MLB Player News

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen (side) and second baseman Neil Walker (back) were held out of the starting lineup Wednesday vs. Miami. McCutchen missed a second straight game, while Walker missed his first.

Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper's struggles at the plate continued Tuesday against the Mets, as he went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts. Since returning from the disabled list June 30, Harper is batting .214 with two home runs and five RBI in 30 games.

Nationals manager Matt Williams was asked during his weekly radio spot Wednesday on 106.7 The Fan if it was a "terrible idea" to demote Harper to Triple-A to work on his swing.

"I don’t know," Williams said, per The Washington Post. "I don’t think it’s stupid. Generally, if you have young players, that’s what you do. But this guy is a special young player. We all know that. It’s different. I think he works hard every day. He’s the first one in the ballpark, generally, to get his day going. He’s grinding. We’re doing everything we can to get a good feel going in there and help him with his confidence and all that. It’s not easy, but any stretch. But I don’t know if it’s a good idea at this point to do that, because it’s completely different pitching. We all know the big difference between Triple A pitching and big league pitching. It’s probably more of an option to have him feel good here, get it back."

Emerging Twins rookie first baseman Kennys Vargas ran his hitting streak to begin his major league career to four games by playing the role of hero in a Tuesday night defeat of San Diego.

Vargas slammed a three-run homer in the sixth inning to provide the entire offense in the win. He is 6 for 18 with a .556 slugging percentage and has earned the cleanup spot for the Wednesday game against the Padres.

Chances are most mixed-league owners won't have reason to pick up Kennys Vargas this year. He plays the deepest position in Fantasy and wasn't a particularly high-profile prospect coming up through the Twins system.

But at 6-feet-5, 275 pounds, he looks every bit like a power hitter and made good on it with 17 home runs in only 356 at-bats at Double-A New Britain. And while he isn't exactly Joey Votto at the plate, he isn't a swing-at-everything type either. His flaws as a hitter aren't so evident that they preclude him from holding down an everyday job.

So why the lack of hype? Well, in addition to being big, he's slow. And not exactly agile. His shortcomings may confine him to a DH role long term, kind of like another big, slow, lumbering type who the Twins decided wasn't worth the trouble named David Ortiz. You think they'll make that mistake again?

Ortiz was actually Vargas' favorite player growing up, and now he's become a mentor of sorts. According to an MLB.com report from back in spring training, the two are in frequent contact, so the similarities between them go beyond just size.

Owners in AL-only leagues should have already added Vargas, and owners in mixed leauges will want to keep tabs on him as a possible Khris Davis-like sleeper for next year.

The Pirates announced Tuesday outfielder Andrew McCutchen suffered an avulsion fracture of cartilage near his left rib, but are not yet planning to place him on the disabled list.

 "We continue to evaluate Andrew’s progress and he will remain on the active roster," general manager Neal Huntington said. " We want to take the appropriate time to make the best possible decision for Andrew and for the Pirates."

McCutchen suffered the injury while swinging Sunday, one day after he was hit in the back by a pitch against the Diamondbacks. 

Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas was on the bench Sunday against the Athletics for the first time in 12 games in favor of Christian Colon. Manager Ned Yost explained Tuesday to MLB Network on how he plans to handle the playing time at third base moving forward.

"It's not a strict platoon," Yost said. "Right now, we're just looking for ways to improve the offense and score more runs."

The Pirates are expected to place outfielder Andrew McCutchen on the 15-day disabled list, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He could miss 3-4 weeks due to an oblique injury, a source told the Post-Gazette.

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen said that his X-rays didn't reveal anything, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

McCutchen was removed from Sunday's game with left side discomfort, and the team will know more about the extent of his injury Monday. He has hit .311/.411/.536 line with 17 home runs, 67 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 412 at-bats.

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen was removed from Sunday's game with left side discomfort, the team announced.

McCutchen delivered a sacrifice fly in the top of the eighth inning to tie the game, but he was seen clutching his side on his way back to the dugout. The team replaced him in the field in the bottom half of the inning. McCutchen went 1 for 2 with a walk and an RBI before exiting, and he now owns a .311/.411/.536 line with 17 home runs, 67 RBI and 17 stolen bases in 412 at-bats.

Indians outfielder Michael Brantley went 2 for 6 with a walkoff home run in his team's 4-3 win over the Rangers Sunday.

Brantley led off the bottom of the 12th inning by slugging the game-ending home run, which gave him his fourth straight multihit performance but only his first home run of the second half. He has hit .322/.382/.516 with 16 home runs, 69 RBI and 12 stolen bases in 419 at-bats.