MLB Player News

Blackmon went 1-for-4 with a leadoff home run in Sunday's 4-3 win over the Giants.

Blackmon's franchise-record 23rd leadoff home run helped the Rockies plate three runs in the first inning off Jeff Samardzija. It was the 30-year-old's third home run of the season and ninth RBI in 61 plate appearances. Blackmon is off to a bit of a slow start (.232), but he was an early-round pick for a reason. He has the ability to produce across all categories and resides in the best hitting park in baseball. The numbers will look better eventually.

Winker was optioned to Triple-A Louisville on Sunday, MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports.

Winker was brought up by the Reds as a short-term fill-in for one of their final bench spots. During this short stint, the outfielder went 1-for-2 at the plate with a double in two pinch-hit appearances. This definitely won't be the last we see of Winker this season, but fantasy owners will have to wait a bit longer to see consistent production in the majors.

McCutchen launched a three-run homer -- his second home run in three games -- against the Cubs on Saturday.

He celebrated Jackie Robinson Day in style, moving past Barry Bonds for fourth place in career home runs among Pirates with 177. McCutchen also extended his hitting streak to seven games with the effort.

Pederson is not in the lineup Saturday against the Diamondbacks, David Vassegh of 570 LA Sports reports.

With southpaw Patrick Corbin set to take the mound, Trayce Thompson will get the start in center field while Pederson heads to the bench. With Thompson back in the majors, it appears manager Dave Roberts will look to occasionally deploy him against lefties over Pederson.

Cespedes is batting third and playing left field Saturday against the Marlins, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Cepsedes is back in the lineup for the Mets after taking a seat with the flu Friday. He'll look to pick up right where he left off, as the 31-year-old was 7-for-14 with five home runs and nine RBI in the three games before his day off.

Carpenter went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer and a walk in Friday's 4-3 loss to the Yankees.

Carpenter opened the scoring on the night with a 421-foot shot to right in the first off Masahiro Tanaka, giving the Cardinals the early 2-0 lead. While his average sits at a pedestrian .219, the 31-year-old infielder has reached safely in five straight and knocked in three runs over the last two contests.

Belt is not in the lineup Saturday against Colorado, Thomas Harding of MLB.com reports.

Belt has notched three home runs and seven RBI thus far, but he's hitting just .191 through his first 47 at-bats. He'll get the day off Saturday as the Giants go with Conor Gillaspie at first base.

McCutchen is batting .275/.370/.375 in 40 career at-bats against Saturday starter Jake Arrieta.

Arrieta has faced McCutchen more times than any other batter in the majors. The outfielder is seeing fewer fastballs (50.6 percent) than last season (53.8) and more changeups (13.6 versus 10.4). He holds a league-average .100 ISO and a modest five-game hitting streak.

Cespedes was held out of Friday's lineup due to the flu, Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News reports.

He was able to play through the illness Thursday and homered twice in the extra-inning win, but Cespedes needed a break after that huge effort. Consider him day-to-day, but it seems likely that he'll be able to suit up Saturday.

Winker could be optioned back to Triple-A Louisville on Sunday, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

The Reds are saying that Winker was just brought up to fill out the bench for a couple days -- Winker is out of the lineup Friday against the Brewers after being called up. A roster spot will be needed for Sal Romano, Sunday's starter against Milwaukee, and it's possible Winker loses his spot as manager Bryan Price has been adamant that his starting outfield is set with Adam Duvall, Billy Hamilton and Scott Schebler. It seems inevitable that Winker will replace Schebler in the regular lineup eventually, but it may not happen right away.