MLB Player News

Bell will head to the bench for the next two games in an effort to get him some rest, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Bell has been slumping at the dish of late, slashing .138/.242/.172 with three RBI over his last eight contests, so the Pirates will give him some time off to regroup. Jose Osuna figures to see time at first base with Bell out of the lineup.

Alonso went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in the second game of Monday's doubleheader sweep of the Marlins.

His seventh-inning blast proved to be the game-winner. Alonso now has 35 homers through 112 games to go with a .259/.363/.585 slash line, and he figures to blow past Cody Bellinger's NL record for home runs by a rookie (39) sometime this month.

Freeman went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Atlanta's 5-3 loss to the Twins on Monday.

The 29-year-old star got his 27th homer of the season, touching up Jake Odorizzi with a fifth-inning solo blast in a losing effort. Freeman is in the midst of yet another standout campaign at the dish for the Braves, as this performance boosts his slash line to .303/.396/.562 over 500 plate appearances.

Cooper isn't in the starting lineup for Game 2 of Monday's doubleheader against the Mets.

Cooper took the collar in Game 1 (0-for-4), so he'll retreat to the bench for the nightcap. Martin Prado draws the start at first base and is set to bat seventh in Cooper's stead.

Cabrera signed a major-league contract with the Nationals on Monday, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

It didn't take long for Cabrera to find a new home after being released by the Rangers earlier Monday. The veteran infielder compiled a lackluster .235/.318/.393 slash line with 12 home runs and four stolen bases in 93 games with the Rangers before being designated for assignment, so he'll likely settle for a reserve role with the Nationals.

France has gone 21-for-44 (.477 average) with four home runs and 14 RBI over his last 10 games for Triple-A El Paso.

The hot run at the plate barely qualifies as an outlier performance for France, who is torching the Pacific Coast League to the tune of a .396/.473/.780 line across 311 plate appearances with El Paso. France's 1.253 OPS was nearly cut in half during his 34-game run with the Padres earlier in the season, but the 25-year-old should get another trial in the big leagues before 2019 comes to a close. Unfortunately for France, he may have to wait until rosters expand in September before receiving a callup, as the Padres don't have a pressing need for another corner infield-only bat while both Eric Hosmer and Manny Machado are healthy.

Solano went 2-for-4 with two solo homers in Sundays 6-2 loss to Colorado.

Solano's rare display of power accounted for all damage the Giants could create on Sunday. The two homers matched his season total, giving him a career-high four long balls in 2019. The 31-year-old last had a multi-homer game in 2012 when he hit his first two career home runs.

Rizzo went 4-for-5 with four singles in Sunday's 7-2 win over Milwaukee.

There's never a bad four-hit day, but Rizzo's certainly wasn't very exciting. He singled four times and failed to score or drive in a run. He reached scoring position just one time. Still, he bumped his average up to .286 with a strong .909 OPS, his highest since the 2016 campaign.

Naylor will start in left field and bat sixth Sunday against the Dodgers.

Naylor will stick in the lineup for a third consecutive game, this time in place of Wil Myers after Manuel Margot lost out on starts the previous two nights. Naylor went 1-for-6 between the first two contests and owns a .639 OPS over 123 plate appearances in the majors this season, so he probably has a long way to go before being assured an everyday role.

Hiura is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cubs.

Hiura is in a 3-for-22 slump since the end of his 16-game hit streak last weekend and will receive a breather in Sunday's series finale. Mike Moustakas will cover the keystone in his place while Travis Shaw takes over at third base.