MLB Player News

Harper (knee) has advanced to soft toss and hitting off a tee in recent days and is participating in "some light running" prior to Wednesday's game against the Braves, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.

Harper continues to progress from a knee injury that has sidelined him since mid-August. It's a positive sign that Harper has been able to expand his exercises, but it appears as though he still has a little ways to go before getting back on the field. A better sense of a timetable should develop for Harper's return once he's cleared to take live batting practice.

McCutchen went 1-for-4 with a double Tuesday in Milwaukee.

His double, which produced an 109-mph exit velocity, gives the center fielder extra-base hits in three straight games. McCutchen is far removed from his summer hot stretch (he entered Tuesday hitting .194 since Aug. 17), but he does have hits in seven of eight contests. McCutchen has gone .316 in 19 career at-bats against Wednesday starter Chase Anderson.

Martinez went 2-for-4 with a solo homer and a double in Tuesday's 4-2 loss to the Rockies.

Martinez went deep off starter Jon Gray in the fourth inning and added a double to lead off the ninth. The trade deadline acquisition from Detroit has been among the hottest hitters in baseball with 12 home runs and five doubles for a total of 17 extra-base hits in his past 15 games.

Carpenter went 1-for-1 with an RBI double, four walks and two runs scored in Tuesday's 13-4 win over the Reds.

Carpenter roped a double in his lone at-bat and saw 27 total pitches. The veteran infielder's OBP jumped from .376 to .382 with this effort and he now has just 12 more strikeouts (110) than walks (98) this season. His combination of power and batting eye is what makes Carpenter such a valuable asset out of the leadoff spot for manager Mike Matheny, and both of those skills were on display here.

Winker will start in right field and lead off Tuesday against the Cardinals.

By successfully running the bases again Saturday, Winker passed the final test necessary to return from a hip injury. He will slot in atop the order in his first start back, as Scott Schebler moves to center to open a spot for Winker in right. This could be the new norm for Cincinnati with Billy Hamilton (thumb) on the DL. Winker has displayed strong plate skills and surprising pop during his time with the big club, and with regular playing time, he should be useful in most mixed leagues.

Winker (hip) was activated from the 10-day DL on Tuesday, Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

While it is obviously a small sample size, Winker has unquestionably improved his dynasty-league stock by hitting four home runs while slashing .297/.402/.500 in 87 MLB plate appearances after hitting just five home runs in 191 games at Triple-A over the last two seasons. He should get semi-regular work down the stretch as the Reds continue to evaluate their outfield situation for 2018.

Martinez went 3-for-4 with a double, two runs, a stolen base and an RBI in Monday's 5-4 loss to the Rockies.

Fresh off earning National League Player of the Week honors after homering seven times in the previous six contests, Martinez continued to rake Monday, turning in his third straight multi-hit effort. The slugging outfielder is now hitting .450 in September, raising his season mark from .278 to .298 during that span.

Martinez went 2-for-4 with a pair of solo home runs in Sunday's win over the Padres.

The 30-year-old book-ended his week with multi-homer games, following up Monday's historic four-homer game with two more long balls Sunday. He also had a four-hit performance this weekend and is now batting .289, so his third straight .300 season is within reach. The timing couldn't be better for those in the fantasy playoffs.

Ozuna isn't in the lineup Sunday against the Braves, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

After starting 22 consecutive games, Ozuna will have a well-earned day off. In that span he slashed .318/.394/.534 and hit five home runs. Tyler Moore will hit fourth and start in left field while Ozuna heads to the bench. The Marlins have Monday off, so Ozuna should return to the lineup Tuesday against the Phillies.

Martinez went 4-for-5 with an RBI in Saturday's 8-7 loss to the Padres.

It's the second four-hit effort in five games for Martinez, allowing him to bring up his average to .264 since he joined the Diamondbacks in mid-July. While a 30.6 percent strikeout rate over that same span would normally suggest that Martinez's average is unsustainable, the outfielder has run BABIPs above .340 in each of the past three seasons, which could be enough to keep his average fairly stable the rest of the way.