MLB Player News

Merrill went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's defeat against the Dodgers.

Merrill was part of a big early surge by San Diego, as his second-inning long ball contributed one of the six runs his team scored over the first two innings. The homer was his first over his past 13 contests and accounted for just his second RBI over that span. It's been a rough season for Merrill, who entered the campaign with high expectations but is slashing just 212/.271/.349 with nine homers, 36 runs and 31 RBI through 83 games. He's at least managed to be a strong contributor of stolen bases, as he's swiped a career-high 18 bags on 19 attempts so far.

Machado went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk in a loss to the Dodgers on Thursday.

Machado continues to hit well against his former club -- he now has 27 career homers against the Dodgers, more than he's hit against any MLB team, per AJ Cassavell of MLB.com. The veteran third baseman's two-run blast Thursday gave San Diego an early 2-0 lead, but it wouldn't hold, as Los Angeles stormed back from a 6-0 deficit to take the win. Machado's homer was his third over his past five contests and team-leading 17th on the season. He's batting .302 (13-for-43) over his past 12 games but still sits below the Mendoza Line with a .192 batting average on the campaign.

Cronenworth went 1-for-5 with a three-run home run against the Dodgers in a loss Thursday.

San Diego exploded for six runs over two innings against Los Angeles starter Roki Sasaki, with Cronenworth's three-run blast providing the final half of that scoring. However, the Dodgers went on to mount a comeback and emerged with the victory. Cronenworth's long ball was his first since April 8, though he missed most of May and June while recovering from a concussion. The veteran infielder is slashing a meager .164/.276/.236 across 128 plate appearances on the season, and his three RBI on Thursday nearly matched the four RBI he had produced over his first 35 contests combined.

Rushing went 4-for-4 with a home run, a double, three total runs and four total RBI against San Diego in a 12-7 victory Thursday.

Los Angeles fell behind 6-0 before Rushing kicked off a comeback with a two-run homer to center field in the second inning. The young backstop added a sacrifice fly in the sixth frame and an RBI single in the eighth to round out his third four-hit performance of the campaign. Rushing has been holding down the fort behind the plate since Will Smith (neck) last played June 5. Over 20 contests in Smith's absence, Rushing is batting .258 with three homers, five doubles, 11 runs and 11 RBI.

Tucker went 4-for-4 with a double, a walk, three runs and an RBI in a 12-7 win against the Padres on Thursday.

Tucker had an unconventional line against the Athletics on Wednesday, when he walked in all four of his plate appearances. The veteran outfielder reached base in each of his trips to the plate again Thursday, though this time he put up a more fantasy-friendly line with a season-high four hits. Tucker has gotten on base in nine straight plate appearances, improving his season OPS from .714 to .743 in just two days. He's still been a disappointment overall from a fantasy perspective given his typically lofty acquisition cost, but Tucker has found his groove at the plate over the past six games, going 10-for-21 with seven walks, a double, a homer, five RBI and six runs.

Marquez allowed two runs on two hits and three walks while striking out one batter over three relief innings against the Dodgers on Thursday.

Marquez was activated from the injured list ahead of Thursday's contest following a two-month absence caused by a forearm injury. The veteran hurler entered in the sixth inning with San Diego trailing 10-6. Marquez threw 35 of 56 pitches for strikes but issued three walks on the way to allowing a pair of runs. Randy Vasquez started for San Diego but lasted just three innings, and he had a fainting episode after exiting while on his way to get X-rays for a possible ankle injury. If Vasquez ends up needing to miss time, Marquez -- who threw six more pitches than Vasquez on Thursday -- could be called upon to re-enter the rotation.

Vasquez fainted while being taken in for an evaluation on his ankle following his start versus the Dodgers on Thursday, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Vazquez finished with a no-decision in the contest after allowing four runs on seven hits and one walk over three innings. He was struck on the ankle by a Mookie Betts comebacker in the first inning but remained in the contest for two more frames; however, he was later on his way to get an X-ray before fainting. According to Cassavell, the veteran hurler was taken to the emergency room as a precaution, though he is reportedly stable and conscious. Vasquez will presumably get tests done to try to determine what caused the fainting episode in addition to having imaging on the injured ankle. It's too early at this point to know if either issue will cause him to miss any time.

Sasaki allowed six runs on seven hits and two walks while striking out three batters over three innings in a no-decision against San Diego on Thursday.

Sasaki's outing began ominously when the first batter he faced, Fernando Tatis, rocked him for a 116-mph double. That proved to be a precursor for what was to come, as the Padres pounded him for seven extra-base hits, including three homers. Manager Dave Roberts finally pulled the plug on Sasaki after three frames and a whopping 88 pitches. Sasaki was fortunate to escape with a no-decision since the Dodgers' offense exploded for 12 runs, but it was unquestionably a troubling outing by the Japanese hurler, who has now given up 19 runs over his past four starts spanning 17 innings. After the game, Roberts said that Sasaki will make his next start but indicated that the team will do a "deep dive" into the pitcher to determine what went wrong, which will include trying to determine if he was tipping his pitches, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.

Fermin was removed from Thursday's game against the Dodgers in the fifth inning after taking a foul tip off the mask, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Fermin spent time on the 7-day IL last month after he was concussed when a warmup pitch struck him in his mask, and it appears he'll now re-enter the concussion protocol. Prior to exiting Thursday, Fermin went 1-for-2 with a double. Rodolfo Duran replaced him at catcher.

Walker went 2-for-4 with a home run, four RBI, two runs scored and a walk in Thursday's 11-5 win over Atlanta.

The four RBI were Walker's most since June 10 and also marked his fourth game this year with at least four RBI. After struggling to find his footing in the major leagues across his prior three seasons, the dynamic 24-year-old outfielder has been a force in St. Louis' lineup this year. Walker has been a five-category contributor for fantasy managers, slashing a potent .291/.346/.519 with 19 homers, 63 RBI, 11 stolen bases and 49 runs scored.