MLB Player News

Collins could lose at-bats at designated hitter to the recently claimed AJ Reed, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

The left-handed hitting Reed was claimed during the All-Star break and will join the big-league roster for Friday's game at Oakland. Reed's addition, coupled with the news that Welington Castillo (oblique) is nearing a return, likely means the White Sox will want Collins getting regular swings in the minors. The young catcher/DH is 1-for-22 with five walks since being called up to Chicago.

The Cardinals remain encouraged by the progress of Ozuna (fingers) and hope to activate him by the end of July, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The outfielder hit the injured list June 29 after getting hurt on a pickoff attempt at first base, and reports on him have been encouraging since. Rogers notes Ozuna still has some inflammation in his fingers at this point of his recovery, but the all-important strength he'd lost is returning. "It is about regaining strength, but it's also about not putting it in a position to make it worse," president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said. "I think that's probably the most important aspect to all of this."

Carpenter (back) was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Thursday.

Carpenter has been on the shelf since July 2 due to a lower-back strain, though he benefitted from the All-Star break and will be ready to roll when his team resumes play Friday against Arizona. He put together an uncharacteristic .216/.325/.381 slash line through 77 games in the first half, so he'll look to turn things around following the break.

Choi (ankle) is expected to return from the 10-day injured list Saturday or Sunday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

If Choi hits that timeline, he'll wind up missing just over the minimum 10 days with a left ankle sprain. He should return to a regular role at first base -- at least against right-handed pitching -- once healthy and will look to build on his solid .266/.351/.423 line from the first half of the season.

Reed will join the White Sox's big-league squad immediately following the All-Star break, Rick Semmler of WTHI-TV reports.

Reed was claimed off waivers from Houston on Monday and optioned to Triple-A Charlotte, but his stay at that level won't last long. Once an interesting prospect, Reed put together some good seasons at Triple-A but was never able to carry that success over to the major-league level while with the Astros. He owns a .153/.253/.244 slash line in 48 career major-league contests and has a 90 wRC+ for Triple-A Round Rock this season.

Lewis, who went 2-for-4 with a double, a solo home run and two runs overall in Double-A Arkansas' win over Northwest Arkansas on Monday, is now slashing .266/.364/.388 across 335 plate appearances in 2019.

Lewis has displayed significant improvement across the board over the last month-plus, considering his line sat at an uninspired .225/.327/.341 heading into June. The outfielder continues to sport the second-highest strikeout rate of his career (28.1 percent), although he's partly offsetting it by also walking at a career-high clip (13.4 percent). Lewis has admittedly benefited from an elevated .374 BABIP, but he's also largely been an architect of his recent surge by generating an impressive 26.8 percent line-drive rate, a new high-water mark for the 23-year-old.

Reed was claimed off waivers by the White Sox on Monday and assigned to Triple-A Charlotte.

Reed has stalled out at Triple-A over the last four seasons. His .260/.351/.517 slash line at that level is good for a 120 wRC+, though he owns just a 90 wRC+ this season. He shouldn't be considered anything other than a lottery ticket for the White Sox at this point in his career. Ryan Burr (elbow) was transferred to the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move.

Ohtani went 1-for-6 with a two-run home run Sunday in the Angels' 11-10 loss to the Astros in 10 innings.

Ohtani will finish the first half of the season with 14 home runs, despite being sidelined until May 7 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. The two-way standout will gradually increase his activity on the mound after the All-Star break, but the Angels have already tabled the idea of using him as a pitcher in 2019. Instead, he'll continue to serve as the Angels' everyday designated hitter and likely sit only once or twice a week against select left-handers.

Canha (back) went 1-for-4 with a double and a run in a win over the Mariners on Sunday.

Canha had been a late scratch Saturday with back tightness, but the veteran was right back in action Sunday. The 30-year-old heads into the All-Star break with an eight-game on-base streak, but he's seen a 15-point drop in his season average to .233 since June 9 by going just 12-for-58 over his last 19 games.

Vientos went 2-for-4 with a walk, a run scored and an RBI for Low-A Columbia on Sunday.

The 19-year-old seems to have turned a corner after a rough start to the campaign, slashing .367/.441/.567 over his last 16 games with two homers and 15 RBI as well as a solid 5:11 BB:K. Vientos still has a world of upside and power potential as he fills out, and while he now has some company at the hot corner in the Mets' pipeline after the club drafted Brett Baty with the 12th overall pick this year, his bat should play anywhere if he develops as expected.