MLB Player News

Cruz went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI on Monday against the Brewers.

Cruz hit eighth in the order for the third straight game against a right-handed pitcher as the Pirates seek to get him on track at the plate. He showed some reasons for optimism with his three-hit performance, highlighted by a two-RBI single in the sixth inning that gave the team some insurance runs. Most importantly, Cruz struck out only once after punching out multiple times in seven of his previous 10 games.

Baez went 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored in Monday's 7-1 win over the Rays.

Relegated to the eighth spot in the lineup, Baez managed to contribute, and he's been good over his last five games with a .350 batting average. The shortstop is still batting just .203 for the season, so he'll need more performances like the one he delivered Monday if he wants to get his overall numbers up to a more acceptable range.

De La Cruz went 0-for-3 with a stolen base in Monday's 7-0 loss to the Phillies.

De La Cruz stole his MLB-leading 11th bag, and the Reds lead the league with 39 steals in 22 games. Other than De La Cruz's steal, nothing much happened for Cincinnati's offense, which managed just two hits and a walk against Philadelphia pitching.

Holliday is not in the lineup for Monday's game versus the Angels.

Holliday has now been out of the lineup each of the three times the Orioles have faced a lefty since his promotion. The 20-year-old is not going to be a platoon player once he gets rolling at the plate, but it's not a surprise the club is electing to sit him versus southpaws given his 1-for-30 start at the plate. Jorge Mateo will be at the keystone Monday.

Shewmake is out of the lineup for Monday's game in Minnesota.

Shewmake started on the left side of the infield in five of the previous six games, but he went just 1-for-15 at the plate to bring his season average down to .143. Though he's still regarded as one of the organization's better prospects, Shewmake will likely need to have a sustained run of success as a hitter before he shifts out of utility role and takes hold of a regular job at third base or shortstop.

DeJong (arm) will start at shortstop and bat sixth in Monday's game against the Twins.

DeJong went unused in Sunday's 8-2 loss to the Phillies after being hit in the left arm by a pitch a day earlier, but his absence for the series finale in Philadelphia might have been precautionary more than anything. He'll take back his usual spot at shortstop Monday while Nicky Lopez shifts over to second base.

Alexander (hamstring) is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Cardinals but said he will be available off the bench, Theo Mackie of The Arizona Republic reports.

Alexander's early exit in Sunday's 5-3 win over the Giants was attributed to a right hamstring cramp, and the Diamondbacks don't seem to believe the rookie is dealing with anything significant a day later. He noted that he's not dealing with any structural damage, but because Alexander is still experiencing some discomfort in the hamstring, he'll get a day off Monday to continue healing. Kevin Newman will pick up the start at shortstop in Alexander's stead.

Crawford went a combined 2-for-8 with a triple, four RBI, two walks and two runs during both games of Sunday's doubleheader against the Rockies.

The four trips on the basepaths made for a busy afternoon for the veteran shortstop, and the productive day, which was highlighted by a bases-clearing triple in Game 2, was preceded by back-to-back two-hit efforts in Crawford's previous two contests Tuesday and Saturday. Crawford is still slashing just .193/.287/.289 on the season, but he's now reached safely in 11 consecutive games, a span during which he boasts a .353 on-base percentage.

Abrams went 1-for-4 with a walk, two runs scored and a stolen base in Sunday's win over the Astros.

The shortstop extended his hitting streak to eight games with the performance, but the steal was his first since March 30, snapping a 16-game drought on the basepaths. Abrams has hardly been a disappointment so far in 2024, slashing .297/.358/.676 with six homers, four steals, 12 RBI and 15 runs in 18 contests, but after he pilfered 47 bags last year in his first full big-league season, fantasy GMs who invested in him are likely expecting the 23-year-old to be a bit busier as a baserunner.

Martinez went 2-for-5 with a walk, a home run, two runs scored and four RBI in Triple-A Buffalo's 16-4 rout of Columbus on Sunday.

The 22-year-old might be the hottest hitter in the minor leagues right now. Martinez has a 15-game hit streak going in which he's slashing .361/.418/.754, and all six of his homers on the season for Buffalo have come in the last seven contests. The Blue Jays have been mixing and matching four different players at the keystone so far with solid results -- the team sits in the top 10 in OPS, wOBA and wRC+ from the second-base position with an aggregate .252/.329/.413 slash line -- but Martinez's performance at the highest level of the minors is getting hard to ignore. A promotion seems likely sooner rather than later.