MLB Player News

Astros first baseman Chris Carter belted his 31st home run Monday against the Athletics. 

Carter struck in the bottom of the eighth. With a man on, Carter belted a 96 mph fastball out to right for the two-run shot. It was Carter's only hit of the game. He finished 1 for 4, with one run scored and two RBI. 

Angels designated hitter C.J. Cron is likely to be called up soon, according to the Orange County Register. 

Cron has performed well in a nine-game stint in the minors, and could be on his way back up with the team facing two lefties during the weekend series. Cron has hit .266/.295/.462 over 199 at-bats this season.

Astros designated hitter Chris Carter continued his hot-hitting ways Tuesday, as he slugged the team to a 7-4 victory over the Yankees.

Carter was hitless with four strikeouts heading into the ninth inning, but made up for that with one swing. With the score tied at 4-4, Carter unleashed a three-run blast to put the Astros up for good.

Carter has established a new career-high with his 30th home run of the season, and he has 72 RBI to go with that, just 10 off his best total. He is hitting .233/.301/.519 in 110 games overall. 

White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu ended his homer drought Tuesday against the Orioles.

Abreu struck in the first inning. With the bases empty, Abreu took an 84 mph changeup out to left center for the solo shot. The home run snapped a steak of 77 plate appearances without a dinger. Abreu finished 1 for 3, with one run scored and one RBI. 

Angels outfielder Kole Calhoun stayed hot Monday, in a 4-2 win over the Red Sox.

Calhoun did his job at the top of the lineup, reaching base in all four of his trips to the plate. He went 2 for 2 with a double and added a pair of walks, while scoring twice in the win.

Kalhoun is hitting .295 for the season, but has been hot all August long, hitting .339/.397/.516 since the start of the month. 

Indians first baseman Carlos Santana homered and drove in three runs during a 6-0 win Saturday against the Orioles. He finished 2 for 3 with one walk.

Santana gave Cleveland an early 3-0 lead with a three-run homer off Ubaldo Jimenez in the bottom of the first inning. It was his 21st home run, but his first homer in 17 games.

Astros DH Chris Carter is one home run shy of 30 after belting his 29th home run Saturday at Boston. Carter was 2 for 4 with two runs and two RBI.

Carter put Houston ahead 3-0 with a sac fly in the second inning before giving Houston a 6-3 lead with a solo home run in the fourth inning. Unfortunately, Houston would lose the game 10-7.

Carter has been on quite the power surge, homering 16 times in his last 35 games. He has a .741 slugging percentage and 1.123 OPS in that span. Carter is also batting .333 with seven doubles, 31 runs and 39 RBI in his last 35 games.

Angels right fielder Kole Calhoun all but doomed the Rangers to defeat Friday night. He blasted a three-run homer in the fifth inning to turn a 1-1 tie into a 4-1 lead. His team remained ahead the rest of the way.

Calhoun fell just a triple short of the cycle to pace the offense. He has 13 hits in his last 29 at-bats, two home runs in his last three games, and a six-game hitting streak that has raised his batting average to .294, its highest point in more than a month.

If you've owned Chris Carter for any of the last five weeks, you're probably pleased with both him for hitting a bunch of home runs -- 15 in his last 31 games, to be exact -- and yourself for having the foresight to start this player whose batting average only recently eclipsed the Mendoza line.

Considering it's up to a not-so-embarassing .230 now, it feels like ancient history, but it was really only a month ago. In fact, at the start of it all, Carter was batting a ghastly .182 with a .664 OPS. Can a player really change that much that fast? Has Carter?

Yes and no. While he's not the .328 hitter he's been in his last 31 games, he was due for a big correction with the way his season started. And judging by his .262 BABIP, down from .311 last year and .295 the year before, he's still due for more.

Granted, the abundance of home runs might be skewing that number a bit -- they don't count as "balls in play" -- but who's to say he hasn't improved as a power hitter at age 27? He wouldn't be the first. Even with all his limitations, the potential to hit 40 home runs with full-time at-bats would make Carter kind of like another Mark Trumbo. You drafted Trumbo at the start of the year expecting to play him every week, hot or cold, right? I sure did.

So while Carter is sure to cool off at some point, I won't be so quick to drop him, particularly in Rotisserie leagues, when he finally does.

Angels outfielder Kole Calhoun went 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBI in his team's 7-2 win over the Phillies Tuesday.

Calhoun kicked off a seven-run sixth inning with a solo home run and later delivered an RBI single after the offense batted around in the frame. He's turned in four straight multihit performances. Calhoun owns a .288/.343/.476 line with 12 home runs and 34 RBI in 319 at-bats.