MLB Player News
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Chris Gittens 1B | HOU
Yankees' Chris Gittens: Recalled, starting Friday
Gittens will start Friday's game against Boston at first base after being recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Brendan Kuty of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.
Gittens rejoins the Yankees in a flurry of roster moves relating to the club's COVID-19 issues, while Luke Voit (knee) also landed on the 10-day injured list. Gittens' promotion indicates that he's gotten past the undisclosed issue that landed him on the 7-day IL in early July. He recorded just two hits across 21 at-bats in his first stint with the big club before being optioned June 20.
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Ryan O'Hearn 1B | PIT
Royals' Ryan O'Hearn: Not starting Friday
O'Hearn is not in the lineup for Friday's game against Baltimore.
O'Hearn sits for the first game of the second half after starting seven straight games prior to the break. He struggled to a .422 OPS over that stretch and owns a .643 OPS on the season, so he hasn't exactly made a great case for an everyday role. Whit Merrifield will be the right fielder Friday, with Jorge Soler serving as the designated hitter.
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Carlos Santana 1B | ARI
Royals' Carlos Santana: Good to go Friday
Santana (wrist) is in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Orioles.
Santana missed the last game before the All-Star break because of a wrist issue, but the first baseman now appears to be fine after getting five full days of rest. He'll bat second in the series opener.
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Matt Olson 1B | ATL
Athletics' Matt Olson: Has two-HR day in win
Olson went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in Sunday's 4-1 win over the Rangers.
Olson took Kolby Allard deep in the fourth and the sixth to put him at 23 home runs heading into the All-Star break. Coming into Sunday, the 27-year-old slugger was hitting .185/.229/.292 with only one homer over his last 18 games. He finishes the first half of the year slashing .282/.371/.567 with 43 extra-base hits, 59 RBI, 58 runs scored, three steals and a 42:60 BB:K over 364 plate appearances. He'll be making an appearance in his first Home Run Derby and first All-Star Game over the next few days.
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Triston Casas 1B | BOS
Red Sox's Triston Casas: Mired in power drought
Casas hasn't hit a homer since May 23, batting just .222/.311/.278 -- a .589 OPS -- across 25 games for Double-A Portland in that span.
The bright side is that he's still drawing walks at a steady pace while not striking out too much. Nonetheless, Casas is certainly erasing memories of his hot start to the season, and he has just four homers in all alongside a .268/.348/.395 batting line. This skid will certainly delay the timeline for the 21-year-old, who's been compared to the likes of Joey Votto and Anthony Rizzo, but is currently struggling to get to his power in game scenarios. Dynasty-league managers would do well to stay patient with him.
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Andrew Vaughn 1B | MIL
White Sox's Andrew Vaughn: Socks two homers Sunday
Vaughn went 2-for-4 with two home runs and four total RBI in Sunday's win over the Orioles.
Vaughn went deep in the fourth inning with a solo shot and then added a three-run blast off Cole Sulser in the sixth, giving him 10 long balls on the season. The first baseman snapped a drought of seven games without a homer and has now quietly assembled a three-game hitting streak, with two multi-hit games in the process.
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Ryan Mountcastle 1B | BAL
Orioles' Ryan Mountcastle: Should be fine for second half
Manager Brandon Hyde said Sunday after the Orioles' 7-5 loss to the White Sox that Mountcastle (forearm) should be available for the team's first game out of the All-Star break Friday in Kansas City, Dan Connolly of The Athletic reports.
Hyde suspects Mountcastle will be sore over the next few days after being struck in the arm by a pitch Sunday, but the 24-year-old should have enough time during the break to overcome the injury. After his early exit Sunday, Mountcastle concludes the first half with a .255/.305/.447 slash line to go with 14 home runs, 48 RBI, 39 runs and three stolen bases across 328 plate appearances.
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Yandy Diaz 1B | TB
Rays' Yandy Diaz: On base three times in loss
Diaz went 2-for-3 with a double and a walk in Sunday's 3-1 loss to Toronto.
Diaz was the only Tampa Bay hitter to find any success against Toronto starter Robbie Ray. The 29-year-old third baseman has posted three multi-hit efforts in his last five games, but he remains in a platoon role at the corner infield positions. Diaz is slashing .250/.375/.332 with four home runs, 30 RBI and 36 runs scored through 323 plate appearances.
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Ryan Mountcastle 1B | BAL
Orioles' Ryan Mountcastle: Has left forearm contusion
Mountcastle's X-rays came back negative Sunday and he was diagnosed with a left forearm contusion, Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com reports.
Mountcastle exited Sunday's game in serious pain after being hit by a pitch. It's unclear how long he'll be sidelined, but the X-ray results suggest he'll be ready to return Friday after the All-Star break.
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Ryan Mountcastle 1B | BAL
Orioles' Ryan Mountcastle: Exits after HBP
Mountcastle was removed from Sunday's game against the White Sox after taking a pitch to his left elbow, Joe Trezza of MLB.com reports.
The 24-year-old appeared to be in considerable pain and was replaced at first base by Pat Valaika. It's unclear whether Mountcastle suffered an injury to his left elbow, but he'll have the All-Star break to rest before potentially returning Friday.