MLB Player News

Betts (hand) will play right field when he returns Monday against the Brewers, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports.

Betts noted Friday that the decision to move off shortstop was "mostly" mutual between him and manager Dave Roberts, and the superstar acknowledged that the Dodgers' best chance to win likely comes with him in right field, per Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register. That means Nick Ahmed and Miguel Rojas will continue to split time at shortstop, while Jason Heyward sees less playing time in the outfield. Roberts could also tinker with his lineup depending on who's on the mound for the opposition. Betts has been sidelined since June 17 due to a bone fracture in his left wrist. Prior to the injury, he was slashing .304/.405/.488 with nine stolen bases, 10 home runs and 40 RBI across 331 plate appearances.

Schneemann is out of the lineup for the second game of a doubleheader Friday against the Twins

Schneemann started at third base and hit second during the matinee, going 0-for-3 with a walk during the contest. However, Jose Ramirez will slide over to third base while Brayan Rocchio plays shortstop in the nightcap.

Abrams was scratched from the Nationals' lineup ahead of Friday's game versus the Angels.

The Nationals haven't yet announced why Abrams was taken out of the lineup, but more clarification should come shortly. In the meantime, Nasim Nunez will fill in at shortstop and bat ninth.

Reds manager David Bell told reporters Friday that McLain (shoulder/rib) will not begin his rehab assignment that was scheduled for Monday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

McLain has been on the 60-day injured list since the start of the season while recovering from offseason surgery on his left shoulder. He was cleared for baseball activities in early July and was progressing toward a rehab stint, but the 25-year-old infielder experienced a setback when he suffered a stress reaction in his rib cage. It's unclear whether the setback will simply delay McLain's rehab assignment or keep the 2021 first-round pick out of action for the rest of the year.

Story (shoulder) will take batting practice on the field Monday, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe reports.

Story underwent surgery for a fractured left shoulder in mid-April and the feeling at the time was that it was likely to end his 2024 campaign. However, the shortstop's rehab has come along more quickly than expected and Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Friday that he's "truly believing" Story will make it back before the end of the season. There are still many hoops for Story to jump through, of course, and there is no timetable for his return, but it's an exciting development for the Red Sox.

Cespedes recently underwent surgery to repair a hamate bone fracture in his left hand and will miss the rest of the season, Chris Hatfield of SoxProspects.com reports.

Cespedes had been expected to make his full-season debut with Single-A Salem in late June, but he suffered the hamate bone fracture while playing in the rookie-level Florida Complex League. The outfielder should be back to full health for the start of spring training.

Edwards went 2-for-5 with a stolen base in Thursday's extra-inning loss to the Reds.

The 25-year-old has become a menace on the basepaths. Edwards has 13 steals in 35 games since joining the big-league roster, and 10 in his last 17 contests -- a stretch in which he's slashing .406/.461/.516. His .375 batting average is fueled by an unsustainable .452 BABIP, but Edwards is firmly entrenching himself as Miami's starting shortstop and leadoff hitter of the present and future.

Neto went 3-for-4 with a double, a run and an RBI in Thursday's 9-4 win against the Yankees.

After going 4-for-9 with eight RBI during Wednesday's twin bill, Neto racked up three more hits to push his batting line to 7-for-12 during the three-game set. The shortstop has collected at least one RBI in four of his past five games and has tallied a total of 13 runs batted in during that stretch. Neto also has at least one extra-base hit in each contest across the five-game span.

Fitzgerald went 2-for-5 with a double, a walk, three stolen bases and two runs scored in Thursday's 9-5 extra-inning win over the Nationals.

Fitzgerald has grabbed headlines with his power lately, but it was his speed that stole the show Thursday. He hadn't successfully swiped a bag over his previous 20 games, though he hit .347 with 11 homers in that span, so he hasn't had many chances to make an impact with baserunning. For the season, Fitzgerald is at a .314/.375/.634 slash line with 12 homers, 10 steals, 24 RBI, 33 runs scored and nine doubles over 53 contests.

De La Cruz went 3-for-5 with a walk, two runs and a stolen base in a 10-4, extra-inning win against Miami on Thursday.

De La Cruz reached safely in four of his six plate appearances, so it was mildly surprising that he was limited to just one theft. The dynamic shortstop leads the majors by a wide margin with 59 stolen bases on the campaign (Brice Turang is second with 33 steals). De La Cruz has also been on fire at the plate of late, collecting three efforts of at least three hits over his past four contests and going 11-for-19 with two homers, four doubles, seven runs, five RBI and two thefts during that span.