MLB Player News

Blackmon is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Royals.

Blackmon is 2-for-14 since returning from the bereavement list Thursday and will take a seat for Sunday's series finale in Kansas City. Elehuris Montero will serve as the designated hitter while Brenton Doyle steps into the leadoff spot.

Buxton (ribs) is out of the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Guardians.

Both Buxton and Carlos Correa (heel) will not be in the starting lineup against the Guardians for the finale of the three-game set. Buxton avoided a fracture after being hit by a pitch Thursday, but he'll miss a third straight game while recovering from the injury. Royce Lewis is the designated hitter for Sunday's contest against Triston McKenzie and the Guardians.

Ramirez is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Ramirez collected five hits and four RBI during Saturday's twin bill and has four multi-hit efforts in his past six contests, but he'll take a seat for Sunday's game. Yandy Diaz will rest his legs as the designated hitter while Luke Raley (side) starts at first base.

McCutchen is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cardinals, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.

With the series finale beginning at 11:35 a.m. ET, the 36-year-old McCutchen is on the bench in what most likely amounts to a veteran's day off. Bryan Reynolds will get a day out of the outfield and replace McCutchen as the Bucs' designated hitter.

The Cardinals selected Baker's contract from Triple-A Memphis on Sunday. He'll serve as St. Louis' designated hitter and No. 7 batter in his MLB debut in the Cardinals' series finale versus the Pirates and left-hander Rich Hill.

The 26-year-old earned his first big-league call-up after slashing .313/.434/.641 with 29 extra-base hits (18 home runs, 11 doubles) to go with an impressive 17.8 percent walk rate and 21.7 percent strikeout rate over 244 plate appearances with Memphis. Though his bat certainly looks big-league ready, Baker's lack of defensive flexibility may hurt his chances of earning a permanent role with the Cardinals. He's played only at first base in the minors, and with reigning National League MVP Paul Goldschmidt already entrenched at that position, Baker's path to playing time will likely come solely at designated hitter. Baker is further hurt by the fact that he's a right-handed hitter, potentially relegating him to the short side of a platoon.

Ramirez went 5-for-8 with two doubles, two runs scored, four RBI and a stolen base Saturday across both games of a doubleheader split with the Red Sox.

After the Rays dropped the matinee, Ramirez came up big in the nightcap with a two-run double in the ninth inning that broke open a 2-2 tie. The 28-year-old has multiple hits in four of his last six games, batting .400 (10-for-25) over that stretch with two doubles, a homer and six RBI, and his .859 OPS on the season would shatter the career-high .747 mark he established in 2022.

Ohtani went 4-for-5 with a double, a triple, two runs and two RBI in Saturday's 9-6 loss to the Astros.

Ohtani came up a homer short of a cycle, finishing with his second four-hit game of the campaign. His third-inning triple gave the Angels their first run, and the two-way star notched another RBI with a double in the seventh. Ohtani has added to his excellent work on the mound with another big season at the plate -- through 253 plate appearances, he's slashing .274/.348/.540 with 15 homers, 40 RBI, 35 runs and seven stolen bases.

Morel is not in the starting lineup for Saturday's game against the Padres.

Morel has not picked up a hit since May 26 against the Reds, and he's seen his average drop from .333 to .270 in the process. Edwin Rios will be the designated hitter and hit seventh against San Diego while Morel sits.

Buxton (ribs) will sit as expected Saturday against the Guardians.

Buxton avoided a fractured rib after getting hit by a pitch Thursday but was nonetheless expected to miss multiple games. He'll miss his second in a row Saturday, with Ryan Jeffers serving as the designated hitter.

Turner will be on the bench for the second half of Saturday's doubleheader against the Rays, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.

Turner helped the Red Sox to a victory in the afternoon contest, going 2-for-5 with three RBI. He'll rest his 38-year-old legs during the nightcap, with Triston Casas handling first base and Masataka Yoshida serving as the designated hitter.