MLB Player News

Mervis went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 4-0 win over the Giants.

Mervis was in quite the rough patch over his last nine games, going just 1-for-26 with a 3:11 BB:K. He at least put an end to his power drought with a third-inning solo shot off Jakob Junis that ended up being all the offense the Cubs needed. Mervis has three homers over his first 24 big-league games, but he's struggled to a .173/.247/.309 slash line with 10 RBI and eight runs scored through 89 plate appearances. He is likely to remain in a strong-side platoon role while learning on the job against major-league pitching. Trey Mancini figures to play first base against most lefties.

Rizzo will sit Saturday against the Red Sox.

Rizzo missed the last three games of May while dealing with a neck issue. He's since returned to start the first seven games of June but went 1-for-27 at the plate, a slump which could indicate that he's not yet back to full health. DJ LeMahieu starts at first base Saturday.

Pasquantino landed on the injured list Saturday with what the Royals described as right shoulder instability.

Pasquantino left Friday's game against Baltimore with what was originally called right shoulder discomfort. His updated diagnosis remains somewhat vague, but he'll undergo an MRI on Monday, per Jaylon T. Thompson of The Kansas City Star, at which point a clearer timeline for his return may emerge. Nick Pratto will likely spend more time at first base until Pasquantino returns, which would open up at-bats in left field for Edward Olivares, who was activated off the restricted list to take Pasquantino's spot on the roster.

Smith will sit Saturday against Atlanta, Bobby Blanco of MASNSports.com reports.

Michael Chavis takes over at first base for Smith, who sits for the first time since late April. Smith probably wouldn't have anything close to an everyday role on many other teams, as he's homered just once while slashing .265/.347/.301. That's good for just an 84 wRC+, marking the third straight season he's been below 90 in that category.

Mountcastle (illness) remains sidelined Saturday against the Royals, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

An illness kept Mountcastle out of the lineup Friday and will cost him at least one more start. Per Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com, however, Mountcastle at least has a chance to be available off the bench. Ryan O'Hearn will cover for him at first base Saturday.

France went 2-for-5 with an RBI single in a loss to the Angels on Friday.

France mustered the only multi-hit effort of the night for the Mariners, accounting for half of the team's haul in that category. The 28-year-old's hitting streak was extended to five games in the process, and he's sporting a stellar .311 average and .980 OPS across his last 11 games, a stretch during which he's authored four multi-hit tallies overall but has also struck out at an elevated-by-his-standards 22.0 percent clip.

Freeman went 2-for-5 with a double, a solo home run and an additional run scored in Friday's loss to Philadelphia.

Freeman and Mookie Betts went back-to-back in the seventh inning to temporarily tie the score, though the Phillies ultimately prevailed on a Kyle Schwarber walk-off homer. Freeman continues to swing a hot bat, as he's tallied 27 multi-hit games on the campaign, including in each of his past two contests. The veteran ranks second in the league among qualified hitters with a .335 batting average, sixth with a .407 on-base percentage and fourth with a .576 slugging percentage while pacing MLB with 24 doubles.

Abreu went 2-for-7 with a three-run home run in Friday's 10-9 extra-innings loss to the Guardians.

The veteran first baseman took Logan Allen deep in the first inning to give the Astros an early lead that the bullpen squandered. It's only Abreu's second homer of the year, but they've both come in the last 12 games. It's a sliver of hope in what has been a disastrous first campaign with Houston, but his .244/.308/.400 slash line over that 12-game stretch only looks good in comparison to his .219/.277/.278 line on the season.

Santana went 2-for-5 with a solo homer and three total runs scored in Friday's victory over the Mets.

Santana launched a 409-foot blast in the eighth inning for his fourth home run of the season. The long ball was just the second for the 37-year-old veteran since April 7. He finally looks as though he's over a lingering back injury that had bothered him for the past two weeks.

Montero went 1-for-1 with two RBI on Friday against the Padres.

Montero has occupied a small-side platoon role since being recalled in late May, making only one start against a right-hander in nine games since. He did manage to take advantage of his opportunity to come off the bench, delivering a two-RBI single in the sixth frame Friday. Since returning to Colorado, Montero has gone 2-for-13 with four RBI and a run scored.