MLB Player News

Reyes went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an RBI single in Sunday's 2-0 win over the Yankees.

Reyes gave Guardians starter Triston McKenzie all the support he needed with a fourth-inning solo shot. In the eighth, Reyes added an RBI single for insurance. The designated hitter has gone 11-for-41 (.268) in 11 games since returning from a hamstring injury, and six of his hits in that span have gone for extra bases. He's up to a .213/.266/.345 slash line with six homers, 19 RBI and 14 runs scored in 188 plate appearances, and he should continue to hit in the heart of the order.

Ozuna went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in a 4-3 loss to the Reds on Sunday.

Ozuna went deep twice to give him 16 home runs and 34 RBI on the season. The 31-year-old right-handed power bat is on pace for his best home run total since 2017, when he went yard 37 times while playing for the Marlins. However, Ozuna's .227 average and .280 OBP are considerably down from his career numbers. His .244 BABIP and .276 xBA suggest that he could have been the victim of some bad hitter's luck thus far and is perhaps due for his numbers to normalize over the rest of the season.

Lewis (concussion) will join Triple-A Tacoma and is expected to begin a rehab assignment as soon as Sunday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.

Lewis has resided on the 7-day injured list since June 1, so he'll need at least a handful of games in the minors to get his timing back at the plate following the month-plus absence. Manager Scott Servais said Sunday that Lewis will see a healthy dose of playing time in the outfield while on assignment, so the Mariners could view him as a potential replacement in right field for the injured Taylor Trammell (hamstring), who is without a clear timeline to return from the IL. Before sustaining the concussion, Lewis had made all four of his starts with Seattle this season as a designated hitter.

Ruf will serve as the Giants' designated hitter and No. 7 batter in Sunday's game against the White Sox, Evan Webeck of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Since both Brandon Belt and LaMonte Wade returned from the injured list in June, Ruf has faded into a short-side platoon role, but he'll get a look in the lineup versus a right-handed starting pitcher (Lucas Giolito) in the series finale. Ruf will be filling in as the Giants' DH in place of the lefty-hitting Tommy La Stella, who looks to be receiving some routine maintenance.

The Giants recalled Mercedes from Triple-A Sacramento on Sunday.

Though he was optioned to Sacramento on Wednesday, Mercedes will be eligible to rejoin the big club less than a week later after Thairo Estrada (illness) was placed on the COVID-19-related injured list Sunday in a corresponding move. The righty-hitting Mercedes will likely serve as a short-side platoon option at either first base or designated hitter while he's up with the Giants.

Canha is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rangers.

Canha will retreat to the bench after he went 3-for-33 with a home run and four RBI while starting in nine of the Mets' last 10 games. Jeff McNeil will replace Canha in the outfield in the series finale.

Martinez will be out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cubs, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.

The lineup is still pending, but both Martinez and Trevor Story are said to be on the bench for the series finale. Boston returns home for an early game Monday, and both players should be expected to start in front of the home fans. Martinez is 1-for-21 with 10 strikeouts in his last five games.

Ramirez will start in right field and bat third in Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

The righty-hitting Ramirez will stick in the lineup for an eighth consecutive contest and will be making a fourth straight start against a right-handed pitcher (Ross Stripling). The Rays have mostly deployed Ramirez as a short-side platoon player this season, but he appears to have usurped the struggling Josh Lowe for a full-time spot in either the corner outfield or at designated hitter. While starting the past seven games, Ramirez has gone 11-for-26 (.423 average) with three doubles, three walks, a stolen base, five runs and three RBI.

Blackmon went 2-for-5 with a double, two runs scored and two RBI on Saturday against the Diamondbacks.

Blackmon has gone 8-for-18 with a home run, two doubles, four RBI and five runs scored through four games of the Rockies' current homestand. He's also maintained a .472 slugging percentage across 308 plate appearances for the season -- his highest mark since 2019.

Alvarez went 0-for-4 with a walk Saturday against the Angels.

Alvarez returned to the lineup after missing two games due to a head injury. He hit third in the order for his third consecutive start, recently swapping spots in the order with Alex Bregman. Though he wasn't particularly productive Saturday, Alvarez has maintained a tremendous .311/.408/.647 line across 284 plate appearances on the season.