MLB Player News

Aranda went 3-for-4 with a double, one RBI and one run scored in Tuesday's victory over the Red Sox.

It was an encouraging performance from Aranda, who began the day in a 2-for-28 (.071) slump with no extra-base hits in that span. The 25-year-old infielder is now slashing .211/.330/.316 with just one homer, 12 runs scored and seven RBI through 91 plate appearances on the campaign. While he won't offer much offensively, Aranda should see fairly regular at-bats against right-handed pitching with Brandon Lowe (knee) out.

Buxton (knee) will work out with the Twins this week with the minor-league season over as Minnesota evaluates him for a possible addition to the postseason roster, MLB.com reports. He went 1-for-8 during two games at Triple-A St. Paul last weekend.

It seems unlikely he'll be activated from the injured list ahead of the playoffs, especially with the Twins playing their final series on the road in Colorado. Buxton's last rehab stint in early September was shut down after two games due to a flareup of the patella tendinitis in his right knee. It's encouraging he made it through two games over the weekend without a setback, but he didn't play in the field and didn't get much work due to a rainout in St. Paul. He may not be activated for the postseason roster as a result. It's hard to see how the Twins could elect to use him in center field in the playoffs even though that was probably the plan when his first rehab stint started in early September.

Martinez is out of the lineup for the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Rockies.

Max Muncy will take a turn in the DH role as Chris Taylor handles third base. Martinez went 1-for-4 with a single and two strikeouts in the opening game of the twin bill at Coors Field.

Belt (back) was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Tuesday, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

The veteran slugger landed on the shelf Sept. 12 with back spasms just after missing the previous eight games due to an illness, but he's now ready to rejoin the Blue Jays for the final stretch of the regular season. Belt had a strong start to the second half with a .971 OPS in his first 30 games coming out of the All-Star break, but he was mired in a 3-for-18 slump prior to his move to the injured list.

Blackmon is absent from the lineup for the first game of Tuesday's doubleheader versus the Dodgers.

Kris Bryant will take a turn in the DH role as Sean Bouchard patrols right field. Blackmon had a productive couple of weeks in August, but the 37-year-old is batting .232/.325/.348 with zero home runs in 19 games (80 plate appearances) since the calendar flipped to September.

Garver went 3-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in a 5-1 victory versus the Angels on Monday.

Garver was the only Texas player with multiple hits in the contest, and his sixth-inning solo shot gave the team its first lead. The veteran is working on a modest five-game hitting streak, during which he's batting an even .500 (8-for-16) with a pair of homers and five RBI. Garver has played in just 82 games this season, but he's been very productive with 19 long balls and 50 RBI along with a .281/.381/.525 slash line.

Alvarez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a double in Monday's 5-1 win over the Mariners.

Alvarez has homered in back-to-back games to reach the 30-homer mark for the season. His blast Monday was a massive one to right-center field to pad the Astros' lead in the third inning. The designated hitter is at a .297/.411/.593 slash line with 96 RBI, 74 runs scored and 24 doubles through 109 games this season.

Pederson isn't in the starting lineup for Monday's game against the Padres, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Pederson will unsurprisingly bow out of the starting nine with southpaw Blake Snell set to take the mound. Mitch Haniger is set to handle DH duties and will bat sixth as a result.

Stanton is out of the lineup for Monday's contest against the Diamondbacks.

Stanton will take seat for the second straight game and the third time in four contests while he battles through a slump at the dish. With Stanton out of the lineup, Aaron Judge will serve as the Yankees' designated hitter.

Baker went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in Sunday's 12-2 loss to the Padres.

Baker produced the Cardinals' lone scoring play with his seventh-inning blast. He's seen steadier playing time over the last week, going 4-for-17 (.235) over his last six games. The 26-year-old is batting .217 with two homers, seven RBI, six runs scored and a double across 76 plate appearances in the majors this year. With the Cardinals in last in the NL Central, he'll likely get some more at-bats over the final week of the campaign as part of the evaluation for next season's roster.