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Jeimer Candelario 3B | LAA
Reds' Jeimer Candelario: Homers twice in win
Candelario went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in Friday's 5-2 win over Boston.
Candelario had been battling tendinitis in the back of his right knee, per Mark Sheldon of MLB.com, but he was ready to go Friday with the help of the Reds' training staff. The knee didn't cool off Candelario's scoring bat. He homered in his first two plate appearances -- the second two-HR game this month -- and is batting .347/.351/.736 over 18 games in June.
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TJ Friedl CF | CIN
Reds' TJ Friedl: Lays down productive bunt
Friedl went 0-for-2 with an RBI and was hit by a pitch in Friday's 5-2 win over Boston.
Friedl, who was hitless in 14 consecutive at-bats when he came up in the seventh inning with runners in scoring position, was thinking bunt. The player that led the majors last season with 17 bunt hits laid down a squeeze bunt. When the throw to the plate got past Red Sox catcher Connor Wong, both runners scored, giving Cincinnati some separation. Friedl is batting .209/.320/.372 with six steals, four home runs, 16 RBI and 14 runs scored through 24 games.
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Luke Maile C | KC
Reds' Luke Maile: Doubles, scores insurance run
Maile went 1-for-3 with a walk, a double and a run scored in Friday's 5-2 win over Boston.
Maile got the start in place of Tyler Stephenson (undisclosed) and scored an insurance run in the seventh inning. After Santiago Espinal reached on an error, Maile's double put runners on second and third, setting up TJ Friedl's sacrifice bunt. Red Sox pitcher Cam Booser's hurried throw home to nail Espinal went past Connor Wong and allowed Maile to score from second. It's unclear how much time Stephenson needs, but the Reds called up catcher Austin Wynns from Triple-A Louisville on Friday. Maile should be the primary starter for as long as Stephenson is unavailable.
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Corbin Carroll RF | ARI
Diamondbacks' Corbin Carroll: Stolen base, run in win
Carroll went 0-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Friday's 5-4 win over the Phillies. He was also hit by a pitch.
Carroll walked and stole a base ahead of Gabriel Moreno's home run in the third inning. The stolen base was Carroll's team-leading 14th, which is tied for 20th in MLB. As Carroll's reached base more frequently in the last two weeks, he's picked up his running pace. He's gotten on base at a .443 clip over the last 14 games and has attempted six steals during that stretch.
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Blaze Alexander 3B | BAL
Diamondbacks' Blaze Alexander: Fills in at second base
Alexander started at second base and went 1-for-4 with a stolen base and a run scored in Friday's 5-4 win over Philadelphia.
Alexander filled in for Ketel Marte for a second straight game -- Marte served as the designated hitter Thursday -- but the Diamondbacks have not indicated there's any issues with their primary second baseman. Since Arizona manager Torey Lovullo mentioned last week that Alexander would see more playing time, primarily at third base for the slumping Eugenio Suarez, the young infielder is 2-for-16 with a walk over five starts.
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Nolan Jones LF | SEA
Rockies' Nolan Jones: Homers in return to lineup
Jones went 2-for-4 with a solo home run Friday against the Nationals.
Jones was out of the starting nine for two games with an illness, but he returned to the lineup and hit sixth Friday. He tallied his second home run of the season and has seven hits across 18 at-bats with only three strikeouts since being activated from the injured list June 14.
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Colin Rea SP | CHC
Brewers' Colin Rea: Yields five runs
Rea allowed five runs on six hits and two walks while failing to record a strikeout over 5.1 innings in a no-decision versus the Padres on Friday.
This was the first time all year Rea's failed to log a strikeout, and it's just the third time in 15 appearances (13 starts) he's been on the hook for five runs. The right-hander's poor outing has him at a 3.62 ERA, 1.24 WHIP and 54:26 K:BB through 82 innings. Rea is projected to make his next start at home versus the Rangers.
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Luis Arraez 2B | PHI
Padres' Luis Arraez: Hits second homer
Arraez went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run in Friday's 9-5 win over the Brewers.
Arraez entered Friday with just four hits over his last six games, an unusual lack of production for the contact-heavy infielder. He made an impact with his lone knock Friday, sparking the Padres' comeback with a fifth-inning blast. Over 76 games between the Padres and the Marlins this year, he's slashing .314/.349/.385 with two homers, 21 RBI, 43 runs scored, 15 doubles, a triple and three stolen bases. He's the only player in the majors with over 100 hits so far in 2024, but that's led to his usual empty batting average, as he offers little in the way of power or speed and won't generate many RBI as a leadoff hitter.
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Manny Machado 3B | SD
Padres' Manny Machado: Racks up four hits in win
Machado went 4-for-5 with a double, an RBI and two runs scored in Friday's 9-5 win over the Brewers.
Machado has multiple hits in four of his last five games, going 10-for-21 in that span. The third baseman was batting just .240 at the start of June, but he's pushed that up to .263 with a .704 OPS, seven home runs, five stolen bases, 37 RBI and 32 runs scored across 72 contests this season. While his power production has been a career low so far, the 31-year-old could still put together a surge over the second half of the campaign.
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Enyel De Los Santos RP | HOU
Padres' Enyel De Los Santos: Grabs five-out save
De Los Santos allowed a hit and struck out two over 1.2 scoreless innings to earn the save in Friday's 9-5 win over the Brewers.
Not often part of the high-leverage mix, De Los Santos got a chance to protect a three-run lead in the eighth inning. After the Padres added an insurance run, he pitched the ninth to earn his first save since 2022, when he was with the Guardians. The right-hander has put together an okay season with a 3.41 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 38:9 K:BB over 31.2 innings, and he's added seven holds. His big problem has been the long ball -- De Los Santos has yielded nine home runs after giving up a total of seven homers across his previous two campaigns combined.