MLB Player News

Manager Pete Mackanin said Howard will probably be used as the DH during the Phillies' two-game series in Toronto that starts Monday, Jim Salisbury of CSN Philadelphia reports.

Mackanin let Howard know Friday that he has lost his starting job at first base to Tommy Joseph. He will be limited to spot starts and pinch hitting duties moving forward.

Abreu went 2-for-4 in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Royals.

While he posted just two innocuous singles on the day, they represented Abreu's sixth multi-hit effort in nine June contests. He's now hitting .371 over that span and just seems to be missing his power stroke. The 29-year-old has gone deep just twice since May 17 and has only seven round-trippers overall in 242 at-bats after hitting at least 30 homers in both of his previous major league seasons.

Rizzo (back) will rejoin the lineup Saturday, hitting in his usual cleanup spot.

Rizzo was a late scratch Friday due to some back tightness, but it appears he's loosened up since then. He'll be facing the Braves' Matt Wisler, while Javier Baez will sit after moving over to play first in Rizzo's place Friday.

Bour slugged a pinch-hit grand slam in the seventh inning to help the Marlins capture an 8-6 win over the Diamondbacks on Friday.

Left on the bench with lefty Patrick Corbin starting in opposition, Bour made his presence felt during a seven-run seventh inning that sealed the victory. Though he'll likely continue to cede at-bats to Chris Johnson when a left-hander is on the hill, Bour has chipped in a solid .246/.316/.473 slash line with 10 home runs and 30 RBI over 167 at-bats for the Marlins.

Manager Pete Mackanin met with Ryan Howard before Friday's game and told him that he has lost his starting job to Joseph, Jim Salisbury of CSN Philadelphia reports.

Mackanin had already shifted the majority of the playing time to Joseph, but this further solidifies things. Joseph celebrated the news with two home runs Friday and now has seven in his first 21 games in the majors.

Manager Pete Mackanin met with Howard before Friday's game and told him that he has lost his starting job to Tommy Joseph, Jim Salisbury of CSN Philadelphia reports.

Mackanin had already shifted the majority of the playing time to Joseph, but this further solidifies things. Howard is hitting just .150 with a .559 OPS this season and will be limited to spot starts and pinch hitting moving forward.

Joseph went 2-for-4 with a pair of two-run homers in Friday's 9-6 loss to the Nationals.

The 24-year-old rookie continues to pay huge dividends for both the Phillies and fantasy owners savvy enough to have nabbed him, and appears to have wrested the starting first base job away from Ryan Howard. Joseph already has seven RBI in June, and now has seven round-trippers over just 65 at-bats to go along with a .323/.333/.677 line.

Cron is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Indians, according to Eric Kay of the Angels.

Cron will be held out Friday with the Angels taking on a tough right-hander in Corey Kluber. With Cron out, Albert Pujols will serve as the Angels' designated hitter, and Jefry Marte will get the start at first base.

Bour is out of Friday's lineup against the Diamondbacks, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

With Diamondbacks lefty Patrick Corbin on the mound, Bour will take his customary seat on the Marlins bench. Like he has all season, Chris Johnson will slide into first base for Bour, hitting sixth.

Rizzo is day-to-day after being scratched from Friday's lineup with back tightness.

Javier Baez will slot into first, hitting sixth, in Rizzo's place. There's no indication yet how much time Rizzo will have to miss, but back injuries with power hitters can be a real problem, so check back later for an update. This will be Rizzo's third missed start of the year.