MLB Player News

Choi went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run in a win over the Indians on Saturday.

His fifth-inning round tripper with Tommy Pham aboard snapped a 1-1 tie and was Choi's fourth of the season overall. The 28-year-old has now compiled half of his 16 RBI for the season in May on the strength of a trio of homers.

Martinez (back) will serve as the Red Sox's designated hitter and bat cleanup Sunday against the Astros, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Martinez returned from a four-game absence to start in Friday's series opener, but his ongoing back issue resulted in him checking out of the lineup during Saturday's 4-3 loss. The Red Sox still made the slugger available off the bench for that contest, and he came in to deliver a two-out walk as a pinch hitter. After incurring no setbacks following the appearance, Martinez received the green light to fill his usual DH duties in the series finale.

Martinez (back) entered Saturday's game as a pinch hitter and drew a two-out walk in a 4-3 loss to the Astros.

He eventually got to second base but was caught in a rundown after a wild pitch didn't stray as far as he initially thought it would. He didn't look very spry during the sequence. Manager Alex Cora downplayed the back spasms that have caused Martinez to sit out of the starting lineup in five of the last six games, Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald reports. "Just a day off," Cora said.

Martinez is back on the bench Saturday against the Astros.

No reason has been given for Martinez's absence, but he missed four games in a row with an illness and a sore back earlier in the week, so there's a good chance that Saturday's absence is related. He went hitless in his return to action Friday. Christian Vazquez will be the designated hitter for Saturday's contest.

Canha, who went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in a win over the Mariners on Friday, is expected to serve as the primary designated hitter during Khris Davis' stay on the injured list due to a hip injury, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

The veteran has already been doing a pretty convincing Davis impression over the last several games, as he's now left the yard on five occasions over the last eight contests overall. He's slashing .229/.353/.600 on the season, and while he isn't likely to be as prodigious as Davis, Canha is coming off a 2018 season in which he slugged a career-high 17 home runs.

Cabrera went 2-for-2 with two walks, a home run and two RBI in Friday's 9-8 win over the Mets.

Cabrera's batting a robust .306 with a .381 on-base percentage, but this was just the second home run of the season for the veteran. His .387 slugging percentage would be a career worst, though Cabrera certainly seems to be seeing the ball well and could start to string together some extra-base hits. He had a .448 slugging percentage last year before getting shut down with a biceps injury.

Martinez (back/illness) is back in the lineup for Friday's game against the Astros, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Martinez missed four games in a row with an illness and a sore back. He'll bat fourth as the cleanup hitter Friday.

Brantley is not in the lineup Friday against Boston, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Brantley hits the bench after making 13 straight starts. George Springer returns from his back injury in right field, pushing Josh Reddick to left, though Brantley should continue to play a regular role as the Astros use the designated hitter spot to make room for their outfield depth.

Jimenez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's victory over the Astros.

Jimenez homered on a line drive to center field in the fourth inning against starter Corbin Martin to boost the White Sox lead to 4-0. After recently coming off the injured list (ankle), the 22-year-old went 0-for-7 during the first two games of the series in Houston before launching two bombs Wednesday and another one Thursday to bring his season total to six. The outfielder is batting an underwhelming .234/.280/.447 with 11 RBI through 25 games this year, though those numbers seem to be on the rise.

Buxton is not in Thursday's lineup against the Angels.

Wednesday's game was postponed, but Buxton will still get the off day for which he was slated after starting 11 games in a row. Max Kepler will shift to center field while Marwin Gonzalez starts in right field, hitting third.