MLB Player News

Encarnacion-Strand batted cleanup and went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run in Monday's 5-2 win over the Marlins.

Encarnacion-Strand homered to lead off the fourth inning, providing what turned out to be the winning run. The blast snapped a 17-game homer-less drought. He's hit safely in six of the last eight contests, going 9-for-29 (.310) with two doubles, one homer, four RBI and four runs.

Ohtani went 2-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and a run scored in Monday's 8-3 loss to the Giants.

While Ohtani has homered only once over seven games in August, he's batting .360 (9-for-25) with three steals for the month. He's up to 15 thefts on the year, already the second-highest total for a season in his career. The two-way star is slashing .308/.409/.673 with 40 home runs, 82 RBI, 87 runs scored, 19 doubles and seven triples through 496 plate appearances.

Pederson is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Angels.

Pederson will join fellow left-handed hitters Brandon Crawford and LaMonte Wade on the bench while the Giants stock up on some extra right-handed bats to counter Angels southpaw Patrick Sandoval. Austin Slater will check in for Pederson in left field and bat leadoff.

Vientos is expected to serve as the Mets' everyday third baseman after Brett Baty was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse on Monday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Though he's serving as the Mets' designated hitter and No. 5 batter Monday against Cubs southpaw Drew Smyly, Vientos looks poised to see the bulk of the starts at third base versus right-handed pitching while Daniel Vogelbach handles DH duties for those matchups. Known more for his prowess with the bat while he was coming up the Mets' farm system, Vientos may not have the defensive chops to stick at third base in the long term, but the non-contending Mets will at least use the next few weeks as a test run to see if he can hold his own at the position.

Rooker is not in the lineup for Monday's game against the Rangers.

Rooker is in the midst of an extended slump, so he will sit out Monday for the second time in three days.

Choi is starting at first base and batting seventh in Monday's contest versus the Dodgers, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Manny Machado is getting another designated hitter day as he nurses a tight hamstring, so Ha-Seong Kim slides to third base, Jake Cronenworth plays second base Choi handles first. It's the fourth straight start for Choi, who served as the Padres' DH in the other two contests.

Martinez is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Padres.

Just as Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had suggested over the weekend would be the case, Martinez will get a breather for the series finale in San Diego after he recently overcame a hamstring injury. With Martinez resting, the Dodgers will be able to ease third baseman Max Muncy back in Monday as their designated hitter after Muncy had missed the first three games of the series due to a bruised wrist.

Alvarez went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in Sunday's win over the Yankees.

Alvarez hasn't shown any signs of rust since returning from a nearly two-month stint on the injured list -- he's now 13-for-36 (.361) with four homers in 10 games since he was reinstated. Overall, the 26-year-old Alvarez is slashing a robust .290/.396/.613 with 21 homers, 62 RBI and 49 runs scored across 283 plate appearances this season.

Carpenter hasn't seen any game action for the Padres since July 24, Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

As Acee points out, Carpenter is the only player in the majors to have been on an active roster continuously since July 25 to have not appeared in a game during that time. The 37-year-old is batting just .166/.296/.302 on the season, and it may only be a matter of time that he loses his spot on the Padres roster. Carpenter is making $6.5 million in 2023 and holds a $5.5 million player option for 2024.

Solak cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Toledo on Sunday.

Detroit designated Solak for assignment on Friday, but he'll remain in the organization after passing through waivers unclaimed. The 28-year-old hasn't seen action in the big leagues this year and has a .709 OPS at the Triple-A level.