MLB Player News

Hayes is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Hayes appears to be receiving some maintenance after he went 8-for-35 (.229 average) with two stolen bases, six runs and two RBI while starting each of the Pirates' last nine games. Jared Triolo will spell Hayes at the hot corner.

Triolo will start at third base and bat eighth in Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Triolo will stay in the Pittsburgh lineup for the sixth time in seven games, but he'll likely occupy a utility role for the club moving forward after Isiah Kiner-Falefa (knee) returned from the injured list Saturday to make his Pirates debut. Kiner-Falefa is expected to serve as the Pirates' primary option at second base, where Triolo had previously made five consecutive starts before hitting the bench Saturday. Triolo will be back in the starting nine Sunday as the Pirates give regular third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes a breather.

McCutchen (quadricep) is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

McCutchen departed Saturday's contest due to left quadriceps tightness and will be held out of the starting nine for at least one game. Joey Bart will rest his legs as the designated hitter while Yasmani Grandal starts behind the plate.

Bae (knee) will start in center field and bat seventh in Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Bae hadn't started in any of Pittsburgh's last four games after he experienced left knee discomfort during Monday's 5-3 win over the Astros, but he showed enough improvement to make an appearance off the bench Saturday. In Pittsburgh's 4-2 win over Arizona, Bae entered the game in the bottom of the sixth inning as a pinch runner and came around to score, then struck out in his lone plate appearance of the night. With his knee apparently responding well following his cameo off the bench Saturday, Bae will step back into the starting nine for the series finale.

Grichuk is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

Grichuk drew starts in all three games of the Diamondbacks' series with the Nationals to close out July, though Washington brought southpaws to the hill for each of those contests. With the Pirates starting three right-handers (Luis Ortiz, Mitch Keller and Paul Skenes), Grichuk has been on the bench for each contest in Pittsburgh and still looks to be locked into a short-side platoon role.

Gurriel is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

Gurriel appears to be receiving a routine maintenance day after he started in each of the last five games. Jake McCarthy will get the nod in left field in place of Gurriel, who saw his 10-game hitting streak come to an end in Saturday's 4-2 loss.

Moreno is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

After a recent one-game absence due to a wrist injury, Moreno stepped back in behind the dish for the first two contests of the series in Pittsburgh, going 2-for-8 with a walk, a stolen base and a run. He'll get a breather for Sunday's finale while Jose Herrera handles catching duties.

Ramirez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Brewers, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Ramirez has a .908 OPS in 30 at-bats since the All-Star break but will sit Sunday for the second consecutive game. Travis Blankenhorn will receive another turn at designated hitter against Milwaukee righty Tobias Myers.

Hernandez went 3-for-4 with a double, a walk, two runs and two RBI in Saturday's 10-0 win over Oakland. He also pitched one inning, giving up a hit and no runs.

Hernandez was part of a late-game explosion by Los Angeles' offense, as he doubled home a run in the eighth inning and added another RBI on a single in the ninth. Those contributions helped the Dodgers build a 10-0 lead, and manager Dave Roberts consequently let Hernandez pitch the ninth. He did well in lobbing pitches to A's hitters, giving up a two-out double but nothing more. Hernandez has gone 4-for-7 with two walks over the first two games of the weekend set versus Oakland.

Blankenhorn will serve as the Nationals' designated hitter and No. 6 batter in Sunday's game against the Brewers.

Blankenhorn didn't crack the lineup Tuesday against the Diamondbacks after being called up from Triple-A Rochester earlier that day, but he's now entered the starting nine in four consecutive contests -- all against right-handed pitching. The lefty-hitting Blankenhorn looks like he'll occupy the strong side of a platoon at designated hitter with the righty-hitting Harold Ramirez, who will head to the bench for a second straight contest. Blankenhorn has gone 1-for-10 with two RBI and one run through his first four games with Washington, but he had been a standout performer for Rochester, with whom he produced an .846 OPS in 401 plate appearances prior to his promotion.