MLB Player News

France went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in a 7-5 win against Washington on Friday.

France's long ball was a big one, as he tied the game 5-5 with a solo shot in the sixth inning. The veteran infielder is holding down the strong side of a first-base platoon and has given San Diego an offensive boost with a .286/.314/.541 slash line, six homers, 17 RBI and one stolen base through 36 contests. France is again starting at first base while batting seventh Saturday in the second game of the series.

Norby isn't in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Mets.

Norby will get a breather after going 1-for-5 with three strikeouts during Friday's series opener. Liam Hicks will get the nod at first base Saturday, and Leo Jimenez will serve as the DH.

Mead went 2-for-4 with a walk, a two-run home run and a second run scored in Friday's 7-5 loss to the Padres.

The former Rays top prospect gave the Nationals an early 2-1 lead when he launched a mediocre Lucas Giolito fastball 414 feet to center field in the first inning. Mead is up to eight homers on the season, and four of them have come in his last six games as he seizes the starting job at third base. During that heater, the 25-year-old is batting .320 (8-for-25) with six RBI and six runs.

Busch went 3-for-5 with a run scored and two RBI in Friday's 6-5 loss to the Cardinals.

Busch has at least one hit in five of his last six games, and during that time, he's slashing .348/.500/.609 with two home runs and six RBI. Overall, the first baseman has a more subdued .238/.372/.388 slash line, but he's been trending in the right direction recently after a slow start to the season. Busch should also continue to see ample playing time as the Cubs don't have a natural replacement for him at first on their roster.

Fernandez went 3-for-5 with two doubles and one RBI in Friday's 7-6 extra-inning loss to the Mariners.

Fernandez entered Friday just 1-for-17 over his last six games. The infielder was able to break out with a big game, and after Nolan Arenado (arm/groin) was plunked in the ninth inning, there's the possibility Fernandez will be needed to fill in at third base for a while longer. Fernandez is hitting .268 with a .677 OPS, three home runs, 15 RBI, 23 runs scored and six stolen bases across 49 contests this season.

Freeman went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 4-2 win over the Phillies.

This was Freeman's second consecutive game with a homer. He's gone deep four times over his last nine contests, a span in which he's hitting .367 (11-for-30) with four doubles and seven RBI. That stretch accounts for half of his eight homers this season, and he's batting .271 with an .839 OPS, 27 RBI, 28 runs scored, 15 doubles and two stolen bases over 54 contests.

Devers went 2-for-4 with an RBI triple, one walk and a run scored in Friday's 8-6 loss to the Rockies.

Devers hit his first triple of the season in the top of the ninth inning and later scored on a Matt Chapman single to give the Giants a 6-3 lead. After a really poor start to the season, Devers has been swinging the bat better this month. He's hit safely in 20 of 25 games in May and has eight multi-hit efforts to push his slash line to .247/.292/.420 with seven homers, 29 RBI, 22 runs scored and a 14:70 BB:K across 236 plate appearances this season. Devers' 5.9 percent walk rate is well below his 15.4 percent number from last season. He also has a career-low .406 xSLG and .288 xwOBA.

Vientos went 1-for-4 with a solo home run during the Mets' 9-7 extra-inning win over the Marlins on Friday.

Vientos extended the Mets' lead to 5-1 in the third inning after taking Max Meyer deep to left-center field for a solo home run. It was the seventh long ball of the year for Vientos, five of which have come over his last 24 games since May 3. He is slashing .224/.261/.391 with 24 RBI and 15 extra-base hits over 184 plate appearances this season.

Polanco (Achilles) will play two more rehab games and could be activated from the 10-day injured list some time next week on the Mets' road trip, Andrew Tredinnick of The Bergen Record reports.

Polanco has played one rehab game with Double-A Binghamton to this point, going 1-for-2 with a single and a strikeout. He's been out since mid-April with a right wrist contusion and left Achilles bursitis, and it's the latter injury that's lengthened his recovery. When he does return from the IL, Polanco will be used primarily at designated hitter.

Ortiz has hit safely in seven straight games for Triple-A Rochester, batting .333 (10-for-30) with seven home runs and 20 RBI during that stretch.

The 24-year-old first baseman is decimating the International League to close out May as he turns things around following a sluggish start to the season. At the end of April, Ortiz carried a .231/.375/.352 slash line with just one homer in 27 games. If he keeps swinging a hot bat, he could slug his way into the Nationals' 1B/DH picture over the summer.