MLB Player News

Ohtani (groin) will serve as the Angels' designated hitter and No. 3 batter in Tuesday's game in Boston, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

After checking out of Sunday's 6-5 win over the White Sox with right groin tightness, Ohtani was withheld from the lineup in Monday's 3-0 loss in the series finale. Manager Joe Maddon described Ohtani's absence as precautionary, and the two-way phenom's ability to rejoin the lineup Tuesday implies the groin issue won't prevent him from making regular starts at DH moving forward. Maddon also indicated that he's optimistic Ohtani will be able to make a start as a pitcher during Thursday's series finale in Boston, according to Fletcher.

Reyes will serve as the Guardians' designated hitter and No. 7 batter in Tuesday's game against the Padres.

Reyes made his first 15 starts out of the cleanup spot, but he hit either fifth or sixth in each of his last four starts in light of his poor start to the season. Though he took a small step forward in Sunday's 7-3 win over Oakland by going 1-for-5 with two RBI, he still struck out three times and enters the week with a lowly .139 batting average and .171 on-base average on the campaign. He'll sink in the order yet again Tuesday, and Reyes could frequently find himself in a bottom-third spot in the lineup until he cuts down on his bloated 46.3 percent strikeout rate and begins tapping into more power.

Lewis (knee) will report to Triple-A Tacoma on Tuesday to begin a rehab assignment.

Lewis' scheduled appearance for Tacoma on Tuesday will mark his first game action in affiliated ball since late May of last season, when he developed a right knee injury that was later revealed to be a torn meniscus. He underwent surgery soon after and was expected to make a late-season return, but he suffered a setback in his recovery that prompted the Mariners to take a cautious approach with bringing him back to begin the 2022 campaign. Lewis has since appeared in games at extended spring training without any discomfort in his knee, so he'll now move on to Tacoma for rehab games in what marks the final step of his lengthy recovery process. Once activated from the 10-day injured list, Lewis could challenge the struggling Jarred Kelenic for an everyday role in the Seattle outfield.

Alvarez went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Monday's 3-0 win over Seattle.

Alvarez kicked off the scoring for Houston in the fourth inning with a solo shot to right field. The long ball was his third in his past four games and pushed his total on the season to seven, tied for fourth in the league. Alvarez has collected at least one hit in eight of his past nine contests and is slashing .375/.474/.781 over that stretch.

Buxton went 1-for-4 with a run scored in Monday's 2-1 win over Baltimore.

Buxton singled and scored the go-ahead run on a Carlos Correa base hit in the sixth inning. The outfielder also struck out three times, giving him 21 punchouts with just two walks on the year. Still, he's slashing .281/.339/.719 through 62 plate appearances.

Ramirez will serve as the Rays' designated hitter and No. 5 batter in Monday's game in Oakland, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

He'll pick up his second start in a row after going 1-for-4 while manning first base in Sunday's 9-3 loss to the Twins. Ramirez is expected to be one of the main beneficiaries for increased at-bats after the Rays placed Ji-Man Choi (elbow) on the 10-day injured list and demoted Josh Lowe to Triple-A Durham on Sunday.

Winker went 3-for-5 with a two-run single, a double and one run in a win over the Marlins on Sunday.

Winker put together consecutive multi-hit efforts for the first time all season and generated his third two-RBI tally in the process. Although his season line still sits at an unsightly .197/.340/.237, Winker certainly seems to be climbing out of the hole, considering his .300/.353/.400 slash over his last eight games.

Ohtani (groin) is out of the lineup Monday against the White Sox merely as a precaution and is available to pinch hit, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Ohtani left Sunday's game with groin tightness, and while he initially said he planned to play Monday, the Angels will elect to take things easy with him for now. An MRI was deemed unnecessary, however, and the fact that he's available off the bench suggests he should return to the lineup soon. The Angels haven't decided when Ohtani will make his next start as a pitcher, but manager Joe Maddon suggested he hopes the right-hander will be ready to take the mound during the team's upcoming series in Boston, according to Fletcher. Patrick Sandoval is already locked in as the starter for Tuesday's series opener, but Ohtani could be an option for Wednesday or Thursday.

Ohtani (groin) is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the White Sox, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

After departing Sunday's 6-5 win over Chicago with right groin tightness, Ohtani said he would be back in the lineup for Monday's series finale, but the Angels apparently felt differently about the matter. Perhaps due to the quick turnaround of Monday's contest -- which begins at 2:10 p.m. ET -- the Angels didn't want to take any chances with the two-way star. Assuming Ohtani's groin issue is at least feeling better Monday, he should have a chance to rejoin the lineup Tuesday as a designated hitter in the Angels' series opener in Boston. He tentatively lines up to make his next start as a pitcher Wednesday.

Brantley went 0-for-4 with a strikeout Sunday against the Blue Jays.

Brantley missed the first two games of Houston's series against Toronto after being placed in the health and safety protocols. He came to bat in the sixth inning with a runner on third base and one out, though he failed to drive in the run by grounding out to shortstop. Brantley has gotten off to a slow start relative to his standards through 80 plate appearances this season, but his .379 xwOBA suggests his skills remain intact.