MLB Player News

O'Hearn will start in right field and bat fifth in Thursday's game against the Blue Jays.

With six of the Royals' options in the outfield (Andrew Benintendi, Michael Taylor, Whit Merrifield, Kyle Isbel, Hunter Dozier and MJ Melendez) all landing on the restricted list Thursday and ineligible to play in the four-game series in Toronto due to their vaccination statuses, O'Hearn should be a fixture in the lineup this weekend. Toronto is expected to bring four right-handed starting pitchers to the hill, which should lessen the possibility of the lefty-hitting O'Hearn exiting the starting nine. Despite having held down a spot on the active roster all season, O'Hearn has logged just 71 plate appearances through 88 games and is slashing .182/.225/.242.

The Royals recalled Pratto from Triple-A Omaha on Thursday. He'll start at first base and bat sixth in the series opener at Toronto.

Of the minor-league players that the Royals called up for their four-game series in Toronto after 10 players on the 26-man active roster were placed on the restricted list due to their vaccination statuses, Pratto is one of the more prominent names. The 24-year-old will reach the big leagues for the first time after slashing .240/.374/.484 with 17 home runs and eight stolen bases across 337 plate appearances for Omaha. With the Blue Jays set to bring four right-handed starting pitchers to the hill this weekend, the lefty-hitting Pratto should find himself in the lineup each time, but he may need a big series at the plate to ensure he sticks around with Kansas City following the All-Star break.

Dalbec is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rays, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Thanks to the Red Sox facing a few lefties of late in addition to Rafael Devers, J.D. Martinez and Trevor Story having all missed games with minor injuries, Dalbec had started in each of the past six contests. Story (hand) remains out Thursday, but with Devers and Martinez healthy and right-hander Drew Rasmussen on the bump for Tampa Bay, manager Alex Cora won't have room in the lineup for Dalbec.

Cron (wrist) is starting Thursday against the Padres.

Cron was out of the lineup for four of the last five games while dealing with a wrist injury, but he appeared off the bench in Wednesday's win and went 1-for-1 with a run. He's starting at first base and batting cleanup Thursday.

Montero was optioned to Triple-A Albuquerque on Thursday, Nick Groke of The Athletic reports.

Montero will head back to Triple-A after he spent a little over three weeks with the big-league club. While in the majors, the 23-year-old went 4-for-21 with two doubles and three runs scored over seven games. Kris Bryant was activated from the paternity list Thursday and will take Montero's spot on the active roster.

Flores hit a solo home run as a pinch hitter in Wednesday's 4-3 win over the Diamondbacks.

Flores tied the game at 3-3 with his eighth-inning blast. That allowed him to extend his hitting streak to five games, a span in which he's gone 9-for-20 (.450) with four long balls, nine RBI, five runs scored and three doubles. The infielder is up to a .254/.340/.452 slash line with 13 homers, 50 RBI, 45 runs scored and 17 doubles in 82 contests overall. Flores has started to infringe on Thairo Estrada's role at second base, which occasionally bumps Brandon Crawford from the lineup at shortstop against southpaws.

Beaty (shoulder) began a minor-league rehab assignment July 4 and has gone 2-for-15 with three walks across six games between the Padres' rookie-level Arizona Complex League affiliate and Triple-A El Paso.

Beaty hasn't played since Sunday, but it's unclear if he's part of the Padres' taxi squad in Colorado or if he was pulled off the rehab assignment after aggravating his left shoulder injury. The 29-year-old is on the 60-day injured list and hasn't seen game action for the big club since May 7.

Olson went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 7-3 loss to the Mets.

All three Atlanta runs scored on solo shots, with Olson's in the sixth inning off Chris Bassitt getting the team on the board. The first baseman has homered in back-to-back games and three times in his last six, and on the year he sports a .251/.340/.476 slash line with 15 home runs, 40 runs and 52 RBI through 90 contests.

Cooper (knee) is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Pirates, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Cooper will be on the bench for a second straight game with a bruised left knee. The 31-year-old was named a first-time All-Star earlier this week, so he'll likely do everything in his power to get back in the lineup at some point over the Marlins' final three contests of the first half to ensure he's able to play in the Midsummer Classic. Avisail Garcia will serve as Miami's designated hitter in place of Cooper on Thursday.

Freeman went 3-for-3 with a double, a run, a hit-by-pitch and a walk in Wednesday's 7-6 victory versus St. Louis.

Freeman reached base in all five of his plate appearances Wednesday after notching four hits in each of his previous two games. Over his past three contests, he's gone 11-for-13 with two homers, three doubles, four runs and four RBI. The scorching stretch has moved his season slash line to .317/.394/.517.