the last NL wild card and could give him real starts.
Mariners
Lazaro Montes (OF)
Homered to straightaway center at Fenway in his debut Tuesday night as Seattle beat Boston. A 21 year old Cuban with big left handed power and contact questions, called up to a clubhouse that badly needed a lift.
Dodgers
Will Smith (C), Dalton Rushing (C)
Not a call-up in the usual sense: both came off the injured list Tuesday. Smith had been out since early June with neck inflammation and is the more important return. Rushing’s forearm will likely keep him from catching, so he is a bench bat with Hunter Feduccia backing up.
Orioles
Heston Kjerstad (OF), Luis De León (LHP)
De León is the No. 7 prospect in the system. Kjerstad returns for another look with Baltimore still a game or so out of the last AL wild card.
Cubs
BJ Murray Jr. (INF/OF)
Debuted at DH against Milwaukee and got his first hit. A switch hitter who hit .290 with a .896 OPS from the left side and .308 from the right in Triple-A, and only the tenth Bahamian born player to reach the majors.
Cardinals
Leo Bernal (C)
Started 70 games at Triple-A Memphis with an .831 OPS. Joins a catching group that already has three players with 40 or more starts, and he and Ivan Herrera are two of the eight Panamanians to appear in the majors this season.
Astros
Ronel Blanco (RHP)
Recalled after a 7.71 ERA in five starts back from Tommy John surgery, then threw four scoreless innings in Tuesday’s loss to the White Sox. Houston leads the AL West at .500 and needs any rotation stability it can find.
White Sox
Tommy Pham (OF)
Acquired from the Phillies’ Triple-A affiliate, where he was not on the 40-man and therefore still tradeable after the deadline. At 38 he is the second oldest position player in the majors behind Paul Goldschmidt, brought in as a veteran voice for a young division leader.
Twins
Ben Ross (UTIL)
The No. 13 prospect in the system, 15 homers and an .810 OPS in Triple-A. Top prospect Walker Jenkins came up in late August, ahead of the postseason eligibility deadline, so he is not technically a September call-up.
Yankees
John Schreiber (RHP)
Claimed off waivers from Kansas City after the Yankees were criticized for not adding bullpen help at the deadline. A low slot right hander with a ground ball profile whose numbers dipped this year.
Brewers
Bo Naylor (C)
The former Guardians starting catcher, traded to Milwaukee before the deadline and recalled after a .903 OPS in 14 Triple-A games. A left handed bench bat behind William Contreras and Gary Sanchez for the team with the best record in baseball.
Angels
Kyren Paris (SS)
Demoted all the way to Double-A to start the year after his 2025 collapse, then posted the seventh best wRC+ among Pacific Coast League regulars once he got back to Triple-A. A September audition for a once promising athlete.
Reds
Carlos Jorge (OF)
Selected Friday, Sept. 4, debuted that night as a pinch hitter and started in center field the next day. The 22 year old Dominican hit a combined .308 with a .376 on base percentage across Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville and stole 33 bases in 38 attempts. Plus speed, plus center field defense, very little power, and arguably the fastest player in the organization. Ranked anywhere from 9th to 16th in the Reds system depending on the outlet. Cincinnati sent Ivan Johnson down to make room.
How September roster expansion works
The modern rules
Rule
Detail
26 becomes 28
From September 1 through the end of the regular season, active rosters grow by two – the tamed 2020 replacement for the old unlimited September
14 pitchers max
The pitcher cap grows by one – most clubs add exactly one arm and one bat
The 40-man gate
Only players already on the 40-man roster can come up – September’s real drama is often the contract selections that clear that gate
Option math still applies
A September call-up is still an optional assignment ending – but late-season recalls rarely burn anything with under 20 days left
Postseason eligibility
Traditional rule of thumb: players in the organization by September 1 can appear on a playoff roster – the deadline that makes today’s moves matter in October
SEPTEMBER FACTS
The debut window
September is baseball’s traditional coming-out month – contenders and also-rans alike hand first MLB games to their readiest prospects.
Two spots force real choices
The old 40-man September free-for-all let everyone up; the modern +2 makes each addition a statement about the club’s priorities.
Watch the corresponding moves
Every selection to the 40-man for a call-up forces a DFA or 60-day IL move somewhere – September’s adds ripple through the transaction wire.
Three categories fill this page. Prospect debuts: September remains baseball’s traditional coming-out month, and the first wave of call-ups tells you which farm systems believe their kids are ready. Contender reinforcements: October-bound clubs almost universally add a fresh arm under the 14-pitcher allowance, plus a bench bat or pinch-runner built for one job. And auditions: for teams out of it, September is a five-week tryout for next year’s roster – at-bats and innings handed to players the front office needs to evaluate. The system’s history and mechanics live in our September call-ups explainer.
The Gate Behind the Gate
The quiet drama is the 40-man roster: only Reserve List players can come up, so a call-up for anyone not yet on the 40 requires selecting his contract – which requires an open spot – which often requires a DFA or a 60-day IL move first. September’s adds always cast transaction shadows, and this tracker notes the corresponding moves alongside the promotions. The 26-man roster rules and the options system govern the rest of the machinery.
The Deadline That Comes First
Before any roster expands, there’s a wall on Monday night. To be eligible for a club’s postseason roster, a player must be in the organization — on the active roster, the injured list, the bereavement list or the restricted list — by 11:59 p.m. ET on August 31. Anyone who arrives after that is generally ineligible for October, barring the injury-replacement exceptions.
That deadline shapes call-up timing more than most fans realize. A contender that wants a young arm available in October has to get him into the organization by Monday night, even if the actual promotion to the active roster waits until Tuesday or later. It also creates a quirk of definition: a player promoted on Aug. 31 to beat the wall is not technically a September call-up at all, and won’t appear on this page — the same reason past prospects called up in the final days of August get left off these lists. Full detail is in our MLB playoff roster rules explainer.
What Expansion Actually Allows
Rule
Through Aug. 31
Sept. 1 onward
Active roster
26 players
28 players
Pitcher limit
13
14
Doubleheader days
27 players
29 players
Who’s eligible
40-man roster only — a non-roster promotion requires a corresponding 40-man move
Requirement
Clubs must carry all 28 spots in September; a five-player taxi squad is permitted on road trips
Qualifying two-way players don’t count against the pitcher limit. For the history of how the modern rule replaced the old 40-man free-for-all, see our September call-ups explainer.
The Bottom Line
Rosters expanded Tuesday and the first wave is in. Ethan Salas in San Diego is the biggest name, a 20 year old catcher and the youngest player in the majors, joining a wild card chase. Lazaro Montes homered in his Mariners debut at Fenway. The Dodgers got Will Smith back from a three month absence on the same day, which is not a call-up but matters more than most of them. Every notable addition, corresponding move and debut keeps getting logged here through the end of the regular season.
