MLB Player News
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Lars Nootbaar LF | STL
Cardinals' Lars Nootbaar: May be nursing rib injury
Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said that he had no medical update available on Nootbaar, who is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians after he appeared to tweak his rib on a check swing in Saturday's 9-6 win, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
Nootbaar's absence from the lineup Sunday could have more to do with the fact that the Guardians are starting a lefty (Logan Allen) rather than an injury, but the outfielder's fantasy managers will nonetheless want to keep an eye on his status heading into the Cardinals' three-game series in Pittsburgh that begins Monday. Nootbaar, who had been nursing rib pain coming into Saturday, was able to finish out that contest.
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Jake Cronenworth 2B | SD
Padres' Jake Cronenworth: Belts key homer Saturday
Cronenworth went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in Saturday's 6-4 victory versus the Reds.
Cronenworth helped spur a Padres comeback with a two-run blast in the sixth frame. It was his second long ball in his past four contests following a 26-game stretch during which he went deep just once. Cronenworth has been pretty quiet with seven home runs, 24 RBI and two thefts through 57 contests, though he's posting a career-best 14.6 percent walk rate.
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Luis Arraez 2B | SF
Padres' Luis Arraez: Launches rare homer Saturday
Arraez went 1-for-5 with a solo home run Saturday in a 6-4 win against Cincinnati.
Arraez put the Padres on the board in the fifth inning with a solo shot to right field. The long ball was his first since April 18 and just his fourth overall this season. Of course, fantasy managers who roster Arraez don't expect much power from him, as he's never hit more than 10 home runs in a single MLB campaign. The three-time batting champion has been somewhat disappointing in other areas this season, though, as he's batting a mortal .283 -- well below his career average.
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Richard Lovelady RP | WAS
Mets' Richard Lovelady: Re-signs with Mets
The Mets signed Lovelady to a one-year, major-league contract Sunday.
The left-hander elected free agency Friday after being designated for assignment by New York, but he quickly re-signed with the organization. Lovelady gave up two runs over 1.2 innings during his lone appearance with the Mets and also surrendered four runs across 1.2 frames during a stint with the Blue Jays at the start of the season. The Mets designated left-hander Colin Poche for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster and 26-man active roster for Lovelady.
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Colin Poche RP | DET
Mets' Colin Poche: Dropped from 40-man roster
The Mets designated Poche for assignment Sunday.
The left-hander had his contract selected from Triple-A Syracuse on Friday, and he made his debut for the Mets on Saturday in Pittsburgh, giving up two runs on two hits and a walk over two-thirds of an inning. Richard Lovelady signed a one-year contract to take Poche's place on the MLB roster.
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Ryan Pressly RP | CHC
Cubs' Ryan Pressly: Works ninth inning in rout
Pressly worked a scoreless ninth inning with a strikeout in Saturday's 12-3 win over the Astros.
Pressly closed things out Saturday, though it was far from a save situation. It was also his first game action in four days. The veteran righty managed to secure a save back on June 12, but since then, Daniel Palencia has rattled off the team's last three saves. Pressly is at least pitching better after a rough start to the season, as he now has a 1.23 ERA over his last 15 appearances. However, it appears that Palencia is the clear closer in Chicago at this point, with Pressly working in a setup role along with Porter Hodge and Drew Pomeranz.
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Nico Hoerner 2B | CHC
Cubs' Nico Hoerner: Goes deep again in easy win
Hoerner went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 12-3 win over the Astros.
Hoerner made his lone hit count, as he recorded his second home run in as many days and third in the last five games. Those three long balls account for all of Hoerner's home runs this season, so the power surge certainly came out of nowhere. The speedy infielder is also riding a seven-game hitting streak, and he's now batting .294 this year with 15 stolen bases through 79 games. Hoerner's speed and high batting average remain his most bankable fantasy assets, despite the recent uptick in pop.
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Alec Burleson 1B | STL
Cardinals' Alec Burleson: Getting day off
Burleson is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians.
Burleson will get his first day off since June 6, breaking a stretch of 21 consecutive starts for the 26-year-old. Though he'll be taking a seat against lefty Logan Allen, Burleson hasn't been treated as a pure platoon player of late, as he had started in each of the Cardinals' last seven matchups with southpaw starters. Garrett Hampson will cover right field Sunday.
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Lars Nootbaar LF | STL
Cardinals' Lars Nootbaar: Idle against lefty
Nootbaar is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians.
He'll hit the bench for a fourth straight matchup against a left-handed starter (Logan Allen), and Nootbaar appears to have settled into a strong-side platoon role after slashing an unremarkable .215/.333/.308 in 126 plate appearances versus southpaws this season. With Alec Burleson also out of the lineup Sunday, the Cardinals will deploy a starting outfield of Brendan Donovan, Victor Scott and Garrett Hampson from left to right.
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Agustin Ramirez C | MIA
Marlins' Agustin Ramirez: Strong performance in win
Ramirez went 3-for-5 with two doubles, two RBI and one run scored in Saturday's 8-7 victory over Arizona.
Ramirez cracked an RBI double in the first inning and later delivered the game-winning RBI single in the top of the 10th inning to help lift Miami to victory. While the rookie catcher doesn't reach base at a high clip, carrying a .299 OBP with a 6.2 percent walk rate, his power has been a clear strength. Ramirez has racked up 15 doubles and 12 home runs over 57 games for a .478 SLG.