MLB Player News

Belt received his second start in left field this season Thursday, going 1-for-4 with a run scored in a 5-1 loss to the Dodgers.

The Giants outfield has been stricken with injuries, so manager Bruce Bochy has been using a combination of Belt and Eduardo Nunez to cover left field. It appears that the first baseman will primarily see starts in the outfield when a southpaw is on the mound, as it allows Buster Posey to play first and Nick Hundley to slide behind the dish. It is still unclear how long the Giants' skipper plans on using Belt out of position, but depending on league format, he could gain outfield eligibility at some point this season, which would be a marginal boost to his value.

Carpenter went 2-for-5 with a three-run home run and five RBI during the first game of Thursday's doubleheader against Toronto.

The five RBI doubled his total to 10, and Carpenter finished the game with an underwhelming .250/.373/.417 slash line. However, with a .505 slugging percentage and 49 home runs over the past two seasons, he's probably just underachieving to start the year. Expecting a breakout stretch sooner rather than later from the veteran will probably pay off, especially considering Carpenter's track record.

Soler (oblique) will not be activated from the disabled list Friday and will continue a rehab assignment through May 10, Rustin Dodd of The Kansas City Star reports.

Royals GM Dayton Moore said the 25-year-old will spend some extra time with Triple-A Omaha "to get some at-bats and get caught up." Soler began a minor-league rehab assignment last Friday, 26 days after sustaining a Grade 1 oblique strain during the final week of spring training. Moore also noted that the club would like to see him log more innings playing the field, pointing out that he missed valuable time late in camp due to the ailment. Jorge Bonifacio will continue filling in until Soler is ready to return.

Dickerson (back) has been participating in cardio and light lifting and is expected to resume baseball activities within a week, Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Dickerson, who was diagnosed with a protruding disc in his back in mid-March and eventually moved to the 60-day DL on April 7 after starting the season on the 10-day DL, is showing progress with his recovery. Assuming he doesn't experience a setback during his workouts, the left-fielder is expected to resume baseball activities within a week. Jabari Blash will likely continue filling in for Dickerson as long as Travis Jankowski (foot), who's currently on the 10-day DL, remains sidelined.

Colon is 1-for-11 with three strikeouts and a walk to begin the season.

Colon is simply a utilityman destined for plenty of bench time, given that he no longer has any options to the minors. The Royals infield seems pretty set, with Whit Merrifield, Cheslor Cuthbert and Raul Mondesi Jr. all essentially ahead of him on the second-base depth chart. Once Jorge Soler (oblique) returns from the DL, which does not seem imminent, questions regarding Colon's future with the Royals will definitely come to the forefront.

Cespedes (hamstring) will get an MRI on his injured hamstring Friday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Manager Terry Collins added that "there's no indication" for how long the power-hitting outfielder will be out, although Marc Carig of Newsday reports that Collins expects him to land on the disabled list. No official move has been made as of now, but the Mets will likely take things slowly now that Cespedes is out for the second time this season with the same injury.

Cespedes (hamstring) was diagnosed with a pulled left hamstring after exiting Thursday's game with the Braves, Marc Carig of Newsday reports.

Cespedes pulled up lame on a double into the right-center field alley, and it seems he indeed aggravated the same hamstring issue that kept him out of commission for five days in the past week. It's unclear how long the stud outfielder will be out due to this injury, but it seems unlikely that the Mets would rush him back into action given how poorly that went in this scenario, meaning a DL stint is not out of the question at this point. A firmer timetable for Cespedes' return should come soon.

Cespedes exited Thursday's game against the Braves in the fourth inning due to what appears to be a leg injury, Marc Carig of Newsday reports.

The Cuban slugger hobbled into second base on a double and immediately came out of the contest. It's unclear if this is an aggravation of the hamstring injury that sidelined him earlier this week or something new, but more details should emerge once team doctors can examine him further. Consider Cespedes day-to-day until further notice.

McCutchen extended his on-base streak to 16 games with an RBI double against the Cubs on Wednesday.

McCutchen is swinging at pitches outside the strike zone at a career-best rate of only 16 percent, though his 25 percent hard-contact rate represents a career low. At worst, it looks like he's put in a floor and probably won't decline much further in 2017. In fact, his slash line of .250/.326/.434 nearly mirrors that of 2016, when he hit .256/.336/.430.

Carpenter returns from his one-game suspension Thursday, batting third and playing first base in Game 1 of the doubleheader.

The infielder made contact with an umpire this past weekend and served his ban Tuesday before a Wednesday rainout. Hopefully Carpenter's owners will get a pair of contests out of him Thursday as they face Toronto's Mat Latos and Casey Lawrence, which could be a profitable day for St. Louis bats.