MLB Player News

Beck is not in the lineup for Friday's contest against the Rangers.

Beck was given nine straight starts in left field upon his promotion from Triple-A Albuquerque, but he's gone just 5-for-32 (.156) with a 14:0 K:BB in those games, so the Rockies will give him a day to regroup. Jake Cave is in left field Friday. With Nolan Jones (back) beginning to ramp up his activity level, Beck is running out of time to demonstrate he's ready for a regular spot in the majors.

Ortiz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's 7-1 win over the Cardinals.

Ortiz has now homered in consecutive games and has registered an extra-base hit in five of his last eight contests. He continues to crush right-handed pitching this season, slashing .327/.424/.618 in that split with three home runs, eight runs scored and 10 RBI in 66 plate appearances. The 25-year-old will continue to jockey with Oliver Dunn for playing time at the hot corner, but Ortiz's recent hot streak could give him the upper hand.

Nootbaar went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Thursday's 7-1 loss to the Brewers.

Nootbaar has homered in each of the last two games, but he's batting just .184 (7-for-38) with five extra-base hits over his last 10 contests. The outfielder is up to three homers through 24 contests on the year, with the recent increase in power helping to make up for an overall lack of success at the plate. He's slashing .184/.290/.356 with nine RBI, eight runs scored, six doubles and two stolen bases through 101 plate appearances. Nootbaar continues to split time between left field and right field depending on where Brendan Donovan plays.

Carpenter (oblique) is on track to rejoin the Cardinals on Saturday in Milwaukee, Rob Rains of StLSportsPage.com reports.

Carpenter will play in one more rehab game with Triple-A Memphis on Friday before a likely return to the big club. Out since early April with a right oblique strain, Carpenter has gone 4-for-17 with two homers in his first five rehab contests. Upon his activation, Carpenter could see some starts at designated hitter versus righties for an offense that's desperately looking for a spark.

Black is scheduled to start Saturday's game against the Reds in San Francisco.

Black was touched up for five earned runs on eight hits and three walks over 4.1 innings in his MLB debut versus the Phillies on Monday, but he'll get at least one more chance to prove he belongs in the San Francisco rotation. The matchup with a Reds offense that ranks in the bottom five this season with an 80 wRC+ is a far more favorable one, and Black will also have the luxury of taking the hill in the pitcher-friendly confines of Oracle Park.

Hoskins went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Thursday's win over the Cardinals.

Hoskins increased Milwaukee's lead to three runs in the bottom of the first inning with a two-run shot off Sonny Gray, giving the first baseman his eighth home run of the season. He's also homered in back-to-back games, though Hoskins is still batting just .154 (4-for-26) in May and hasn't recorded multiple hits since April 26 against the Yankees.

Taillon won't start Friday in Pittsburgh, as the Cubs list Javier Assad as their starter for the series opener versus the Pirates, Maddie Lee of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

The late change perhaps hints that Taillon may be tending to an injury. The decision to have Assad take the hill for the series opener instead wouldn't seem to be the result of any dissatisfaction with Taillon's performance, as the 32-year-old has opened his second season with the Cubs with a 3-0 record, 1.13 ERA and 0.88 WHIP over 24 innings. Justin Steele will take the hill on four days' rest to start Saturday, while the Cubs are listing their starter for Sunday's series finale as "TBA." More clarity on Chicago's plans for Sunday -- as well as when Taillon might next pitch -- could come prior to Friday's contest.

Rodgers went 1-for-4 with a run scored Thursday against the Giants.

Rodgers played his part in a seven-run fourth inning for Colorado by reaching base on a single and coming around to score. It was an otherwise unremarkable game, but he has at least one hit in 11 of his last 13 starts and has hit .313 (15-for-48) with a homer, five RBI and six runs scored in that span. Rodgers still has a poor .632 OPS for the season, but he is showing signs of life at the plate.

Tovar went 3-for-5 with a double, a triple, an RBI and a run scored Thursday against the Giants.

Tovar has been struggling to hit for power across the last few weeks, as he had only three extra-base hits (all doubles) across his last 21 starts entering Thursday's game. He managed to end that drought against the Giants, as he tallied both a double and a triple in the fourth inning when the Rockies batted around. For the season, Tovar has a decent .714 OPS, though that's come with a relatively empty three homers and three stolen bases.

Steer went 1-for-3 with a walk and two RBI in Thursday's 5-4 loss to Arizona.

Steer delivered two runs on a two-out single in the bottom of the seventh inning to tie the game before the Diamondbacks went ahead an inning later. He continues to produce with runners in scoring position, posting a .359 batting average and 1.022 OPS in such situations.