MLB Player News

Harper went 2-for-4 with a double, a walk and two RBI in the Phillies' 5-3 win over the Mets on Saturday.

Harper has now doubled in five consecutive games to bring his total to 38 on the season, leaving him two shy of the Tigers' Jeimer Candelario and the Cardinals' Tommy Edman for the MLB lead. The 28-year-old is currently in the midst of a 14-game hitting streak, his longest as a member of the Phillies. With a 1.056 OPS to go with 33 home runs, 92 runs, 79 RBI and 13 steals, Harper is enjoying his best season since his 2015 National League MVP campaign with Washington. He remains a candidate to take home the hardware again in 2021, though the Padres' Fernando Tatis still looks like the favorite with two weeks left in the season.

Rooker is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Rooker is hitting .300 with two doubles and two home runs in his last 10 games after an 0-for-3 showing Saturday. Jake Cave is starting in left field and batting eighth in the series finale.

Alvarez started in left field and went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run in Saturday's 6-4 extra-inning loss to Arizona.

The Astros are growing more comfortable using Alvarez in the field and have a need in left with Michael Brantley (knee) unavailable. Alvarez's balky knees primarily limit him to designated hitter, but he has made a career-high 33 starts in left field this season. The home run was his 31st, and the slugger is just two RBI short of 100.

Stanton went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 11-3 loss to Cleveland.

Stanton went yard for the second straight day and for the fourth time in the past week, connecting in the seventh inning off reliever Bryan Shaw. It was the 30th homer of the season for Stanton, a plateau he had reached on five previous occasions in his big-league career. Stanton has turned it on at the plate over his past 30 games, slashing .313/.345/.661 with 12 homers and 24 driven in.

Reyes went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and a run-scoring double in Saturday's win over the Yankees.

The big slugger doubled home Oscar Mercado in the fifth inning to give Cleveland a 2-0 edge, then he took New York reliever Andrew Heaney deep in the sixth inning to make it a 10-0 game. It was the 30th homer of the season for Reyes, the second time in his big-league career he's reached that milestone. It also marked the second three-hit performance in the last two games for Reyes, who owns an .878 OPS and 80 RBI in 422 plate appearances this season.

Vogelbach is out of the lineup Saturday against the Cubs, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Vogelbach started the last seven games but will head to the bench with southpaw Justin Steele pitching for Chicago. Eduardo Escobar will shift to first base while Pablo Reyes starts at the hot corner.

Brantley (knee) will begin baseball activities Sunday, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Brantley has already missed a full week with a sore knee, but the Astros waited several days to place him on the injured list, so he isn't eligible to return until Wednesday. Whether or not he'll have a chance to do so is not yet clear.

Blackmon is not in Saturday's lineup against the Nationals.

Blackmon will sit for the second time in the team's last three games, this time with lefty Patrick Corbin on the mound. He could continue getting time off here and there to close the season, as the Rockies called up Ryan Vilade from Triple-A Albuquerque on Saturday.

Winker was placed on the 10-day injured list due to an intercostal strain Saturday.

Winker was activated from the injured list Friday after being sidelined with the same issue for around one month. However, he appeared to aggravate the injury on a swing in the team's game Friday night and exited shortly thereafter when he was hit by a pitch in the back. The end result could be a frustrating end to the season for Winker, who has posted an excellent .305/.394/.556 line across 485 plate appearances.

Belt went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and a walk in Friday's 6-5 extra-innings win over Atlanta.

The first baseman made his biggest contribution early, hitting a game-tying blast in the first inning. Belt has put together an impressive September so far, slashing .328/.426/.707 with six homers, 13 RBI, 15 runs scored and four doubles in his last 14 games. His .582 slugging percentage for the year is just nine points shy of his career-best mark from 51 games last season, and his 26 long balls are by far the most in a campaign for the 33-year-old.