MLB Player News

Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman hit safely for the 11th time in 13 games Saturday against the Giants. Freeman is batting .320 (16 for 50) with one home run, four doubles and 11 RBI in his last 13 games.

Since May 15, Freeman is batting .342 (39 for 114) in his last 29 games, raising his average from .277 to .312. He also has a .526 slugging percentage, .921 OPS, one triple, four home runs, seven doubles and 26 RBI in that span.

Cubs manager Dale Sveum shifted first baseman Anthony Rizzo to fifth in the team's lineup against the Mets Friday night and put outfielder Nate Schierholtz in the third spot.

Rizzo finished 3 for 4 with a double and two runs scored in a 6-3 win. He is hitting .251 with 10 home runs and 39 RBI in 65 games.

Reds first baseman Joey Votto is out of the lineup for Friday's game against Milwaukee, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Votto has started all 67 games and has played 63 full games this season. With the Reds playing 14 innings on Thursday, Votto will get a day to rest.

Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo was the only Cubs starter other than the starting pitcher to not pick up a hit in his team's 6-5 win over the Reds Thursday, going 0 for 5 with two walks.

Rizzo has just one hit in 17 at-bats over his last five games and two hits in 23 at-bats over his last seven, dropping his batting average to .243. His last home run came on May 18.

Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard had a pair of hits in Tuesday's loss to Minnesota.

Howard finished 2 for 4 with an RBI. Even though he clearly hasn't been himself since returning from an Achilles injury last year -- he's hitting just .236/.296/.429 in 131 games -- he's still averaging 108 RBI per 162 games played. 

Marlins second baseman Donovan Solano has been activated from the disabled list and optioned to Triple-A New Orleans, according to the Palm Beach Post. 

Solano was on the disabled list with a side injury. He hit just .278/.333/.324 in 108 at-bats. Derek Dietrich will likely move forward as the club's primary second baseman. 

Marlins second baseman Donovan Solano (side) is batting .600 (6 for 10) with one double and one RBI through three rehab games for Class A Jupiter, but manager Mike Redmond said Sunday the team hasn't decided yet when to activate Solano off the disabled list.

"Solano's available, but we still have to evaluate where he's at," Redmond said, per The Miami Herald. "We got a lot of guys that are close and we've talked about having some decisions to make. We have to sit down and figure out where these guys are at. We knew we would be getting guys back. Of course it all works out you get them all back the same week. It's a good situation. We're getting the lineup we thought we'd have when we left in spring training back. That's good."

 Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman was a tough out Friday against the Dodgers, as he had his sixth three-hit game of the season. Freeman went 3 for 4 with a double and a run scored, in a 2-1 loss.

Freeman raised his batting average to .314 with the game, and is batting .350 with three home runs and nine RBI in his last 10 games. 

Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt came through big in the late stages of Friday's contest against the Giants. 

Goldschmidt belted a three-run, opposite field home run with two outs in the eighth inning to give his club a 3-1 victory. He finished 1 for 4 with a run scored and three RBI. He is hitting .345 (10 for 29) with three homers and 16 RBI in seven June games.

Reds first baseman Joey Votto has gone a bit cold since hitting his 10th home run May 29. Votto is in a 3-for-27 slump in his last seven games, dropping his season average from .352 to .323.

Votto has an RBI and no extra-base hits in his last seven games. He also has three walks and six strikeouts.

Before his seven-game slide, Votto hit .439 (29 for 66) with six home runs and 14 RBI over a 17-game stretch from May 11-29.