MLB Player News

Greene (elbow) will throw a live batting-practice session Tuesday, then another one five days later, MLB.com reports.

Greene is expected to throw two innings in each session. The next step after that is to pitch in a major-league game during the Reds' homestand, which runs from Sept. 17-22. Cincinnati manager David Bell stressed Saturday that Greene will not be built up to throw seven innings.

Marte started at designated hitter, went 0-for-4 and was hit by a pitch in Saturday's 11-5 loss to Houston.

Marte, who was reinstated from the 10-day injured list Friday, served as the DH for a second consecutive game, as it appears the Diamondbacks want to be cautious. He had tried a couple of times to return from the injury in August only to aggravate it before eventually getting time on the IL to heal properly. Marte is hitless in nine plate appearances over the two games but did get a chance to run the bases Saturday, suggesting the ankle is okay now.

Newman started at second base and went 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBI in Saturday's 11-5 loss to the Astros.

With Ketel Marte being brought back slowly from an ankle injury -- he was the DH for a second straight game -- Newman got the start at second base against a left-hander. His solo blast in the fourth inning, when Arizona was still in the game, was his third homer of the season and first since April 26. Newman's in the middle of a nice run, going 8-for-18 with a home run and five RBI over his last six games and notching multiple hits in four of them.

Herrera went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 11-5 loss to Houston.

One day after being removed from a game due to a head injury, Herrera returned to the lineup. He had been hit on the top of his catching helmet by the backswing of Kyle Tucker's bat during Friday's contest and was removed for precautionary reasons. Herrera cleared testing protocols following the game and was able to resume play Saturday.

Merrill (knee) could return to the starting lineup Sunday after he pinch hit for Tyler Wade in the ninth inning of Saturday's 6-3 loss to the Giants, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Merrill was forced to leave Friday's game against the Padres after fouling a ball off his knee in the sixth inning. X-rays came back negative, and while he was held out of Saturday's lineup, the 21-year-old could be inserted back into the starting nine for Sunday's series finale. Since the All-Star break, Merrill has slashed .315/.343/.617 with 10 home runs and 36 RBI over 175 plate appearances.

Friedl left Saturday's game against the Mets after experiencing shortness of breath, Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Friedl was checked on by trainers before leaving in the seventh inning. The 29-year-old outfielder left the stadium for a local hospital to get precautionary tests, which didn't reveal any serious issues. Friedl went 1-for-3 before exiting the game, with Rece Hinds taking over in right field while Jake Fraley shifted to center.

Tellez went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run and two walks across both games of Saturday's doubleheader against the Nationals.

Tellez didn't start in the first game of the twin bill, but he came up as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning and drilled a 443-foot, two-run blast to right field. The first baseman added a walk later in that contest before going 0-for-4 with another walk in the nightcap. Even with the Game 1 homer Saturday, Tellez has had a rough start to September, going 3-for-18 with seven strikeouts over his first seven games.

Chaparro went a combined 4-for-9 with a home run and three RBI across both games of a doubleheader sweep versus the Pirates on Saturday.

Chaparro went a quiet 1-for-4 in the opener but was a big producer in the nightcap. He plated Washington's first run in Game 2 with a third-inning single and then tied the score in the seventh frame with a two-run blast to left field. Chaparro has three homers and nine RBI over his past seven contests.

Bivens will start Sunday's game against the Padres, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Bivens will be making his second MLB start, with each of his last 13 appearances with San Francisco coming out of the bullpen after he tossed five innings and allowed one run in a no-decision during his start against the Dodgers on June 30. Despite being deployed in relief lately, Bivens should be relatively stretched out after he tossed four innings and 54 pitches in his most recent appearance in Wednesday's 6-4 loss to the Diamondbacks. Landen Roupp and Tristan Beck are candidates to piggyback or work multiple innings behind Bivens if the right-hander isn't able to offer the Giants as much length in a starting role as expected.

Crews went a combined 2-for-6 with a home run, a double, two walks, two runs, three RBI and two stolen bases across both games of Saturday's doubleheader sweep versus Pittsburgh.

Crews did most of his damage in Game 1, when he knocked a solo homer and a run-scoring double in addition to swiping two bags. Though he went hitless in the nightcap, the rookie outfielder contributed with a sacrifice fly. Crews entered Saturday in a 3-for-21 slump with zero extra-base hits over his previous five contests, and he's slashing .233/.320/.512 with three home runs, six RBI, six runs and five steals through his first 11 big-league games.