MLB Player News

Owings was scratched from Saturday's contest against the Rockies with an illness, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Owings was originally set to bat second and play right field, though that changed when he started to feel a little under the weather. Gregor Blanco will get the start in right field in his stead. Owings is off to a strong start offensively this season, slashing .308/.351/.505 with five homers and eight stolen bases through 29 games. He should be considered day-to-day until the Diamondbacks update his status, though with an off day coming Monday, it wouldn't be a surprise to see Owings out for the series finale Sunday.

Arcia is not in the lineup Saturday against the Pirates.

After going just 1-for-16 over the last four games, Arcia will head to the bench for a breather. Herman Perez will get the start at shortstop for the game, though Arcia should be back on the lineup card for Sunday's series finale in Pittsburgh.

Swanson is not in the lineup Saturday against the Cardinals.

Swanson is hitting just .150 so far this season (15-for-100), so he'll head to the bench to clear his head as Jace Peterson gets the nod at shortstop. This will be just the second time this season Swanson isn't starting for the Braves.

Rojas went 3-for-5 with a double, a run and two RBI in Friday's loss to the Mets.

Rojas now has seven hits in his last two starts, and the 28-year-old utility player has a .333/.388/.400 slash line through 68 plate appearances this season. He also has an impressive 12 runs scored in 22 games, and while Rojas won't be able to maintain his .377 BABIP forever, expect the Marlins to continue finding ways to get him into the lineup while he's swinging a hot bat.

Manager Bruce Bochy said Crawford (groin) won't be activated from the disabled list when eligible Saturday, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

While Crawford was hopeful he'd be able to rejoin the Giants once eligible, the veteran shortstop will apparently need some more time before he's ready. It's unclear when the Giants expect to activate him at this point, but he doesn't appear to be too far from a return. The 30-year-old was slashing .263/.284/.434 with two homers and eight RBI before landing on the disabled list April 29.

Diaz went 3-for-5 with a double and a run in Thursday's 5-4 loss to the Brewers.

Despite a drop to sixth in the order, Diaz delivered, producing his second multi-hit game over the last three. The young infielder is still underperforming compared to his rookie numbers, but he's now hit safely in nine of his last 12 games and raised his batting average 22 points to .236 in the process.

Gordon went 2-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and a stolen base in Thursday's loss to the Rays.

The steal was his eighth in 26 games, and Gordon's .294/.336/.367 slash line is right in line with his career numbers. The 29-year-old has shaken off last year's second-half struggles and is reclaiming his spot as one of the NL's top leadoff men.

Diaz is batting sixth and playing shortstop Thursday against the Brewers.

The 26-year-old is off to a slow start at the plate, slashing just .218/.233/.406 across 101 at-bats, prompting manager Mike Matheny to drop him to the bottom third of the batting order for the first time all season. Stephen Piscotty moved up to second in the order for the game. It remains unclear if the Cardinals plan to stick with this order moving forward, though that seems possible at least until Diaz is able to turn it around at the dish.

Story is not in the lineup Thursday against the Padres.

After starting all but one of the Rockies' first 27 games, Story will head to the bench for the second straight contest as Alexi Amarista gets the nod at shortstop in his stead. There hasn't been any indication of an injury, but it should be something to monitor moving forward. It could just be to clear the young shortstop's head -- as he owns a meager .170/.271/.404 slash line through 94 at-bats this season -- though more should be known after the contest.

Swanson went 0-for-1 with three walks and two runs scored in Wednesday's loss to the Mets.

He still can't get many hits to fall in, as evidenced by his .156 batting average, but Swanson has adjusted his approach at the plate and has stopped chasing pitches, walking eight times over the last week against only five strikeouts. The Braves seem to have full confidence that their 23-year-old shortstop will figure things out in the majors, and while his production continues to lag, he is showing signs of putting things together.