MLB Player News

Winker (calf) will bat leadoff and start in left field Monday against the Giants.

Just as manager David Bell suggested would be the case a day earlier, Winker will rejoin the lineup for the series opener in San Francisco after a calf cramp prevented him from playing in the Reds' final two games of the weekend in Arizona. Prior to exiting Friday's contest, Winker had missed six days of action while recovering from an illness, so he'll be making just his fifth start of the season Monday. Tyler Naquin -- who has slugged five home runs and driven in 14 while serving as the primary replacement for Winker -- will take a seat Monday.

Harper went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 7-6 win over the Braves.

Harper started out poorly, as he went down swinging in each of his first two at-bats. However, he came around in the sixth, beginning the inning by belting an opposite-field home run to put the Phillies up 6-5. The 28-year-old has managed to reach safely in every game so far, and he's slashing .276/.447/.517 with two home runs, four RBI and seven runs scored.

Belt went 1-for-2 with a solo homer and pair of walks in Sunday's win over the Rockies.

The 32-year-old knocked in the final run against German Marquez, a solo shot in the sixth inning. Belt is off to a sluggish start following his career year in 2020 where he slashed .309/.425/.591.

Dickerson went 1-for-4 with a solo homer in Sunday's win over the Rockies.

The left-handed hitter smoked a solo shot off German Marquez in the first inning, launching the ball a whopping 413 feet. It was the second of the year for the 30-year-old, who found some power last season and has carried it over into 2021.

Manager David Bell said Winker (calf) will be "fully available" off the bench for Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Bell nearly included Winker in the lineup Sunday, but the outfielder will get another day off for precautionary purposes while he works back from calf cramps. Expect Winker to re-enter the starting nine for Monday's game in San Francisco.

Winker (calf) is not in the lineup Sunday against the Diamondbacks.

The 27-year-old exited Friday's contest with calf cramps and sat out Saturday, and he'll remain on the bench for Sunday's series finale. Tyler Naquin, Nick Senzel and Nick Castellanos will start from left to right in the outfield with Winker again sidelined.

Harper went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Saturday's loss to the Braves.

Harper is posting an impressive .471 OBP this season, but fantasy managers who roster him had to be let down by his lack of power and production prior to Saturday. The outfielder quelled some of that concern with his first homer of the season, which gave the Phillies a short-lived one-run lead in the sixth inning. The long ball pushed Harper's RBI total to a modest three for the campaign.

McCutchen went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and two total runs scored Saturday in a loss to the Braves.

McCutchen entered the contest with only one extra-base hit to his name for the season before doubling that number with a 444-foot shot to left field in the fifth inning. The long ball pushed the veteran outfielder's batting average back over the Mendoza Line to .208. He also doubled his RBI total to two for the campaign.

Even though Winker (calf) is not starting, he's available to pinch hit and could be back in the lineup Sunday, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

With Tyler Naquin on fire, the Reds are back to having four players for three spots in the outfield again. It's possible that Winker and Nick Senzel will have to share some of their starts with Naquin in the immediate future.

Harper went 0-for-2 with two walks in Friday's 8-1 loss to the Braves.

Harper continues to have a slow start to the 2021 season. Across 21 at-bats, Harper has only registered one extra-base hit (zero home runs). The superstar outfielder has drawn a walk on 26.7 percent of his plate appearances to help make up for his lack of hits.