MLB Player News

Riley (side) isn't overly concerned with his long-term availability after being removed early from Sunday's game, and he considers himself day-to-day, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Riley experienced left side tightness in batting practice Sunday and was ultimately removed from Atlanta's contest against the Mets in the fourth inning after going 1-for-2 at the plate. The third baseman doesn't know yet if he'll be sent for an MRI. With the team launching a three-game home series against the Cubs on Monday, there's a chance that Riley misses some, if not all, of the series as Atlanta will likely be cautious with the talented 26-year-old.

Garcia went 1-for-5 with a stolen base in Sunday's 4-2 win over the Angels.

Garcia has hit safely in eight of 11 games in May, going 12-for-47 (.255) with four doubles, four RBI and five runs scored. His steal Sunday was his first of the month and his ninth of the season, and he's yet to be caught stealing. The third baseman is slashing .238/.290/.375 with four home runs, 24 RBI and 20 runs scored over 184 plate appearances. While Garcia hasn't profiled as an ideal leadoff hitter, he's done enough to keep that spot through the first quarter of the campaign in a fairly strong lineup.

Espinal went 2-for-5 with a stolen base in Sunday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Giants.

Espinal was one of two Reds with multiple hits in the game, and it was his first such performance since April 24. The infielder hit a poor .121 (4-for-33) over 11 contests in between multi-hit efforts. He's slashing .186/.245/.244 with one home run, 12 RBI, six runs scored and five steals over 30 games this season. Espinal has sat out the last four games in which the Reds have faced a right-handed pitcher, though he's still been in the lineup against the last three southpaws they've faced.

Riley was removed from Sunday's contest against the Mets in bottom of the fourth inning with left side tightness, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Riley's removal from the contest has been described as precautionary according to Atlanta. The third baseman finished his night going 1-for-2 with a single and a strikeout. Riley's status will likely be updated following the conclusion of the team's series finale with New York.

Mendick (back) is expected to begin a rehab assignment in the near future, Scott Merkin of MLB.com reports.

Mendick will begin a rehab assignment in the next day or two according to manager Pedro Grifol. The 30-year-old has been out since May 2 with lower-back tightness, but he appears to be on track to return to the major-league roster in the near future.

Rojas is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Athletics.

The lefty-hitting Rojas will duck out of the starting nine for the series finale while southpaw Alex Wood takes the hill for Oakland. Luis Urias will fill in for Rojas at third base.

Smith is out of the starting lineup for Sunday's series finale against the Rockies.

The lefty-hitting Smith went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Saturday's 8-3 loss. He will begin Sunday's contest on the bench as the Rockies send out southpaw Ty Blach. Ezequiel Duran will fill in for Smith at third base.

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Arenado will be out of the lineup for Sunday's game in Milwaukee, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Arenado isn't dealing with an injury, as Marmol characterized the third baseman's absence from the lineup as an off day. The 33-year-old had started each of the Cardinals' first 39 games of the season and is maintaining a .703 OPS, the lowest mark of his career. He didn't appear to be turning a corner at the plate over the first three games of the series in Milwaukee, as he went just 1-for-12 with three strikeouts.

Lipscomb is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox.

Lipscomb had started each of the Nationals' last seven games, but he recorded just three hits in 20 at-bats with five walks against four strikeouts over that stretch. Since his April 24 promotion from Triple-A Rochester, Lipscomb is getting on base at a .370 clip over 15 games, but he isn't hitting for much power (.283 slugging percentage). He still looks to be the Nationals' primary third baseman for now, but Lipscomb could be at risk of losing out on some playing time if Washington wants to open up regular work for Joey Gallo (shoulder) when he likely returns from the 10-day injured list during the upcoming week.

Cabrera is out of the lineup for Sunday's series finale against Tampa Bay.

Cabrera went 0-for-2 in Saturday's 7-2 loss to the Rays and is slashing just .200/.246/.262 over his last 20 games. He finds himself on the bench for the second time in three games and could be losing hold of his regular role at third base. Jon Berti will fill in for Cabrera once again Sunday.