MLB Player News

Rooker went 2-for-3 with a home run, a double, two total RBI and a walk in Sunday's 5-0 win over the Astros.

Rooker picked up a pair of impactful extra-base hits, lining an RBI double in the third inning before launching a solo homer in the fifth frame. June has gotten off to a solid start for the 31-year-old, who has gone 6-for-20 (.300) with two homers across six appearances. Overall, Rooker is hitting .206 with a .684 OPS, 10 homers, 29 RBI, 19 runs and two stolen bases through 47 games.

Smith (shoulder) started a throwing program Tuesday, MLB.com reports.

Shortly after landing on the 15-day injured list May 22 due to right shoulder inflammation, Smith received a cortisone shot to address the injury. After responding well to the injection, Smith is beginning to ramp up again and could re-emerge as an option in the Detroit bullpen later this month. He'll likely require a brief rehab assignment prior to being activated from the IL.

Melendez went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Sunday's win over the Padres.

Getting the start in left field while Juan Soto got a partial rest as the DH, Melendez took Yuki Matsui deep in the sixth inning -- his fourth homer of the year, and first against a left-handed pitcher. The 27-year-old also made a spectacular diving catch in the second inning to rob Miguel Andujar of extra bases. Melendez hasn't had a multi-hit performance since May 6, batting just .098 (5-for-51) over his last 25 games with a 30.6 percent strikeout rate, but he remains in a battle for playing time with Mark Vientos, who isn't doing much better at the plate over the last few weeks.

The Rays plan to call up Slater from Triple-A Durham, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Signed to a minor-league contract in late May, Slater has a 1.160 OPS in six games with Durham. The Rays are slated to face three left-handers in their early-week series versus the Red Sox, so the right-handed-hitting Slater should get some reps in the outfield. Slater has slashed just .209/.286/.233 through 49 plate appearances in the majors this season.

Taylor (hip) began running this past week but has yet to resume full baseball activities, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.

The reserve outfielder suffered a hip injury while running out a groundball May 25. Taylor had a meager .530 OPS in 104 plate appearances when he landed on the IL, and with rookies A.J. Ewing and Carson Benge solidifying their spots in the lineup, the 32-year-old likely won't have much of a role once he gets healthy.

Ruiz went 0-for-1 with a walk, a run scored and two stolen bases in Sunday's win over the Rays.

The 27-year-old outfielder began the game on the bench but pinch hit for Owen Caissie in the seventh inning and remained in the contest in right field. Ruiz isn't seeing consistent playing time and sports a .196/.300/.471 slash line through just 60 plate appearances since he joined the Marlins' roster in late April, but he has slugged three homers and stolen 11 bags in 12 attempts while adding six RBI and 14 runs.

Lopez (3-1) picked up the win in Sunday's victory over the Pirates, allowing a hit and a walk over 1.1 scoreless innings of relief. He struck out two.

The right-hander was in the right place at the right time as the pitcher of record when Atlanta erased a 2-0 deficit in the bottom of the seventh inning. Lopez remains erratic out of the bullpen, getting scored upon in four of nine appearances since the beginning of May while stumbling to a 5.14 ERA, 1.71 WHIP and 12:7 K:BB over 14 innings.

Stanek boasts a 1.38 ERA and 14:6 K:BB over 13 innings since the beginning of May.

Stanek finished April with an 8.31 ERA and 18:12 K:BB across 13 frames in his first 15 outings of the season, but he's found a groove since then, having yielded an earned run in just one of his last 14 appearances. His poor control still gets him into trouble at times, but Stanek has re-established himself as one of Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol's go-to right-handed setup men. He could net the occasional save on days Riley O'Brien is unavailable.

Church (shoulder) will be activated from the 10-day injured list prior to Tuesday's game versus the Mets, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

It's the corresponding move for Victor Scott, who is headed to Triple-A Memphis. Church has been sidelined since late May with a left shoulder strain but has been cleared to return after playing three rehab games with Memphis. With Scott in the minors, Church is likely to see the bulk of the starts in center field for St. Louis, at least against right-handed pitching.

Slaten (0-3) was the losing pitcher Sunday, when he allowed four runs on three hits and one walk while striking out two over two-thirds of an inning in a 6-1 loss to the Yankees.

It all looked good for Slaten, who struck out the first two batters faced, including slugger Ben Rice, before the lefty-swinging Cody Bellinger took him deep to break a 1-1 tie. To that point in the season, the right-handed Slaten had allowed just one hit and one walk to left-handed hitters over 23 plate appearances. From there, the inning spiraled out of control and the normally trustworthy Slaten gave up four runs for the second time in four outings.