MLB Player News

Bell extended his hitting streak to 11 games Friday, going 2-for-5 with an RBI in a 9-4 win over Milwaukee.

He slashed .390/.442/.797 with 12 doubles, 12 homers and 31 RBI in May. Bell leads the major leagues with 20 doubles, 152 total bases and is tied for the RBI lead (52) with Cody Bellinger. The 26-year-old has boosted his average exit velocity from 90 mph in 2018 to 94.6 mph in 2019 (good for second behind Joey Gallo's 96 mph).

Flores (foot) is limited while in a walking boot but has continued to do upper-body maintenance, Jenna Ortiz of the Arizona Republic reports.

The Diamondbacks have not released a timetable for Flores' return, but it's safe to assume he'll miss longer than the 10-day minimum. Ketel Marte and Ildemaro Vargas are picking up starts at second base while Flores is unavailable.

Walker went 3-for-3 with a walk, a two-run homer and a second run scored in Friday's 5-4 loss to the Mets.

Kevin Cron has already been sent back to Triple-A Reno, but the brief competition seems to have lit a fire under Walker. The 28-year-old has gone yard in back-to-back games and has collected six hits over his last three contests, emphatically snapping a 3-for-44 slump. On the season, Walker is slashing .259/.333/.497 with 10 homers and 22 RBI.

Blandino (knee) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Louisville on Monday, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Blandino hasn't played since surgery to repair a torn ACL and MCL last July. Given the length of his absence, his rehab assignment is unlikely to be brief.

Votto (hamstring) is starting at first base and batting second Friday against the Nationals.

Votto missed the last three games with a tight right hamstring, but is good to go following Thursday's scheduled off day. The 35-year-old is riding a six-game hit streak in which he is slashing .444/.448/.519 with two doubles and two RBI.

Goldschmidt, who went 2-for-4 in a win over the Phillies on Thursday, operated out of the No. 3 spot in the lineup for the first time this season, Paul Casella of MLB.com reports.

Manager Mike Shildt opted to flip-flop Goldschmidt and usual No. 3 hitter Paul DeJong in the order for the series finale in an attempt to find an offensive spark. Shildt was also looking to set Goldschmidt up with more RBI opportunities, considering he'd entered Thursday having logged only 43 plate appearances with runners in scoring position all season. Although those didn't immediately present themselves Thursday, Goldschmidt could continue seeing time in the No. 3 slot that he logged 724 starts in during his eight seasons with the Diamondbacks.

Walker went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run and two runs in the Diamondbacks' 11-10 defeat to the Rockies on Thursday.

Walker had been in a 3-for-37 slump coming into the game, but he broke out with a multi-hit day in this contest that included his ninth homer of the season. He got off to a red-hot start to the season, but thanks to the recent skid, his batting average is down to .247 through 194 at-bats, so hopefully this was a sign he's ready to get back on track.

Shaw was promoted to Triple-A Sacramento on Thursday.

Shaw spend most of the 2018 campaign with Sacramento, hitting .259/.308/.505 with 24 homers and 65 RBI in 101 games for the River Cats. He opened the 2019 season back at Double-A Richmond, where he hit .288/.368/.500 with seven homers and 24 RBI in 45 games before earning a promotion back to Triple-A. Should he continue to succeed at the highest level of the minors, Shaw could get another shot with the big-league club sometime this summer; he struggled in his first taste of the majors last season, hitting .185/.274/.278 in 22 games.

Smith went 3-for-5 with a home run and another two runs scored in Wednesday's 9-8 loss at Dodger Stadium.

Smith joined Amed Rosario in going deep off Julio Urias in the seventh inning to increase New York's lead to 8-3, but ultimately a ninth-inning rally by the Dodgers erased any chance for a win. The 23-year-old continues to compile an impressive campaign, batting .370/.469/.556 with two homers, 17 runs scored and seven RBI in just 54 plate appearances.

Alonso went 3-for-4 with a pair of two-run homers in Wednesday's loss at Dodger Stadium.

Alonso went deep off Walker Buehler twice, driving in Dominic Smith on both occasions. The rookie slugger has been on a tear this season, batting .264/.338/.624 with a team-leading 19 home runs and 43 RBI to go with 34 runs scored.