MLB Player News

Mountcastle (foot) is not starting a rehab assignment Tuesday night as initially planned, and he is now being re-evaluated, Matt Weyrich of The Baltimore Sun reports.

The 29-year-old was expected to start a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday after having progressed through his recovery from a left foot fracture at a steady rate. Manager Craig Albernaz said, "Mountcastle wasn't feeling 100 percent" and explained that "to start a rehab assignment not 100 percent is not where you want to be," Jake Rill of MLB.com reports. The Orioles will likely know more about Mountcastle on Wednesday.

Kurtz is not in the Athletics' starting lineup against the Red Sox on Monday.

Kurtz has gone 1-for-7 with a three-run home run and five strikeouts in his two games since being activated from the 10-day injured list Saturday. He'll take a seat for Monday's series opener while Jeff McNeil starts at first base and Tyler Soderstrom serves as the designated hitter.

Mountcastle (foot) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Norfolk on Tuesday, Jake Rill of MLB.com reports.

Mountcastle has been steadily progressing in his recovery from a left foot fracture that he sustained in mid-April, and he's ready to take the next step by embarking on a rehab assignment. He'll likely need to play in a few minor-league games before being cleared to return, but he is tracking toward being back with the Orioles by early-to-mid August.

Burger went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run during Monday's 7-3 win over the Mariners.

Burger extended the Rangers' lead to five runs in the third inning with a two-run long ball off George Kirby. It was the 19th home run of the season for Burger, three of which have come since the All-Star break. He is slashing .238/.300/.430 with two steals and 66 RBI across 410 plate appearances.

Encarnacion-Strand is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Tigers.

Coby Mayo will receive the nod at third base Monday, but Encarnacion-Strand may have at least temporarily leapfrogged him on the depth chart at third base following a hot start at the plate to begin his tenure with the Orioles. Since being recalled from Triple-A Norfolk on July 16, Encarnacion-Strand is hitting .370 with three home runs and nine RBI across 30 plate appearances. Though Encarnacion-Strand could be a strong source of power while he's playing regularly, fantasy managers should anticipate a sharp downturn in his batting average, after he had struck out at a 30.4 percent clip over a larger sample of 260 plate appearances at Norfolk prior to his promotion.

Rice went 2-for-5 with a solo homer, a double and an additional run scored in Sunday's 11-4 loss to the Phillies.

Rice crushed a solo shot to center field off Tim Mayza in the seventh inning, marking the slugger's ninth homer of the season against a lefty. After a quiet June, Rice is slashing .289/.372/.671 with eight homers, 18 RBI and 11 runs across 20 games in July. Overall, the 27-year-old is hitting .273/.360/.586 with 31 homers, 72 RBI and 68 runs in 100 contests.

Murakami went 3-for-5 with two home runs, six RBI and three runs scored Sunday against the Astros.

Murakami was hitting only .184 with a 35.4 percent strikeout rate across his first 11 games since returning from the injured list, but he snapped out of that skid in impressive fashion Sunday. He popped a two-run and solo homer, and he also chipped in a two-RBI single. Murakami now has a modest three-game hitting streak with only two strikeouts in that span, so he looks to be regaining a rhythm at the plate.

Clemens went 3-for-5 with two triples, one RBI and two runs scored in Sunday's 11-8 win over the Athletics.

Clemens has three multi-hit efforts over nine games since the All-Star break, going 9-for-37 (.243) in that span. He's logged five extra-base hits (one double, two triples, two home runs) during that stretch, but his performance is otherwise in line with what he's done all year. The utility man is batting .243 with a .787 OPS, 18 home runs, 49 RBI, 49 runs scored, 19 doubles, five triples and seven stolen bases over 92 contests. Clemens has seen most of his time at second base lately, but he can play in both the infield and outfield -- he started in right field Sunday since Luke Keaschall shifted to center while Byron Buxton slotted in as the designated hitter.

Kurtz went 1-for-3 with a three-run home run and a walk in Sunday's 11-8 loss to the Twins.

Kurtz returned from a thumb injury Saturday, but he stayed cold at the plate. When he went deep Sunday, he snapped an 0-for-25 stretch at the plate that dated back to July 3. The first baseman should be able to turn things around, though his 32.1 percent strikeout rate is an obvious flaw, especially since he's struck out 17 times over nine contests in July. Kurtz is batting .264 with a .901 OPS, 21 homers, 69 RBI, 62 runs scored, 15 doubles, one triple and seven stolen bases over 94 games this season.

Alonso went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 3-2 extra-innings loss to Atlanta.

Alonso got the Orioles on the board in the eighth inning with a 419-foot blast off Dylan Lee, his 22nd homer this season, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Alonso had gone nine games without a home run and seven without an RBI prior to Sunday. Overall, the first baseman is slashing .249/.346/.466 with 67 RBI, 65 runs scored and five steals through his first 462 plate appearances with Baltimore.