MLB Player News
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Yandy Diaz 1B | TB
Rays' Yandy Diaz: Cleared for first base
Diaz will bat leadoff and play first base in Wednesday's AL Wild Card Game in Oakland, Josh Tolentino of The Athletic reports.
Diaz was expected to be limited to designated hitter duty after missing most of the second half with a bruised foot, but he has apparently been cleared to take the field. It should be noted that the Rays will bat first and are a famously creative team, however, so there's at least a chance that Diaz takes his at-bat and then is replaced in the bottom half of the inning.
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Kole Calhoun 1B | CLE
Angels' Kole Calhoun: Slumps to close out season
Calhoun went 1-for-3 with a double, a walk and a run scored Sunday in the Angels' 8-5 loss to the Astros.
Calhoun wrapped up the 2019 campaign with just three hits in 24 at-bats over his final seven contests, but his .792 OPS still represented a career-best mark for any season in which he played at least 100 games. Though Calhoun was one of the team's more productive hitters, the Angels are expected to decline the 31-year-old's $14 million team option for 2020 later this fall, according to Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports. If that's the case, Calhoun could still re-sign with the Angels later in the offseason at a lower salary or look for work elsewhere as a strong-side platoon option in the outfield.
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Luke Voit 1B | NYM
Yankees' Luke Voit: ALDS roster spot in jeopardy
Voit's recent slump may cost him a spot on the ALDS roster, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic reports.
Voit struck out 13 times and collected only one hit over his last 32 at-bats, putting him at risk of being left off the roster at the start of the postseason. Per Brendan Kuty of The Newark Star-Ledger, Voit believes his recent struggles are mental and not related to the sports hernia he was diagnosed with in late July. To make the matter more complicated, Mike Ford put together a strong September, hitting .353 with three homers and 10 RBI in 34 at-bats. With DJ LeMahieu slated to play first base in the playoffs and Edwin Encarnacion likely returning to the fold as DH, the Yankees have no room to carry both Voit and Ford on the roster.
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C.J. Cron 1B | BOS
Twins' C.J. Cron: Blasts 25th homer
Cron went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Sunday's win over Minnesota.
Cron kicked off the scoring with a two-run shot to left field in the first inning. The blast was his second in as many contests after Cron failed to go deep in his first 17 games in September. The 29-year-old finishes his first season in Minnesota with a .253/.311/.469 slash line along with 25 homers and a career-high 78 RBI.
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Matt Olson 1B | ATL
Athletics' Matt Olson: Sitting out finale
Olson is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mariners, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The 25-year-old will step out of the starting nine for the first time since early June, a stretch of 98 consecutive starts in which he posted a .927 OPS with 27 homers. Seth Brown will start at first base Sunday as Olson rests up for Wednesday's Wild Card Game.
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Yandy Diaz 1B | TB
Rays' Yandy Diaz: Returns from IL for finale
Diaz (foot) was activated off the 60-day injured list ahead of Sunday's finale at Toronto, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.
Diaz has been sidelined with the bruised left foot since late July but will rejoin the Rays for the final game of the regular season. The 28-year-old will be limited to serving as the designated hitter during the playoffs, which begin with Wednesday's AL Wild Card Game in Oakland. Diaz will bat leadoff as the DH on Sunday, per Josh Tolentino of The Athletic.
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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. 1B | TOR
Blue Jays' Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: Sitting for season finale
Guerrero (knee) is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Guerrero was scratched from Saturday's lineup with right knee soreness, so it's not much of a surprise to see him held out Saturday. The 20-year-old figures to finish his rookie campaign with a .272/.339/.433 slash line, 15 home runs and 69 RBI in 123 games. Breyvic Valera will start at the hot corner in the season finale.