MLB Player News

Cron went 2-for-4 with a run in Wednesday's 5-0 win over the A's.

Cron was back in the lineup Wednesday after getting the night off Tuesday with southpaw Sean Manaea on the mound. The 27-year-old first baseman scored the first run of the game for the Angels when he came home on a second-inning Andrelton Simmons double, and he's now reached safely in four of his eight 2017 plate appearances. Cron should have plenty of RBI opportunities this season if he can stay healthy, considering he'll usually follow the potent trio of Kole Calhoun, Mike Trout and Albert Pujols in the order. He amassed career highs in doubles (25), triples (2), RBI (69) and batting average (.278) last season while matching a personal-best 16 home runs.

Calhoun went 3-for-5 with a run in Wednesday's 5-0 victory over the A's.

Calhoun was a table-setter out of the No. 2 hole and initiated Jharel Cotton's fifth-inning exit with the first of three consecutive singles by the Angels. The 29-year-old outfielder eventually came around to score on an Albert Pujols single for the final run of the night, and he's opened the 2017 season by hitting safely and scoring in each of the first three games.

Manager Terry Francona said Santana will start in the outfield against the Diamondbacks over the weekend, Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com reports.

With the Indians headed to Arizona over the weekend, where there will be no DH available, manager Terry Francona is going to experiment with Santana in the outfield in an attempt to put forth his top offensive lineup. Santana has only played one game in the outfield in his eight major-league seasons, though he saw time in left field during spring training. His performance in the outfield will be something to monitor moving forward now that he is competing for playing time with Edwin Encarnacion at first base in NL ballparks.

O'Hearn has been promoted and will begin the 2017 season at Triple-A Omaha, MLB.com's Jim Callis reports.

Hands down, O'Hearn is the best power-hitting prospect in the Royals' organization. The first baseman has hammered an average of 21 home runs per season in the minors since 2014. O'Hearn owns an impressive .288/.366/.501 slash line over 325 games at the lower levels, but his 29 percent strikeout rate is an obvious hindrance.

Abreu won't play Wednesday after the scheduled White Sox-Tigers game was postponed due to rain, MLB.com's Scott Merkin reports.

With rain descending on Chicago again Wednesday, the White Sox and Tigers will have a game postponed for the second time in the series. Wednesday's game will be made up as part of a straight doubleheader May 26. The two teams are on track to play Thursday at 2:10 p.m ET in the series finale.

Santana went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, two RBI and a walk in Tuesday's game against Texas.

The first baseman started the party by leading off the game with a blast to right field, his first long ball of the year. Rangers starter Martin Perez made the mistake of throwing Santana the same pitch (94 mph fastball) throughout the at-bat, and the slugger made him pay on the fourth delivery. The switch-hitter is now 4-for-8 with nine total bases through the season's first two games.

Cron is out of the lineup Tuesday against the A's.

Jefry Marte will take over at first base and bat fifth against lefty Sean Manaea. Cron hit just .237/.287/.387 against lefties last year while Marte hit .244/.322/.462 against southpaws in 2016. The two players may be deployed in a strict platoon at first base until Luis Valbuena (hamstring) is cleared to return to action.

Gurriel is not in the lineup for the Astros' matchup with the Mariners on Tuesday, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The 33-year-old had a quiet season debut, so with right-hander Hisashi Iwakuma taking the mound for Seattle, the Astros decided to give Gurriel the night off. Marwin Gonzalez will take his place in the lineup, batting ninth and playing first base.

Singleton was assigned to Double-A Corpus Christi to open the regular season, the Houston Chronicle's Jake Kaplan reports.

Singleton has already been removed from the Astros' 40-man roster, but he will still make $2 million this season in the penultimate year of the extension he signed in 2014. With A.J. Reed set to be the everyday first baseman at Triple-A, Singleton will need to go down to Double-A, a level he has not played at since 2013, in order to get everyday at-bats. It's unclear how Singleton's career would have been different if he never signed that extension, but it has worked as something of a gift and a curse, as he will need to wait two years to get a fresh start in a different organization unless the Astros are willing to buy him out.

Santana went 2-for-4 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored in Monday's 8-5 come-from-behind victory over the Rangers.

Hiis high OBP makes Santana an ideal candidate to hit leadoff for the Tribe. The switch-hitter had a career year in 2016 and could put up similar numbers with full health in 2017. He's the perfect corner-infield or utility player, especially in leagues that count his on-base skills.