MLB Player News

Cron's absence from the lineup Saturday against Miami is due to back stiffness, Patrick Lyons of TheDNVR.com reports.

Cron's late scratch looked potentially like a development which foreshadowed a trade, as the veteran is in the final year of his contract and could make for a fairly interesting rental. It remains entirely possible that he'll spend the last two months of the season elsewhere, but a move doesn't seem imminent following the news that he's dealing with a minor injury. Michael Toglia will handle first base Saturday.

Cron was scratched from the lineup ahead of Saturday's game against the Marlins.

The Rockies have yet to announce a reason for Cron's absence. It could be injury or illness, though at this time of year, it could also indicate that a trade is coming. Cron owns a subpar 92 wRC+ this season but could still be attractive as a rental, especially as he's been in great form recently, homering four times in his last five games. Michael Toglia will take over for him at first base.

Young was optioned to Triple-A Iowa on Saturday, Taylor McGregor of Marquee Sports Network reports.

Young will be the player to make way as Dansby Swanson (heel) returns from the injured list. Young didn't accomplish much in 13 games following his late-June promotion, hitting .171/.256/.371.

Freeman went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double, three RBI, three runs scored and two walks in Friday's victory over the Rangers.

Freeman stuffed the box score with yet another big performance, with his 18th home run of the year coming on a solo shot in the fifth inning. The slugging first baseman has produced nine multi-hit performances over his last 20 games, going 28-for-81 (.346) during that stretch. Freeman boosted his season slash line to .322/.405/.565 with 55 extra-base hits and 81 runs scored.

Cron went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run in the Rockies' defeat of the Marlins on Friday.

The 33-year-old slugger opened the scoring by taking Marlins left-hander Braxton Garrett deep in the top of the first inning, and he later added a single off right-hander Dylan Floro in the top of the eighth. Cron has appeared in only 53 games this season due to injuries, but he's generally been a reliable source of power when healthy and has 11 home runs and 31 RBI.

Wade (hamstring) is leading off and starting at first base Friday in Washington.

He exited Tuesday's game with cramping in his left hamstring, but Wade is ready to return to action for a favorable matchup against righty Jake Irvin. Wade will likely start again Saturday with righty Josiah Gray on the bump for the Nats before heading to the bench Sunday against lefty MacKenzie Gore.

Hall was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday.

With Bryce Harper making his first start at first base Friday and Kyle Schwarber being used at designated hitter, Hall is headed back to the minors. He has just a .437 OPS at the big-league level this season.

Ellis was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday.

Ellis has gone 5-for-23 with a couple homers during his time in the majors this season. He wasn't going to be playing much with Josh Harrison back from the injured list.

Smith is absent from the lineup for Friday's game against the Giants.

The Giants are sending southpaw Alex Wood to the mound, so the left-handed hitting Smith will begin this one on the bench. Michael Chavis is handling first base.

Flores went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Thursday's 5-1 loss to the Reds.

The Giants put just four runners on base, and Flores accounted for half of those instances. The infielder has taken advantage of more playing time in July, batting .417 (20-for-48) over 14 contests this month. He's also homered four times in his last four games. For the season, he's at a .292/.349/.526 slash line with 12 homers, 31 RBI, 29 runs scored and 13 doubles over 232 plate appearances. Until LaMonte Wade (hamstring) is ready to play, Flores will likely see a majority of the work at first base.