MLB Player News

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said that Vargas (foot) will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Reno, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Vargas will likely remain on assignment with Reno through the weekend before potentially returning from the 10-day injured list Aug. 18 for the start of Arizona's six-game homestand. Arizona may give Vargas to exposure to multiple infield spots during his time in the minors, but the 34-year-old could end up seeing most of his opportunities at third base once he's reinstated. Since Vargas landed on the IL on June 25 due to a fractured fifth metatarsal on his left foot, the Diamondbacks traded away Eugenio Suarez, which has opened the door for Blaze Alexander to see the bulk of the starts at the hot corner.

Imanaga (8-5) allowed three runs on four hits and struck out nine without walking a batter over 6.2 innings, taking the loss versus the Cardinals on Sunday.

While Imanaga was stingy with baserunners, the Cardinals took advantage of their limited chances. Pedro Pages tagged Imanaga for a two-run home run in the third inning and Nolan Gorman added the decisive hit, an RBI single, in the seventh. Imanaga has a pair of quality starts to begin August, allowing four runs over 13 innings with 16 strikeouts and no walks so far this month. He's at a 3.19 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 79:17 K:BB through 96 innings over 17 starts this season. The southpaw's next start is projected to be at home versus the Pirates.

Horwitz went 2-for-5 with a double, one run scored and one RBI on Sunday against the Reds.

Horwitz has had an inconsistent season as Pittsburgh's primary first baseman, but he's delivered throughout the early portions of August. He has gone 12-for-35 with two homers, nine RBI and eight runs scored across 10 starts in the month. Horwitz is now hitting .266 for the season, though he's provided very little pop with only a .124 ISO.

Pages went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Cubs.

Pages opened the scoring with a third-inning blast off Shota Imanaga. While playing time hasn't been all that steady lately, Pages has made the most of it, going 7-for-19 (.368) with two homers and six RBI over his last six games dating back to July 29. The catcher is splitting duties with Yohel Pozo behind the dish in what's emerging as a fairly even timeshare. On the year, Pages has a .211/.256/.341 slash line with eight homers, 35 RBI, 29 runs scored and no stolen bases across 87 contests.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Sunday that Moreno (finger) will begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Triple-A Reno, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Moreno is eligible to return from the 60-day injured list Aug. 18, and he looks like he'll have a shot to be activated on that date if all goes smoothly on his rehab assignment. The catcher was hitting .270 but provided just five home runs, one stolen base, 29 runs and 20 RBI through 53 games before he landed on the IL on June 19 due to a hairline fracture of his right index finger.

Romero allowed three hits and a walk over 1.1 scoreless innings to earn the save in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Cubs.

Romero got out of a little trouble in the eighth inning, then created some more traffic on the basepaths before locking things down in the ninth. Since taking over as closer to begin August, Romero has allowed seven hits and three walks over 5.2 innings, but he's given up just one earned run in that span. He's at a 1.98 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 38:18 K:BB through 41 innings on the year while adding three saves and 16 holds. With the Cardinals at 60-59 following Sunday's game, Romero figures to be a decent speculative option for fantasy managers chasing saves as long as the team is still plausibly in the hunt for a wild-card spot.

Kiner-Falefa went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a run scored Sunday against the Reds.

Kiner-Falefa has started seven of Pittsburgh's last eight games at third base, with Jared Triolo serving as the primary shortstop. While he provides very little power, Kiner-Falefa has performed well across his last 10 starts by collecting 13 hits across 39 at-bats with eight RBI, nine runs scored and two stolen bases. While Liover Peguero has slowly begun to work his way into more playing time, Triolo looks more likely to be at risk of losing starts relative to Kiner-Falefa.

Gray (11-5) allowed two runs (one earned) on five hits and a walk while striking out seven over seven innings to earn the win over the Cubs on Sunday.

Gray has opened August with a pair of strong starts, allowing just three runs (two earned) over 14 innings while racking up 15 strikeouts. Matt Shaw's two-run home run in the fifth inning was the only damage on Gray's line in this contest. Gray is now at a 4.06 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 148:22 K:BB through 135.1 innings over 24 starts this season. The veteran right-hander's next start is projected to be at home versus the Yankees.

De La Cruz went 2-for-5 with a walk, one RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base in Sunday's 14-8 win over the Pirates.

De La Cruz opened the scoring with an RBI single in the third inning before stealing his 31st base of the season in the seventh. It was the superstar's first two-hit game of August, as he broke out of a 5-for-32 slump through the month's first eight contests. For the year, he's slashing .277/.353/.467 with 19 home runs, 74 RBI, 82 runs scored and the aforementioned 31 steals across 513 plate appearances.

Harris went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a double in Sunday's 7-1 win over the Marlins.

Harris doubled in the fourth inning before homering for the second straight day in the seventh. Over 10 August games, the 24-year-old has recorded five multi-hit efforts, seven extra-base hits, five RBI, six runs scored and a stolen base. For the season, he's slashing .241/.264/.394 with 12 home runs, 55 RBI, 36 runs scored and 13 steals across 463 plate appearances.