MLB Player News

Beer was promoted to Double-A Corpus Christi on Thursday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The 2018 first-rounder hit .328/.414/.602 with nine homers and 34 RBI in 35 games for High-A Fayetteville before earning a promotion to Double-A. There is no doubt that Beer can hit, but the bigger question is where he lands defensively or if he's a DH-only prospect. Either way, he'll look to continue mashing his way up the minor-league latter.

Cabrera (knee) will serve as the Tigers' designated hitter and bat cleanup Thursday against the Athletics, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Cabrera was held out of the lineup in Wednesday's 5-1 loss to the Tigers while he dealt with some knee soreness, but the issue was never viewed as a serious concern. The Tigers could limit Cabrera's duties at first base for the next few days until the soreness fully subsides, but the injury shouldn't impact him as much at the plate as a DH. Cabrera is batting .283 in May but continues to show little power with only one extra-base hit (a double) in 13 games this month.

Buxton went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in an 8-7 victory against the Angels on Wednesday.

The 25-year-old is on a five-game hitting streak, which sounds modest, but it's raised his average 30 points. Buxton has shown little over-the-fence power so far, but he owns a .500 slugging percentage on the strength of 18 doubles and two triples. He is batting .278 with 16 RBI, 20 runs and eight steals in 126 at-bats.

Martinez went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBI in Wednesday's 6-5 win over the Rockies.

The power binge continues for Martinez, who now has five homers in his last seven games. He's gone 9-for-28 and walked six times in that span, giving him a slash line of .321/.399/.541 through 41 games.

Cabrera (knee) is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Astros, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Cabrera exited Tuesday's game with some knee soreness, and while the issue isn't thought to be anything overly serious, it will force the veteran slugger to miss at least one game. Niko Goodrum is starting at first base in his absence, with Brandon Dixon getting the nod at DH. Cabrera should be considered day-to-day.

Soler went 3-for-5 with a pair of doubles, two RBI and a run Tuesday in the Royals' 11-5 win over the Rangers.

Soler and leadoff man Whit Merrifield paced the Royals with three hits apiece as they chased Texas starter Shelby Miller from the game in the second inning. The two doubles give Soler 24 extra-base hits on the campaign, putting him in a tie for 11th place among all MLB hitters.

Ohtani (elbow) extended his throwing distance to 115 feet prior to Wednesday's game against the Twins, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Just as the Angels suggested would be the case when he was activated from the 10-day injured list last week, Ohtani's throwing program won't impact his availability to make regular starts at designated hitter. He'll be included in the lineup as the No. 3 hitter Wednesday after collecting five hits between the first two games of the series. Ohtani should continue to gradually stretch out his throwing distance off flat ground before advancing to mound work later in the summer.

Jimenez (ankle) went 1-for-4 with a run scored for Triple-A Charlotte on Tuesday.

Jimenez served as the designated hitter in the first game of his rehab assignment for the Knights. The White Sox will keep him down on the farm for the rest of the week, and have Jimenez get reps in the outfield before activating him off the IL.

Vogelbach went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a victory over Oakland on Tuesday.

Following a 3-for-22 homerless slump, Vogelbach has now homered in two straight games to raise his total to 11 on the year. He tends to sit versus left-handed pitchers but still offers plenty of value as a power source in a platoon role.

Ohtani went 3-for-4 with an RBI in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Twins.

While he's now hitting .321 (9-for-28) since coming off the IL, it was Ohtani's baserunning blunders that decided the game for the Angels. The second-year player got thrown out trying to go first to third on a single in the sixth inning, helping to snuff out the team's only rally of the night, then got gunned down at the plate to end the eighth on a play that also resulted in Minnesota catcher Mitch Garver suffering an ankle injury. TOOTBLAN's aside, Ohtani will remain a key part of the Angels' offense as the regular DH.