MLB Player News

Dickerson went 1-for-4 with a double, a walk and four RBI against the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

He'd driven in exactly zero runs over the past eight games, but reversed that trend in a big way Thursday with his three-run double in the eighth inning giving the Padres the lead and just enough breathing room to escape with a win. The 26-year-old rookie has been fairly useful for fantasy owners when in the lineup this year as he's still maintaining an OPS over .800. He's always hit in the minors but Dickerson will need to continue establishing himself over the rest of this season as well as next year before he fully sheds the Quad-A label.

Ozuna went 1-for-4 with a two-run shot versus the Reds on Thursday.

Ozuna now has 22 home runs -- one off his career high -- as he continues his breakout year. The last two weeks have been rough on him (.143 batting average), but as a whole, the 25-year-old is getting on base more than ever before, and he has dramatically cut down on his strikeout rate.

Cespedes (quadriceps) will be activated from the 15-day disabled list Friday, Matt Ehalt of The Record.

The Mets get some much-needed offensive power back Friday with Cespedes' return from a quad injury. Cespedes had his initial activation date pushed back a day in order for him to play a rehab game earlier in the week. His return will be a boon to a Mets outfield corps that has posted the fourth-worst wOBA from the center field spot over the past two weeks.

Although McCutchen sports a .472 on-base percentage and 12:8 BB:K since the Pirates benched him in the beginning of August, he doesn't believe the time off helped him. "I will forever tell you that (those) three days had nothing to do with what I'm doing," McCutchen told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. "I would've done this regardless. I might have five more hits in three games. Instead of hitting .240, I could be hitting .260."

He's slashing .317/.472/.512 in 53 August plate appearances, stealing three bases in four attempts. McCutchen has seen false glimmers of hope before in 2016, but the improvement in plate discipline is most encouraging -- prior to his August turnaround he held just a 35:107 BB:K. Look for a strong finish from the five-time All-Star.

Soler went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer in a win against the Brewers on Wednesday.

His three-run homer in the first punctuated a five-run inning that set the Cubs well on their way to victory. Soler isn't an everyday player and tends to get subbed out of games for defensive or double-switching purposes, which can limit his counting stats, but he's been raking when given the chance in August, hitting .379 with four homers in just 29 at-bats.

Turner went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run and a pair of runs scored Wednesday in the Dodgers' win over the Phillies.

Turner has hit for tremendous power of late, with 11 home runs in his last 30 games. Turner's power may be the result of a change in approach at the plate, however, as he's not taken a walk since July 27th. He entered Wednesday slugging .643 in August, but with an OBP of just .310.

Pederson went 3-for-4 with a walk Wednesday, as the Dodgers beat the Phillies 7-2.

Pederson continued a recent trend of getting on base at a tremendous clip, with a .440 OBP in his last 15 games prior to Wednesday. After hitting just .210 last season with 170 strikeouts, fantasy owners should be quite happy with Pederson's improving plate discipline. Pederson is still hitting for power too, his 42 extra-base hits nearly matching his total from last year already.

McCutchen went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run as part of a six-run sixth inning that helped the Pirates to a 6-5 win over the Giants.

McCutchen is still hitting just .248 on the year, and is on pace for his worst statistical season since 2011, but has shown signs of life of late, hitting .346/.469/.654 in his last seven games. One potential reason why: despite his 17 home runs putting him roughly on pace for his average over the past five years, he's putting the ball on the ground more often, his 0.76 groundout to flyout ratio being the most extreme of his career.

Haper went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and a pair of runs scored as the Nationals fell to the Rockies 12-10.

The homer was Harper's first since July 20th, a stretch of time over which he has been mired in a miserable slump. He's hit just .190/.326/.352 over his last 30 games, but may be snapping out of it, hitting .333/.433/.625 over his last seven. The home run was Harper's 21st of the year, nine of which he hit in April. It's easy to forget that Harper is still just 23 years old, having had such high peaks in his career, winning an MVP award in 2015. Fantasy owners should stay hopeful with someone as talented as Harper, who has shown the ability to put up big flurries of offensive output in short stretches of time.

Jimenez's amazing offensive season has continued into the second half, as he is slashing .327/.375/.524 with four home runs and 25 strikeouts in 147 at-bats since the All-Star break.

He had a monster first half, partially propelled by a BABIP over .400, and his BABIP still sits at a lofty .401, and that needs to be noted when evaluating his season. Jimenez excels at making hard contact, and his ability to take the ball the other way has actually led to major reverse splits this year. He has a 1.006 OPS against righties and a .661 OPS against lefties, although he has logged just 115 at-bats against southpaws, so the sample size isn't large enough to make any sweeping conclusions. Jimenez is also still just 19 years old, and given his offensive prowess, he will have plenty of time to make adjustments as he moves up the ladder. The main takeaway here is that the Cubs have another special young hitter on their hands.