MLB Player News

Hall was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday.

With Bryce Harper making his first start at first base Friday and Kyle Schwarber being used at designated hitter, Hall is headed back to the minors. He has just a .437 OPS at the big-league level this season.

Ellis was optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Friday.

Ellis has gone 5-for-23 with a couple homers during his time in the majors this season. He wasn't going to be playing much with Josh Harrison back from the injured list.

Smith is absent from the lineup for Friday's game against the Giants.

The Giants are sending southpaw Alex Wood to the mound, so the left-handed hitting Smith will begin this one on the bench. Michael Chavis is handling first base.

Flores went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Thursday's 5-1 loss to the Reds.

The Giants put just four runners on base, and Flores accounted for half of those instances. The infielder has taken advantage of more playing time in July, batting .417 (20-for-48) over 14 contests this month. He's also homered four times in his last four games. For the season, he's at a .292/.349/.526 slash line with 12 homers, 31 RBI, 29 runs scored and 13 doubles over 232 plate appearances. Until LaMonte Wade (hamstring) is ready to play, Flores will likely see a majority of the work at first base.

Olson went 2-for-4 with two homers and three RBI in Thursday's 7-5 win over the Diamondbacks.

Olson's two-run shot in the bottom of the seventh inning brought Atlanta back within one run. The first baseman then came right back in his next at-bat and smacked a solo home run, going back-to-back with Austin Riley to give his team a 7-5 lead. Olson continues to deliver at the plate, especially in July, as he's now batting .327 with four homers, 13 RBI and 11 runs scored for the month. His 32 home runs on the season also leads the National League.

Nola (jaw) is expected to be sidelined for around three weeks, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

That's the timeline Noda received from an oral surgeon after he was diagnosed Wednesday with a fractured mandible. He suffered the injury Tuesday while taking pregame fielding practice and has already been placed on the injured list. Seth Brown is starting at first base and batting cleanup for the Athletics on Thursday versus the Astros.

X-rays taken Thursday on Vaughn's left foot turned up negative for any structural damage, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Vaughn missed the final two games of Chicago's three-game set against the Mets after fouling a ball off his left foot Tuesday, but he only has a bruise and is considered day-to-day. The 25-year-old first baseman could be ready to return to action in Friday's series opener at Minnesota.

Mountcastle isn't starting Thursday against the Rays, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Mountcastle will catch a breather Thursday after going 5-for-14 with two RBI across his last six games. Ryan O'Hearn will serve as Baltimore's DH while Anthony Santander draws the start at first and Colton Cowser mans right field.

Alonso went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the White Sox.

Though he's still tied for fifth in the majors with 26 home runs, Alonso's power production and batting average have both been trending down steadily since the beginning of June. Over the past seven weeks, Alonso has popped just six homers in 31 games and is slashing .136/.250/.327 during that same stretch. The Mets could soon look to build in an off day for the slumping Alonso, but he'll start at first base and bat cleanup in Thursday's series finale.

Vaughn is getting X-rays on his left foot Thursday, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. "We're not anticipating anything wrong, but he was pretty sore," manager Pedro Grifol said.

He took a foul ball off his foot Tuesday and has been held out the last two days as he deals with what the team hopes is a bruise. Gavin Sheets and Zach Remillard could keep getting extra work while Vaughn remains sidelined.