MLB Player News

Pirates manager Derek Shelton confirmed Hayes (wrist) will be activated from the 60-day injured list ahead of Thursday's game against the Marlins, Jake Crouse of MLB.com reports. Hayes will start at third base and bat second.

As expected, Hayes will be back in action for Pittsburgh after his wrist injury kept him on the shelf for exactly two months. Through the first 26 games of his MLB career, Hayes has looked like one of the majors' best hitters with a 1.130 OPS, but his .429 BABIP and 28.6 HR/FB% are both unsustainably high and suggest fantasy managers should expect a fair amount of regression in his batting average and power production moving forward. The wrist injury also makes projecting Hayes' rest-of-season outlook a difficult endeavor, but if healthy, he should be locked into an everyday role in a prominent spot in the Pittsburgh lineup.

Chapman went 2-for-3 with a walk and a run in a win over the Mariners on Wednesday.

The struggling third baseman entered Wednesday's contest having produced an unacceptable .073/.231/.073 slash line and 30.8 percent strikeout rate across the 52 plate appearances covering his previous 13 games. However, Chapman managed to vault his average back over the Mendoza Line with his first multi-hit effort since May 18, the game prior to the beginning of the skid. Despite Wednesday's success, Chapman's season .205 average and .653 OPS are significantly below his career norms, although he's offered fantasy managers some solace by lacing one-third of his 39 hits for extra bases (six doubles, two triples, five home runs), helping lead to 21 RBI.

The Rockies held McMahon out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers due to a left groin strain that's believed to be "very minor," Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

McMahon's absence from the lineup was initially believed to be a pre-planned rest day, given that he had started in each of Colorado's last 10 games. The injury ended up being the reason for his move to the bench, but McMahon doesn't look like he'll be at risk of missing much additional time, if any. Garrett Hampson is filling in at the keystone for McMahon, who will hope to rejoin the lineup for Friday's home game versus Oakland.

Arenado went 1-for-2 with an RBI ground-rule double in a loss to the Dodgers on Wednesday.

An 11-run first inning by the Dodgers ensured a completely miserable night for the Cardinals from a team perspective, but Arenado snapped an 0-for-12 skid that had encompassed his previous three games with his run-scoring two-bagger. Arenado's current struggles with the bat actually date back a good bit further, as he's slashing an anemic .174/.200/.348 over the 50 plate appearances he's logged in his last 12 games; however, it's worth noting that six of the eight hits he does have during that span have gone for extra bases (five doubles, one home run).

McMahon is not in Thursday's lineup against the Rangers.

McMahon is hitting .265 with two home runs and one steal over his last 10 games. Brendan Rodgers will start at second base while Joshua Fuentes mans the hot corner and Garrett Hampson starts at shortstop.

Urshela went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and a double Wednesday against the Rays.

Urshela provided the Yankees with a lead they never surrendered when he slugged a two-run home run in the first inning. It was his sixth homer of the season and first since May 14. In that span, Urshela has collected only 12 hits in 62 at-bats while tallying seven RBI and three runs scored. Overall, he's hitting .261/.311/.415 across 190 palte appearances.

Vargas went 2-for-4 with three RBI in Wednesday's 7-6 loss to the Mets.

The 29-year-old's first multi-hit effort of the season directly accounted for half of Arizona's runs. Vargas knocked in a pair on a single in the first inning and then added a game-tying RBI single in the sixth. He's slashing a meager .158/.220/.211 with no home runs, six RBI, three runs scored and a stolen base in 41 plate appearances between Arizona, Pittsburgh and Chicago this year. He'll likely fill a utility role now that he's begun his second stint with Arizona.

Jung (foot) has been running the bases and is about 10-14 days from joining an affiliate, Levi Weaver of The Athletic reports.

It's unclear if Jung will join Triple-A Round Rock, where he was expected to start 2021 before suffering the stress fracture in March, or a lower-level affiliate. It is safe to assume, however, that the Rangers will exercise caution with one of their top prospects.

Mets manager Luis Rojas said Wednesday that Davis is no longer scheduled to begin a minor-league rehab assignment within the next few days after he experienced discomfort in his sprained left hand while working out earlier this week, Justin Toscano of The Bergen Record reports.

Since landing on the injured list a month ago with the hand injury, Davis has now had his rehab program paused for the second time just as he was about to embark on a minor-league assignment. Rojas indicated that Davis is no longer swinging a bat due to his latest setback, so the 28-year-old will presumably need a week or longer just to ramp up again before the Mets consider sending him out on the assignment. Even if the discomfort in his hand subsides within the next few days, Davis doesn't look like he'll be on track to return from the IL until mid-June at the soonest.

The Diamondbacks acquired Vargas from the Pirates on Wednesday in exchange for cash considerations.

Vargas doesn't have any minor-league options remaining, so the Diamondbacks will clear room for him on the 40-man roster and 26-man active roster by designating infielder Domingo Leyba for assignment. Like Leyba before him, Vargas will likely be in store for a limited role as a utility option off the bench. The 29-year-old appeared in parts of his first four seasons in the big leagues with Arizona, but he's bounced around between three other organizations over the past two years.