MLB Player News

The Cardinals cleared Ozuna (finger) to resume baseball activities Friday after he turned in an encouraging workout Thursday, the Associated Press reports.

Ozuna has been shut down since June 29 with right hand and finger fractures, and he's faced persistent swelling stalling his recovery process. The inflammation has apparently subsided, so expect Ozuna to gradually add more activities to his regimen as he works his way back from the 10-day injured list. He could be ready to begin a minor-league rehab assignment at some point late next week if all goes well in his workouts over the next few days.

Alvarez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 4-3 win over the Rangers.

All four Houston runs scored on solo shots, with Alvarez's third-inning blast -- the tail end of a back-to-back-to-back set with Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman -- proving to be the game-winner. The rookie slugger now has 10 homers and 32 RBI through his first 27 big-league contests to go along with a sizzling .327/.400/.692 slash line.

Vogelbach went 2-for-4 with two home runs and six RBI in Friday's 10-0 shutout of the Angels.

Vogelbach crushed a pair of three-run homers in back-to-back plate appearances, first a 402-foot shot in the fourth inning, then a 406-footer in the fifth, both off Jaime Barria. The long balls were his first since July 6 against Oakland. Overall this season, the 26-year-old is batting .239/.372/.512 with 22 home runs, 57 RBI and 51 runs scored.

Choi went 1-for-3 with an RBI, a walk and a stolen base Friday night against the White Sox.

Choi got the Rays on the board in the first inning on a single to right center, but the White Sox would take the series opener 9-2. The 28-year-old first baseman had been hitless since the All-Star break (0-for-8), so perhaps a base knock is just what he needed to get back on track. He's hitting .258 with nine homers and 34 RBI over 75 games this season.

Correcting a previous update, Turner is starting at third base and batting third Friday against the Marlins.

Turner will aim to extend his modest hitting streak to three games Friday. He's reached base safely in five of his last six contests.

Dickerson isn't in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Mets, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Dickerson fell a home run short of the cycle Thursday in the series opener, going 3-for-7 with a double and a triple in a 3-2 victory. He'll head to the bench for the second matchup of the series, allowing for Mike Yastrzemski to shift to left field and for Austin Slater to pick up a start in right.

Turner isn't in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Marlins.

Turner will head to the bench despite collecting four base knocks (including two extra-base hits) over his last two contests. Max Muncy moves over to third base with Turner riding the pine.

Brantley is not starting Friday against the Rangers.

Brantley owns an excellent .421/.465/.658 slash line over his last 10 games. He'll get a rest Friday with Tony Kemp starting in left field.

Goins is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rays.

Goins had his contract purchased by the White Sox on Wednesday and started the last two games at shortstop, going 2-for-6 with a home run and a walk. Jose Rondon will take over at shortstop for Friday's series opener.

Reed is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rays.

Reed is 5-for-18 with one home run and two walks in six games since being claimed off waivers by the White Sox last week, but he'll take a seat Friday with southpaw Brendan McKay on the mound for Tampa Bay. James McCann will serve as the designated hitter while Welington Castillo starts at catcher.