MLB Player News

Smith is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants.

The left-handed-hitting Smith will head to the bench while southpaw Robbie Ray takes the hill for the Giants. With Smith out of the lineup, Drake Baldwin will get a day from catching but will stick in the starting nine at designated hitter.

Eldridge is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against Atlanta.

The Giants will shield the left-handed-hitting Eldridge from a tough lefty (Chris Sale) in the series finale. The freshly activated Heliot Ramos will enter the starting nine at designated hitter while Eldridge heads to the bench for the first time since June 2.

Eldridge went 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored in Saturday's 5-0 win over Atlanta.

Eldridge doubled in the second inning before coming around to score, marking his second two-bagger in as many days. The 21-year-old has been struggling at the plate of late, batting .111 with three runs scored across 32 plate appearances over his last eight games. Overall, he's slashing .279/.374/.486 with 22 runs scored, 16 RBI and six home runs in 163 plate appearances this season.

Lowe is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

The Pirates are sending right-hander Mitch Keller to the bump for the series finale, but Lowe will still sit after going just 2-for-13 with a 2:6 BB:K over his last six games. Cincinnati will go with Spencer Steer as its starting first baseman in place of Lowe.

Suarez went 1-for-4 with a home run, a walk and three RBI in Saturday's 9-7 win over the Pirates.

Suarez came up clutch, launching a three-run shot off Gregory Soto to give the Reds a two-run lead in the top of the ninth inning. The veteran slugger is batting just .190 through 21 games in June, though he's now hit safely in three straight with three extra-base hits. On the season, he's slashing .210/.276/.379 with eight homers, 29 RBI and 18 runs scored across 214 plate appearances.

Yelich is not in the lineup for Saturday's matchup against the Cubs.

After going 2-for-5 with an RBI double and a strikeout in Friday's series opener, Yelich will take a seat Saturday as the Cubs trot out left-hander David Peterson. Gary Sanchez will serve as the designated hitter and bat fifth for Milwaukee.

Smith batted eighth and went 0-for-4 in Friday's 6-1 loss to Tampa Bay.

Smith extended a hitless run to 14 at-bats and hasn't got the bat working since coming off the injured list in late May. He's batting just .154 (8-for-52) with one home run and five RBI while mostly batting fifth in the order.

The Mets optioned Melendez to Triple-A Syracuse on Friday.

Melendez had a hot first couple weeks with the Mets in producing a 1.024 OPS in his first 16 games, but he stumbled to a .123/.273/.222 batting line over his last 40 contests. Tyrone Taylor (hip) has returned from the injured list in a corresponding move.

Wagaman went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in an extra-inning loss to the Cubs on Thursday.

Wagaman didn't start the contest, but he was called upon to pinch hit for MJ Melendez with a runner on second base in the sixth inning. That substitution worked out well for New York, as Wagaman clubbed a two-run homer to left field to give the team its first runs of the game. The long ball was the second of the season for Wagaman, who has seen sporadic playing time while up with the big-league club. He's started just twice in the Mets' past eight contests.

Schwarber (back) will serve as the Phillies' designated hitter and bat second Thursday against the Nationals.

Schwarber missed back-to-back starts while dealing with lower-back tightness, but he was able to enter Wednesday's contest as a pinch hitter and drew a walk during his lone plate appearance. Now healthy enough to start, he'll look to remain hot after slashing .306/.425/.597 with seven homers through 20 games in June.