MLB Player News

Norby went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Monday's extra-innings loss to the Padres.

The 24-year-old infielder has caught fire in the second half of May, hitting safely in 10 straight starts while batting .378 (14-for-37) with three doubles, a homer, three runs and nine RBI. The surge has pushed Norby's slash line on the season to .294/.333/.454, as he begins to deliver on the promise he showed as an Orioles prospect prior to being traded south last July.

Cronin (hip) is set to make rehab appearances with Triple-A Jacksonville on Tuesday and Thursday, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

That schedule could set the right-hander up to come off the injured list this weekend. Cronin has yet to pitch in the majors this season while recovering from a left hip strain that cropped up toward the end of spring training, and he should slot into a lower-leverage role for the Marlins once activated after posting a 4.35 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 72:25 K:BB through 70.1 innings in 2024.

Espinal went 2-for-2 with a double and an RBI in Monday's 7-4 win over Kansas City.

Espinal, who has been the primary third baseman since Noelvi Marte (oblique) was placed on the 10-day injured list, opened Monday's game on the bench while Gavin Lux started at the hot corner. Espinal eventually entered as a pinch hitter, finished the game at third base, and delivered a pair of hits including a run-scoring double in the eighth inning. He entered the game batting .169 (11-for-65) with one RBI over his last 17 games.

Lux started at third base and went 1-for-2 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored in Monday's 7-4 win over the Royals.

Lux plated a run with a single in the third inning and came in ahead of Tyler Stephenson's home run two innings later. It was Lux's second start of the season at the hot corner, which had been occupied primarily by Santiago Espinal since Noelvi Marte (oblique) was placed on the 10-day injured list. It's unclear if Lux will be the primary fill-in going forward, but Espinal (.169, one RBI in the last 17 games) has hit a rough patch lately.

Encarnacion-Strand (back) served as the designated hitter and went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored for Triple-A Louisville on Sunday.

Encarnacion-Strand's rehab assignment shifted from the Arizona Complex League to Louisville, and this was his third appearance overall. He played first base in both games while in the ACL. The Bats were off Monday, and Encarnacion-Strand is expected to play Tuesday against Toledo. He's up to 11 plate appearances on the assignment, and the organization may want to see him push that to 20 or so after having missed nearly six weeks.

Martinez struck out one over a scoreless inning to earn a hold in Monday's 5-0 win over Pittsburgh.

Martinez's hold felt like a save. He entered the eighth inning with none out and the bases loaded and got a strikeout, popout and groundout. At the time when Martinez was activated off the injured list, Arizona manager Torey Lovullo indicated he'd prefer to ease him back before returning Martinez to a ninth-inning role, but Monday's outing may have jump-started the move back to closer.

Tawa started in center field and went 0-for-3 with an RBI and a stolen base in Monday's 5-0 win over the Pirates.

Tawa filled his usual role, replacing Alek Thomas whenever the Diamondbacks face a left-hander. He knocked in Arizona's first run with a sacrifice fly in the second inning and then stole his sixth base of the season in the eighth inning. He's stolen four bases over 15 contests since second baseman Ketel Marte returned from an injury and adjusted Tawa's role to a degree. Tawa is batting .227/.297/.423 with five home runs, 13 RBI and 13 runs scored in 34 contests.

Smith went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional run and two walks versus Cleveland in a 7-2 win Monday.

Smith capped the scoring in the contest with a 409-foot solo shot in the ninth inning. The backstop has belted a modest five homers on the season, but he's been among baseball's most reliable hitters by other metrics. Smith ranks second in the majors in both OBP (.456) and walk rate (18.1 percent). He also leads MLB with a .476 batting average with runners in scoring position, going 20-for-42 with 25 RBI in those situations.

Ohtani went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, two walks and three total runs in Monday's 7-2 win against the Guardians.

Ohtani belted a leadoff homer for the second straight contest, this time swatting a 378-foot shot on Gavin Williams' first pitch of the game. The two-way star leads the majors in both total home runs (19) and leadoff long balls (five) this season. With 11 thefts to his name as well, Ohtani is currently the only hitter in the majors with at least 15 homers and at least 10 steals.

Megill picked up his 10th save during Monday's 3-2 victory over the Red Sox, allowing one run on one hit and three walks.

It wasn't pretty, but Megill was able to get the final three outs of the Brewers' Memorial Day victory to cash in on his ninth straight save opportunity and 10th overall this season. He needed 34 pitches and walked three batters along the way -- a shock considering he had walked three batters combined in his 10 other appearances in May. It was the first time the 31-year-old surrendered an earned run since late April, a span of 12 appearances.