MLB Player News

Walker went 3-for-4 with two home runs and five RBI in Friday's 8-0 rout of the Rockies.

Walker got the scoring started with a two-out, two-run home run off starter Antonio Senzatela in the fourth inning, then crushed a three-run, 431-foot shot off reliever Jesus Tinoco in the fifth. It was the first career multi-homer game for Walker and his third homer in the last two games. His five RBI also marked a career high. The 28-year-old is now batting .263/.332/.505 with 17 homers, 45 runs scored and 43 RBI.

Gurriel went 1-for-4 with a home run and three RBI in Friday's 5-4 loss to the Angels.

The 35-year-old Cuban is one of the hottest hitters in baseball heading into the All-Star break. Over the course of a nine-game hitting streak, Gurriel is slashing .405/.436/1.054 with seven homers and 13 RBI -- accounting for more than half of his 12 long balls on the season.

Alonso went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run and two RBI in Friday's 7-2 loss to the Phillies.

The rookie's efforts gave the Mets a 2-1 lead through six innings, but the bullpen once again fell apart. Alonso is heading into the All-Star break on a major heater, slashing .363/.485/.775 over his last 22 games with eight of his 29 homers on the year.

Beaty is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Padres, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

Beaty has only started against two lefties all year, so it's not a surprise to see him sit in favor of Kyle Garlick with Eric Lauer on the mound for San Diego. He's not getting on base at a great clip against righties (.319), but Beaty is hitting for average with the platoon advantage (.295) and looks fairly safe in his role heading into the second half, though there's always a chance the Dodgers upgrade via trade prior to the deadline.

Lowe entered Thursday's loss to the Yankees as a pinch hitter in the bottom of the sixth inning and went 0-for-1 with two walks and two runs.

Lowe struck out swinging in his initial at-bat, but he then reached safely in his subsequent pair of plate appearances. The rookie slashed .333/.500/.333 over his first 10-game big-league stint earlier in the campaign and figures to see semi-regular playing time with both Brandon Lowe (lower leg) and Ji-Man Choi (ankle) on the injured list.

Rizzo went 2-for-4 with a walk, a triple, an RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 11-3 win over the Pirates.

Rizzo filled up the box score, and he's now up to a balanced 57 runs and 57 RBI this season to go with an .895 OPS. This game was also noteworthy because it was Rizzo's first time batting cleanup all year, as he's primarily batted third. With the Cubs erupting for 11 runs, the slugging first baseman could very easily stick in the No. 4 spot for the time being.

Freeman went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and a double in a victory versus Philadelphia on Thursday.

Freeman slugged a 401-foot homer in the fourth inning, the first of back-to-back blasts with Josh Donaldson. In 346 at-bats this season, Freeman has now hit 23 homers -- the same amount he hit in 618 at-bats last season. Fortunately, the first-half power surge has not come at the expense of his other numbers; on the season, he is slashing an impressive .309/.393/.590.

Guerrero is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Red Sox.

Brandon Drury is being rewarded for his three-hit effort Wednesday with a start at the hot corner. Manager Charlie Montoyo has been getting Guerrero occasional days off as the 20-year-old gets acclimated at the big-league level, and that will likely continue into the second half.

Solano started at short and batted eighth Wednesday, going 1-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in a 7-5 win over the Padres.

Solano had started the previous four contests due to a slew of southpaws taking the bump against the Giants, but Wednesday's start was a bit surprising considering it came against a righty. The veteran utility infielder has performed adequately when called upon (.308/.337/.397 over 83 plate appearances) and starting shortstop Brandon Crawford has been disappointing at best, but a complete changing of the guard seems unlikely. Manager Bruce Bochy has proven in the past that he rewards players who homer with a start the following day -- Solano homered on Tuesday -- so this may simply be a result of his unorthodox system. The Giants are facing three righties in their upcoming series against the Cardinals, so it will be telling whether this is a depth chart shift or just a blip on the radar.

Cron is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the A's.

Since his last game with a homer June 22, Cron has gone 5-for-40 (.125 average) with nine strikeouts and zero extra-base hits. This seems like a day to clear his head. Ehire Adrianza will get the start at first base and bat sixth against right-hander Tanner Anderson.