MLB Player News

Wendle (hamstring) was activated from the 10-day injured list and will start at second base and bat second Friday versus the Nationals, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.

Wendle will return to the lineup Friday after missing the entire month of June. His return comes at a good time considering Jorge Soler (back) was placed on the 10-day IL earlier in the day. Wendle has produced a .284 average with two homers, 11 RBI, 12 runs and four stolen bases over 88 at-bats in 29 games this season.

Allen went 2-for-3 with a run in a loss to the Mariners on Thursday.

Allen extended his on-base streak to nine games with his multi-hit effort, a span that encompasses the entirety of his current big-league stint after he was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas on June 21. The 23-year-old's surge has boosted his slash line to .250/.339/.385 across his first 59 plate appearances at the big-league level.

Cruz went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run Thursday against the Brewers.

Cruz took Adrian Houser yard in the second inning to record his second home run of the season. Unsurprisingly, his power has translated quickly to the big-league level as five of Cruz's nine hits have gone for extra bases. However, he has also struck out at a 31.8 percent clip, suppressing his batting average to a mark of .214 across 44 plate appearances.

Crawford will begin serving his suspension Thursday after it was reduced from five to four games, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.

Crawford's suspension results from his role in a brawl that occurred during Sunday's game against the Angels, but he managed to get his sentence reduced by a game. The 27-year-old will be unavailable for the team's weekend series against the Athletics but will be able to use the Mariners' facilities to work out.

Crawford isn't starting Thursday's game against the Athletics.

Crawford started in the last three games and went 2-for-12 with two RBI, a run and two strikeouts. Dylan Moore is starting at shortstop and batting eighth.

Marcano (illness) was reinstated from the COVID-19 injured list Thursday, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

Marcano tested positive for COVID-19 on June 17, but he recently appeared in three rehab games and went 1-for-9 with three runs, two stolen bases, four walks and two strikeouts. The 22-year-old carved out relatively consistent playing time leading up to his absence and should have a chance to regain at-bats after Yu Chang was designated for assignment Thursday.

Chang was designated for assignment by the Pirates on Thursday, Justice delos Santos of MLB.com reports.

The 26-year-old went 2-for-18 over his past nine games and will lose his spot on the 40-man roster with Tucupita Marcano (illness) returning from the COVID-19 injured list. Chang has appeared in 22 games between the Pirates and Guardians this year and has a .135/.237/.212 slash line in 59 plate appearances.

Crawford went 1-for-4 with a run-scoring infield single and a sacrifice fly in a win over the Orioles on Wednesday.

With his appeal of a five-game suspension still pending, Crawford was in the lineup once again and mustered his second multi-RBI effort in the last eight games. The veteran shortstop has been scuffling badly at the plate for the last two-plus weeks, producing a .125/.162/.172 slash line across his past 17 games.

Pena (mouth) is not in the starting lineup for Thursday's series finale versus the Yankees.

He will miss Thursday's contest after he suffered a mouth laceration following a collision with Yordan Alvarez (head) in Wednesday's game. Pena was evaluated for a concussion and it remains unclear whether or not he's cleared the protocols. Pena will remain day-to-day heading into Friday's series opener against the Angels. Mauricio Dubon will start at shortstop and bat seventh against New York.

Smith went 0-for-4 in Wednesday's 2-1 loss to the Royals.

Smith left Tuesday's game with a calf injury but was back in the lineup at third base and leading off Wednesday. He's typically in the starting lineup against right-handers, while Charlie Culberson slots in at third base against lefties.