MLB Player News

Cron went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a win over the Yankees on Wednesday.

There seems to be no slowing Cron in July, with Wednesday's production pushing his monthly line to an excellent .379/.431/.724 across 65 plate appearances. Although the 28-year-old has lost some playing time recently to Ji-Man Choi, Cron's hot bat has led to manager Kevin Cash deploying both in the lineup simultaneously on more than one occasion by playing one of them at designated hitter. Cron's round tripper also put him at the 20-homer threshold for the first time in his career, following three consecutive 16-homer campaigns.

Cron went 2-for-3 with a double in a loss to the Yankees on Tuesday.

Cron was responsible for two of the Rays' three hits on a night when they were thoroughly stymied by Masahiro Tanaka. The slugging first baseman continues to enjoy an outstanding July, as Tuesday's multi-hit effort -- his sixth of the month -- gives him a .389/.443/.704 line since July 2. It's worth noting that Cron's playing time has suffered lately due to the emergence of Ji-Man Choi, whom the Rays have started to use on a more frequent basis.

Olson went 2-for-4 with a walk and three runs in a win over the Rangers on Monday.

Olson followed up a two-homer day Sunday in the series finale against the Giants with another multi-hit effort, his fourth of July. The slugging infielder has shown a bit more of a discerning eye in July, as his 13 walks are the most he's drawn in any month this season and have helped lead to a .389 on-base percentage over the last 17 games. Olson has managed to lower his strikeout rate from 27.8 percent to 24.8 percent this season while establishing a new high-water mark with 49 RBI.

Diaz was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Tuesday.

A sabermetric darling thanks to his unique approach (63:63 K:BB in 353 plate appearance at Triple-A), Diaz's run with the big-league club will be cut short, despite going 7-for-14 in four games. It's unclear when he will return to the majors, but at the very least he figures to receive a September callup.

Guerrero went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run -- his 12th of the season -- in Double-A New Hampshire's 9-3 loss to Reading on Monday.

Guerrero was initially assigned to High-A Dunedin after being activated from the 7-day disabled list July 17, but he returned to the Double-A squad two days later. The 19-year-old has picked up where he left off for New Hampshire prior to suffering a strained left kneecap, going 4-for-12 over his first three games back, which has actually lowered his season average to .406. Once he gets a little more action under his belt in the Eastern League, it's expected that Guerrero will move up to Triple-A Buffalo.

Abreu went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, two RBI and two runs scored Monday against the Angels.

Abreu took Jaime Barria deep in the first inning for his 14th home run of the season and followed that up with an RBI single in the sixth inning to record his first multi-RBI game since July 1. Abreu has been in a funk at the plate, as he has just five home runs and has seen his average drop from .301 to .253 since June 1. However, he has shown improved power in the second-half in each of the past two seasons, and while that's not something to rely on, it does provide hope that he will improve his results as the season continues to wear on.

Cron is not in the starting lineup versus the Yankees on Monday, Steve Carney of 620 WDAE reports.

Cron is stationed on the bench after going 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs scored during Sunday's victory over Miami. Ji-Man Choi will serve as Tampa Bay's designated hitter during the series opener.

Cron went 1-for-3 with a walk and two runs in a win over the Marlins on Sunday.

After seeing his season average take a 37-point dive down to .233 during a miserable June, Cron has bounced back in authoritative fashion during the current month. The 28-year-old is now hitting .373 over 58 July plate appearances, a figure partly fueled by five multi-hit efforts and 10 extra-base hits (seven doubles, three home runs). The trio of round trippers has established a new high-water mark in that category for Cron, who's now just one away from the first 20-homer season of his career.

Mountcastle went 1-for-6 with a solo home run during Double-A Bowie's doubleheader with Erie on Sunday.

Mountcastle has gone deep four times over his last 10 games, raising his season OPS to .884. The 21-year-old third baseman now looks like the Orioles' best organizational asset on the left side of the infield after All-Star shortstop Manny Machado was traded to the Dodgers last week.

Calhoun went 2-for-3 with a three-run home run to help the Angels to a 14-5 victory over the Astros on Sunday.

Calhoun has had a miserable year at the plate for much of 2018, but he's showing signs of life lately, as this seventh-inning long ball off Chris Devenski marked his fourth in his last five games to give him 10 on the season overall. He's still slashing an ugly .190/.247/.331 through 263 at-bats, but hopefully his recent uptick in power is a sign he'll finally start to see those numbers even out back toward his career norms in the second half of the season.