MLB Player News

Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt went 2 for 3 at the plate in Arizona's 4-3 win over the Cubs on Sunday.

Goldschmidt did his damage in the third inning when he blasted a two-run shot off of Jason Hammel to deep center field, his 12th of the season.

"I've never seen a guy, basically it's just the flick of his wrist to hit it that far," D-backs manager Chip Hale said to MLB.com. "He's got such good mechanics with his hands to stay through the ball. When he gets on a run, yes, it's enjoyable to watch. We have to have guys behind him hit because what's gonna happen is he's not gonna get a whole lot of pitches to hit."

Goldschmidt continues to tear up pitching early in the season and is now hitting .333 with 38 RBI in 156 at-bats. 

Marlins first baseman Justin Bour gets his fourth straight start at first base on Sunday. He'll bat fifth in the lineup. 

The Marlins also gave catcher J.T. Realmuto a rest. Replacing him in the lineup behind the plate is Jhonatan Solano, who gets his fifth start of the year. He'll bat eighth.

Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard and second baseman Chase Utley are out of the starting lineup for Sunday's game. 

Both starters were rested against a left-handed pitcher. Howard is replaced in the lineup by Darin Ruf, who gets his seventh start at the position. He'll bat third. 

Utley is replaced by Cesar Hernandez, who starts at second for the first time in 15 games. He'll bat sixth. 

Carlos Ruiz also gets Sunday off. Replacing him at catcher is Cameron Rupp, who gets his 14th start of the year. He'll bat eighth.

The Diamondbacks have been speed demons so far this season. Arizona entered Saturday's game tied for second in the National League with 40 stolen bases, led by A.J. Pollock with 10 and Paul Goldschmidt with eight.

"What we've really tried to do the whole year is if there's an opportunity there, be aggressive with it," Goldschmidt said to MLB.com. "It's just another way we can get a guy into scoring position and make it a little bit easier on offense to score."

Pollock is tied for fourth in the NL with his stolen bases and 12 different players have recorded at least one stolen base.

"If it is a good spot and it's a good opportunity to take one, we'll try to take it," Pollock said. "We've got a pretty dynamic team and overall our team speed is pretty good. You've got a couple guys that kind of fly under the radar with speed and they can sneak one here and there."

Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo was the hero in Saturday night's come-from-behind win over the Diamondbacks. Rizzo went 2 for 5 and tied a career-high with six RBI. 

In the fifth inning, Rizzo cleared the bases with a three-run double to give the Cubs a 4-2 lead. Then, with the game tied at six in the top of the ninth, Rizzo hit a three-run home run to put the Cubs up 9-6, which would be the final score.

The homer was Rizzo's ninth of the season and the six RBI give him 29 on the year. 

Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard fell a triple shy of the cycle in Saturday's 8-1 win over the Nationals. Howard singled in the first, had an RBI-double in the third, and launched a solo home run in the fifth. On the afternoon, the big guy went 3 for 5 with two RBI and a run scored.

His solo shot in the fifth was his 10th of the season, and he is now hitting .268. At this time last year, Howard was hitting .234, as he looks to continue his rebound campaign in 2015. 

Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt made good use of the extra rest he got on Thursday. The slugger, who sat out Thursday's game due to rest, went 3 for 5 with a home run and three RBI in his team's 5-4 win against the Cubs on Friday.

Goldschmidt tied the game with a two-run home run in the 10th inning off Cubs' closer Hector Rondon.

In 41 games, Goldschmidt is hitting .331/.429/.623 with 11 home runs and 35 RBI in 151 at-bats.

Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, who was rested on Thursday, is back in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Cubs. But, Goldschmidt is not batting in his typical clean-up spot.

Instead, he will bat third for the first time this year, while third baseman Yasmany Tomas hits fourth. Tomas got off to a slow start at the plate following his promotion on April 15. But he's been red-hot lately, going 14 for 32 with three doubles and a home run over his last nine games. 

For the second straight game, Marlins first baseman Michael Morse will be out of the starting lineup. Morse will be on the bench for Friday's game against the Orioles, while Justin Bour gets another start at first.

Morse's struggles this season have been well-documented, and they will earn him another night on the bench for the Marlins.

The Mets are seeming less and less likely to deal from their surplus of young pitching, according to CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman. There have been numerous on-going talks about the team possibly looking to deal one of their young arms for a shortstop. 

But as Heyman reports, the Mets are not necessarily rushing to go out and get a shortstop. The club is apparently willing to give Wilmer Flores more time to prove himself. They also have a stock of young shortstops in the minor leagues, including Matt Reynolds, Gavin Cecchini and 19-year-old Amed Rosario.