MLB Player News

Votto was scratched from the lineup Monday against the Cubs due to illness, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Votto is reportedly one of a number of players who have been sick in recent days for the Reds. While he'll have to miss at least a game or two, it's a positive that he's not dealing with the sort of injury which could rule him out for the rest of the season.

Votto was scratched from the lineup ahead of Monday's game against the Cubs.

The Reds have not announced a reason for the lineup change, but Votto is presumably dealing with some sort of injury. Josh VanMeter enters the lineup at first base.

Rizzo (ankle) is out of the lineup as expected Monday against the Reds.

Rizzo is expected to miss a few days at minimum after suffering a potentially bad ankle sprain Sunday against the Pirates. He's expected to undergo an MRI on Monday, at which point his return timeline should become clearer.

Hiura (hamstring) singled in a pinch-hit at-bat in Sunday's victory over the Cardinals.

Hiura has not started a game since injuring his hamstring Aug. 30, but is seemingly on the verge of returning to the lineup after pinch hitting in each of the Brewers' last two games. The Brewers have been cautious with Hiura's recovery, but their goal was to get him back to 100 percent, so he could play every day once he is indeed back in the lineup -- barring any setbacks, of course.

Naylor went 1-for-5 with a two-run homer in Sunday's loss to Colorado.

Naylor connected on a 419-foot shot to center field in the ninth inning to plate the Padres' final two runs of the game. The long ball snapped a 23-game spell in which Naylor did not go yard. The 22-year-old is slashing .253/.321/.422 with eight homers and 31 RBI in 249 plate appearances this season.

Flores went 1-for-4 with an RBI in Sunday's 3-1 loss to the Reds.

Flores, who has a career-best .357 on-base percentage in 2019, batted leadoff for just the fifth time this season. It appears manager Torey Lovullo is looking to unlock the team from its recent offensive funk, so he tweaked the order. Arizona has scored three or fewer runs in nine straight games and lost seven of them, dropping 5.5 games back in the wild-card race.

Gurriel went 2-for-4 with a home run, an RBI and two runs scored in the Astros' 12-3 win over the Royals on Sunday.

Gurriel finally got going Sunday in his third game back from a brief hamstring injury. He had gone 1-for-10 in his return from the absence, and it was only a matter of time before he got his bat going again. Gurriel is slashing .303/.347/.543 with a career-best 28 home runs and 99 RBI across 577 plate appearances. He figures to draw the start once again at first base when the Astros take on the Rangers on Tuesday in Houston.

Rizzo was diagnosed with a sprained right ankle after X-rays came back negative Sunday, Sahadev Sharma of The Athletic reports.

The 30-year-old sustained the injury during the third inning of Sunday's game, when he twisted his ankle attempting to field a bunt. The initial X-rays cleared Rizzo of a fracture, but he'll undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of the sprain. He seems unlikely to be available for the next few days, at least.

Rizzo exited Sunday's game against the Pirates in the third inning with an apparent right ankle injury, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Rizzo appeared to twist his ankle hard while fielding a bunt and was helped off the field by two trainers. The injury -- if serious -- could prove disastrous for the postseason hopes of the Cubs, who are already missing shortstop Javier Baez (thumb) for the rest of the regular season. Expect the team to provide an update on Rizzo's condition after the game.

General manager Neal Huntington said Sunday that it "wouldn't be surprising" to see Bell miss several days due his groin injury, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Speaking on his weekly radio show, Huntington said that Bell's injury was more than the day-to-day variety. Pittsburgh is off Monday before starting a three-game homestand against the Mariners, but Bell is probably trending toward a return no earlier than the team's weekend series in Milwaukee. The first baseman injured himself running from first base to second during Friday's loss to the Cubs.