MLB Player News

Choi (Achilles) will begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Altoona on Thursday.

Thursday will be Choi's first taste of game action since landing on the injured list April 15 with a left Achilles strain. The Pirates haven't indicated how long they plan on keeping Choi in the minors, but a return before the end of June could be possible.

Pederson is not in Thursday's lineup against the Padres, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Pederson will head to the bench with a lefty (Blake Snell) on the mound for the opposition. The veteran slugger has not started against a lefty all season. Michael Conforto gets the nod at designated hitter, batting fifth.

Meneses is not in Thursday's lineup against the Diamondbacks, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.

Meneses is hitting .259 with zero home runs, six runs and six RBI in 16 games this month. Keibert Ruiz will start at designated hitter while Riley Adams starts behind the dish.

Vogelbach went 3-for-5 with a double, a run scored and three RBI in Wednesday's 10-8 loss to the Astros.

The veteran slugger did what he could to keep the Mets in the game with an RBI double in the third inning and a two-run single in the fourth. Vogelbach appears to be regaining his swagger at the plate, starting four of the last six games at DH and going 7-for-17 (.412) with two homers and seven RBI.

Carpenter is out of the lineup again Wednesday versus the Giants.

Carpenter seems to have slumped his way into a bench-bat role, as this is his third straight absence from the Padres' starting lineup. Nelson Cruz will handle DH duties and hit seventh Wednesday night in San Francisco.

Pederson went 1-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and an additional RBI in Tuesday's 4-3 win over the Padres.

Pederson was the engine behind the Giants' comeback win -- he tied the game with his eighth-inning solo shot before his walk-off walk in the ninth. The designated hitter has gone just 4-for-21 (.190) over his last seven contests, though he also has five walks in that span. He's at a .266/.387/.508 slash line with eight homers, 27 RBI, 24 runs scored, no stolen bases, four doubles and a triple through 39 contests while seeing the vast majority of his playing time versus right-handed pitchers.

Canha is not in the starting lineup Wednesday versus the Astros.

Canha will get a breather after he went 1-for-2 with an RBI in Tuesday's 4-2 loss. Tommy Pham will replace him in left field while Daniel Vogelbach takes over at designated hitter and bats seventh in the series finale with Houston.

Winker is not in the starting lineup Wednesday versus the Diamondbacks.

Winker will take a seat after he went 1-for-6 with a two-run homer and four strikeouts over the first two games of the series. Rowdy Tellez will take over at designated hitter and bat cleanup in the series finale with Arizona.

McCutchen is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs due to a sore right elbow, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

Manager Derek Shelton downplayed concern about the injury, noting that McCutchen is day-to-day and is just receiving an additional game off to manage the elbow issue. With McCutchen sitting for the second straight contest, rookie Henry Davis will get another look as the Pirates' designated hitter.

Winker went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run during Tuesday's 7-5 win against the Diamondbacks.

Winker was 1-for-9 with five strikeouts in three games since he returned from the injured list Saturday, but he finally went deep for the first time since joining the Brewers with his two-run shot during the fourth inning Tuesday. The 29-year-old's .200/.312/.250 slash line still leaves plenty to be desired.