MLB Player News

The Reds designated Ford for assignment Wednesday.

Ford signed a one-year, $1.3 million contract just three weeks ago but will exit the 40-man roster after going just 9-for-60 (.150) at the plate. The 31-year-old will undoubtedly clear waivers and could remain in the organization, as declining an outright assignment would mean forfeiting the remainder of his salary.

Ozuna went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 2-0 win over the Nationals.

The veteran slugger broke open a scoreless tie when he took Jacob Barnes deep in the seventh inning, continuing his most recent hit streak. Ozuna has reached base safely in 21 straight games, a stretch in which he's slashing .324/.409/.662 with seven homers and 16 RBI.

Martinez isn't in the Mets' lineup for the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Dodgers, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

After a 1-for-4 effort in Game 1, Martinez will get a breather to conclude Tuesday's activities. DJ Stewart will instead get the nod as New York's DH and bat fourth.

Ohtani isn't in the Dodgers' lineup for the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Mets, Eric Stephen of SBNation.com reports.

The Dodgers were planning on giving Ohtani the evening off heading into Tuesday's twin bill, so he'll sit in the dugout after an 0-for-5 performance during Game 1. Will Smith will instead serve as Los Angeles' designated hitter, allowing Austin Barnes to start behind the plate.

Schwarber went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, a walk and a stolen base in Monday's loss to San Francisco.

Schwarber put the Phillies on the board in the third inning with a two-run shot off reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell. It was his fourth homer against a lefty this season, and he's now batting a lofty .333 (27-for-71) against southpaw hurlers. Overall, Schwarber's .359 OBP this season is on pace for the second-highest mark of his career.

Martini went 2-for-4 with two RBI in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Dodgers.

Martini hit the second of back-to-back, two-run singles in the third inning. He has at least one RBI in three consecutive games. Martini (.191 average) and Mike Ford (.153) are expected to share the DH spot for now.

Sanchez will start at catcher and will bat sixth in Sunday's game against the Red Sox.

He'll be included in the lineup for the fifth time in six games, with three of those starts coming versus left-handed pitching and two coming versus righties. Though William Contreras remains the Brewers' clear top backstop, look for Milwaukee to continue to find room in the lineup for both Contreras and Sanchez between catcher and DH while the latter is continuing to excel at the plate. Over 103 plate appearances on the season, Sanchez is hitting .228 with nine extra-base hits (six home runs, three doubles).

Ford is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Dodgers.

Ford will take a seat for the second time in the series while he's fallen into the midst of a slump at the plate. In his last five games, the 31-year-old has gone 2-for-19 and is slashing just .153/.180/.237 on the season.

Ohtani will serve as the Dodgers' designated hitter and No. 2 batter in Sunday's game against the Reds.

Though manager Dave Roberts disclosed after Saturday's 3-1 loss that Ohtani has been managing a bruised hamstring of late, the 29-year-old still served as the Dodgers' DH for all nine innings of the contest, going 1-for-4 with a triple and three strikeouts. According to Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register, Ohtani wasn't running at full speed when he legged out the triple, and while the hamstring issue doesn't look as though it'll cost him any starts, it could result in his stolen-base opportunities being more limited in the short term. Ohtani has gone a perfect 13-for-13 in stolen-base attempts through his first 52 games of the season.

Schwarber went 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, one RBI and two runs scored in Saturday's 8-4 win over the Rockies.

Schwarber has multiple hits in three of his last five contests, though his double Saturday was his first extra-base hit since May 16. The 31-year-old slugger is up to a .234/.356/.396 slash line with nine home runs, 31 RBI, 40 runs scored and two stolen bases over 235 plate appearances this season. Schwarber's drop in power this season isn't a great sign after he exceeded 45 homers in back-to-back years, but he continues to walk (16.2 percent) at a high rate.