MLB Player News

Suzuki went 3-for-5 with one walk, two home runs and five RBI in Wednesday's 10-2 win over the Athletics.

Suzuki gave the Cubs a 4-0 lead in the second inning when he took Jeffrey Springs deep for a three-run homer. Suzuki smacked a solo home run in the fourth frame before knocking in his fifth run of the day in the seventh on an RBI single. The 30-year-old struggled to open the season with just two hits in his first five games, but over his last four outings he's gone 9-for-19 with three walks, four home runs and 11 RBI.

Smith is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees.

Left-hander Carlos Rodon is taking the hill for the Yankees, so the left-handed--hitting Smith will begin the contest on the bench. Randal Grichuk will start at designated hitter and bat cleanup for the Diamondbacks on Wednesday.

Bride is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Mets.

Bride will get his first day off of the season after he hit .100 while drawing five walks over the Marlins' first six games. He'll cede his spot in the lineup to Eric Wagaman, who will serve as Miami's designated hitter.

Giants manager Bob Melvin said that Schmitt will start at first base against left-handed pitcher Framber Valdez in Wednesday's game versus the Astros, Shayna Rubin of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The 26-year-old Schmitt pinch hit for LaMonte Wade against lefty Steven Okert in the seventh inning of Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Astros. Schmitt remained in the game and played first base for the first time in his big-league career, though he went 0-for-2 with a strikeout. There's a good chance that Schmitt will receive more playing time at first base against lefties moving forward, and he's been taking grounders with Wade and Wilmer Flores to familiarize himself with the position.

McCutchen remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

For the third game in a row, McCutchen finds himself out of the lineup. The Pirates haven't indicated that McCutchen is dealing with an injury, and the 38-year-old came off the bench in Tuesday's 7-0 loss to Tampa Bay and recorded a base hit in a ninth-inning pinch-hitting appearance. Rather than because of his own health, McCutchen's recent absences seem to be a byproduct of Bryan Reynolds dealing with right tricep soreness, according to Brian Murphy of MLB.com. Reynolds has still been able to take at-bats without discomfort while he manages the injury, so he'll remain in the lineup at designated hitter for the third straight game while Jack Suwinski fills in for him in right field. Once Reynolds is ready to play the outfield again, McCutchen could be prioritized over Suwinski.

Yelich is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.

Yelich cranked his first home run of the season Tuesday, but he will receive his first day off for Wednesday's afternoon contest. Isaac Collins is at designated hitter and batting third for Milwaukee.

Yelich went 1-for-3 with a home run, two RBI, a walk, a stolen base and an additional run scored in Tuesday's 5-0 win over the Royals.

After grounding out to drive in a run in the third inning, Yelich added an insurance run for the Brewers with a solo shot in the eighth frame. The star left fielder is slashing just .125/.300/.313 over 16 at-bats (five games), so he's cooled off quite a bit to begin the campaign after hitting .353 with three homers and 11 RBI over 36 plate appearances during spring training.

Sheets is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Guardians, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Sheets started the previous four games -- all against right-handed starting pitchers -- and has gone 7-for-14 with two doubles, a homer and five RBI this season, but he'll sit Tuesday while lefty Logan Allen takes the mound for Cleveland. Yuli Gurriel will continue to fill the small side of the platoon at designated hitter and bat sixth.

McCutchen is not in the lineup for Tuesday's contest against the Rays.

McCutchen isn't dealing with any known injury, but he's now been absent from the Pirates' lineup for three of the last four games. Bryan Reynolds is getting a start in the designated hitter spot, while Jack Suwinski is covering right field.

Steer is absent from the lineup for Tuesday's contest against the Rangers.

Steer has now started three of the first five games this season, as the Reds don't want to overload him as he comes back from his right shoulder injury. All three of Steer's starts have been at designated hitter, and it's not clear when he might be ready to play the field. Gavin Lux is at DH on Tuesday while Blake Dunn covers left field.