MLB Player News
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Vinnie Pasquantino 1B | KC
Royals' Vinnie Pasquantino: Homer, five RBI in win
Pasquantino went 2-for-5 with a home run, a double, five RBI and two runs scored in Saturday's 9-5 win over the Dodgers.
Pasquantino crushed a three-run homer in the fifth inning and later added a two-run double in the seventh. The first baseman is riding a modest six-game hit streak and has hit safely in eight of his last nine games, a stretch that's included four extra-base hits and eight RBI. For the season, he's slashing .283/.333/.422 with 12 home runs, 47 RBI, 33 runs scored and one stolen base across 345 plate appearances.
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Freddie Freeman 1B | LAD
Dodgers' Freddie Freeman: Perfect at plate in loss
Freeman went 3-for-3 with a solo home run, two walks and an additional run scored in Saturday's 9-5 loss to the Royals.
Freeman reached base in all five plate appearances, highlighted by a 421-foot home run that got the Dodgers on the board in the seventh inning. It was a much-needed breakout for the 35-year-old, who hadn't gone deep since May 11 and entered Saturday in a 2-for-28 slump over his previous seven contests. For the season, he's slashing .312/.386/.509 with 10 homers, 43 RBI and 44 runs scored across 306 plate appearances.
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Nick Kurtz 1B | ATH
Athletics' Nick Kurtz: Goes yard again Saturday
Kurtz went 1-for-4 with a walk, a three-run home run and a second run scored in Saturday's 7-0 win over the Yankees.
The rookie slugger took Clarke Schmidt deep in the sixth inning to break open a tight 1-0 contest. Kurtz has been crushing the ball since returning from a hip issue earlier in June, and over his last 13 games he's batting .327 (16-for-49) with seven homers and 15 RBI.
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Josh Naylor 1B | SEA
Diamondbacks' Josh Naylor: Not in lineup Saturday
Naylor (neck) isn't in the starting lineup Saturday versus Miami.
Naylor was removed from Friday's loss to the Marlins before the start of the seventh inning due to neck stiffness, and he's beginning Saturday on the bench. It's not yet clear how much time the veteran first baseman is expected to miss. With Naylor not starting Saturday, Pavin Smith is in the lineup at first base. Per Jack Sommers of SI.com, Arizona plans to monitor Naylor and see how he feels Sunday before deciding whether he's ready to return.
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Luis Arraez 1B | SD
Padres' Luis Arraez: Settling into leadoff spot
Arraez is batting leadoff and starting at first base against the Reds on Saturday.
This is the third straight game in which Arraez has batted leadoff, while Fernando Tatis -- who had previously spent much of the campaign in the leadoff role -- has shifted into the cleanup spot. Arraez is having a subpar season by his standards with a .705 OPS (on pace the for the lowest mark of his career), but he has plenty of experience atop the order after having hit in that spot for most of his career. Arraez collected three hits Wednesday upon moving back to batting leadoff before going 0-for-4 on Friday.
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Christian Encarnacion-Strand 1B | CIN
Reds' Christian Encarnacion-Strand: Getting breather Saturday
Encarnacion-Strand isn't in the starting lineup Saturday versus San Diego.
Encarnacion-Strand has started each of Cincinnati's previous four contests and went 2-for-12 with three runs batted in during that stretch, with both of the hits and all of the RBI coming in the same game. He'll begin on the bench Saturday while Santiago Espinal starts at the hot corner and Spencer Steer starts at first base.
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Abraham Toro 1B | BOS
Red Sox's Abraham Toro: Bloom off rose
Toro went 0-for-4 in Friday's 9-0 loss to Toronto.
Toro was a nice story earlier this month, but the corner infielder has been in a prolonged slump. After Friday's 0-fer, he's batting .138 (4-for-29) with one extra-base hit and zero RBI over the last nine games. He and Romy Gonzalez continue to serve as a band-aid at first base, but with Kristian Campbell getting starts at first base for Triple-A Worcester, a better option could emerge soon.
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Alec Burleson LF | STL
Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Socks homer No. 10
Burleson went 2-for-4 with a double, a two-run home run and a second run scored in Friday's 5-0 win over the Guardians.
The 26-year-old took Luis L. Ortiz deep in the third inning, giving Sonny Gray more than enough run support as the right-hander faced one batter over the minimum in his fifth career shutout. Burleson is putting the finishing touches on a dazzling June that has seen him slash .337/.354/.598 with six of his 10 homers on the season, as well as 13 runs and 19 RBI in 24 contests.
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Nolan Schanuel 1B | LAA
Angels' Nolan Schanuel: Goes deep in high-scoring loss
Schanuel went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run and a double in Friday's 15-9 loss to the Nationals.
Schanuel has tapped into a bit of power lately, going 13-for-49 (.265) with four homers and three doubles over his last 11 games. The first baseman isn't known for his slugging, and it's unclear if he'll be able to sustain his recent success over a longer stretch. For the season, he's at seven homers, 32 RBI, 40 runs scored, three stolen bases, 16 doubles, one triple and a .276/.364/.413 slash line across 78 games.
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Nate Lowe 1B | BOS
Nationals' Nathaniel Lowe: Two doubles in three-hit game
Lowe went 3-for-6 with two doubles, two RBI and two runs scored in Friday's 15-9 win over the Angels.
Lowe had RBI doubles in the fifth and eighth innings. The first baseman has four multi-hit efforts over his last 10 games, going 11-for-42 (.262) in that span, which also includes four hitless games. He's been more in touch with his power and run production during this stretch, logging four home runs, three doubles and 10 RBI. Lowe is up to a .232/.295/.402 slash line with 13 homers, 54 RBI, 35 runs scored, 14 doubles and one stolen base through 82 games this season.