MLB Player News

Gurriel (hamstring) is available from the bench for Monday's game against the Pirates, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

It appears that Gurriel's hamstring injury isn't too major, as he's available to play Monday if needed and he's expected to start at third base or in left field for Tuesday's game against Pittsburgh. Over 15 games with Houston's minor league affiliates, Gurriel posted a .250/.262/.429 line with two home runs and 14 RBI.

Freeman (finger) is in the lineup for Monday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Freeman was held out of Sunday's lineup after receiving an injection in his finger Saturday, but it appears that was all the time he needed to recover. Freeman will man first base and hit third in the Braves' batting order Monday night.

Votto continued his assault on pitchers this month, going 3-for-6 with four RBI and two runs scored on Monday against the Dodgers.

Votto has been impossibly hot at the plate since the All-Star break, hitting an even .450. Despite his incredibly sluggish start to the season, Votto should now challenge his 80 RBI and .314 average from a season ago. The Reds' first baseman has been remarkably consistent over his career, and this season is proving to be no different.

Gurriel (hamstring) is not in the lineup Monday against the Pirates, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Gurriel made his major league debut Sunday, starting as the designated hitter before being removed in the eighth inning due to tightness in his hamstring. The Astros are considering Gurriel day-to-day, and it's unclear if his absence from the lineup Monday is for injury or schematic reasons with the game taking place in an NL park. Manager A.J. Hinch indicated that Gurriel will be available off the bench Monday, and he'll likely return to the starting lineup Tuesday at either third base or left field.

Bell went 1-for-3 with an RBI in Sunday's loss to the Marlins.

He continues to rake in the majors and Bell now has an absurd .500/.556/1.000 slash line with a home run and five RBI through his first six at-bats. His defense was as shaky as advertised though and while he didn't commit a fielding error in his first big league start, two other Pirates did get charged with throwing errors on plays a slicker first baseman might have been able to salvage. The Pirates would seem to have little to lose by letting Bell's stick carry him through his growing pains with the glove, but his defensive issues could prevent him from seizing a full-time starting role.

Gurriel's MLB debut ended on a low note, as he was removed from Sunday's game against the Orioles in the eighth inning due to tightness in his right hamstring, MLB.com's Brian McTaggart reports.

Batting sixth and serving as the designated hitter, Gurriel had a hard-hit single, a walk and a groundout in his three plate appearances, but was then replaced by Tony Kemp. Gurriel said he may be fine for Monday's game in Pittsburgh, but Astros manager A.J. Hinch hinted that the 32-year-old Cuban slugger could be held out of the lineup even if he's healthy enough to play, according to MLB.com's Brian McTaggart. While expected to be a regular member of the starting lineup, Gurriel may be squeezed out during Houston's upcoming three-game series in an NL ballpark. It's still unclear how this will all work out from a defensive perspective, as Gurriel only played third base and second base over the past decade in the Cuban and Japanese leagues. 22-year-old top prospect Alex Bregman is capable of playing left field, but it's tough to justify a move from third base to a non-premium position, given that he's yet to make an error in 24 starts at the hot corner. Gurriel may just end up getting most of his at-bats as the DH, with Evan Gattis then playing more left field and/or catcher. Looking beyond this season, the Astros will probably want Gurriel to play left field and/or first base.

Gurriel went 1-for-2 with a walk in his MLB debut Sunday against Baltimore.

He was ultimately lifted for a pinch hitter, but this was a solid debut for the 32-year-old Cuban, who started at DH and singled to center for his first hit in the big leagues. Gurriel didn't hit particularly well in the high minors (albeit in a small sample), but still advanced to the Astros pretty quickly after being signed about five weeks ago. Of course, his last season in Cuba was absolutely insane, as he hit .500 with 15 homers and a 38:3 BB:K in 49 games, which is about as clear a sign as you'll see that a guy's ready for higher-level competition.

Freeman was out of Sunday's lineup after receiving a painkiller injection in his right middle finger Saturday night that carries with it a 48-hour recovery, David O'Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Freeman has reportedly been dealing with the finger injury since spring training, but must have been worse than usual following Saturday's game. The injection cost him his first game of the season Sunday and likely leaves his status for Monday's contest questionable as well. Consider the star first baseman day-to-day for the time being.

Abreu went 1-for-4 with a solo homer - his 16th of the season - and two runs against the Athletics on Sunday.

After seeing his batting average dip as low as .237 on June 1, Abreu has steadily increased it over the last three months and he's now hitting .283. After a fantastic rookie campaign in 2014 in which he posted a .964 OPS, he's seen that number fall significantly in each of the last two seasons.

Gurriel will serve as the designated hitter and hit sixth Sunday in his major-league debut.

Gurriel did not tear the cover off the ball during his stint in the minors, but the Astros are ready to let him show what he can do at the top level. He will likely jump between the DH and third base spots and usually occupy a spot somewhere between fifth and seventh in the batting order.