MLB Player News

Flores is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

Flores has now hit the bench in two straight matchups with right-handed pitchers, though it's not yet clear if he's moved back into a pure platoon role at first base with the lefty-hitting Trenton Brooks, who gets the start Wednesday but is hitting .143 over 21 at-bats since getting called up from Triple-A Sacramento. Flores, meanwhile, is hitting .212 on the season, and he owns a .198/.291/.287 slash line over 117 plate appearances against righties.

Cronenworth is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game in Philadelphia.

Cronenworth will get his first day off in more than a month as the Padres and Phillies conclude their series with a day game after a night game. Tyler Wade will fill in at second base while Cronenworth gets some rest.

Montero went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run in Tuesday's 11-9 loss to the Dodgers.

Montero has an extra-base hit and at least one RBI in each of his last three games. He began Tuesday's game on the bench but entered early after Charlie Blackmon (hamstring) exited the contest. Montero is at a middling .209/.274/.313 slash line with four homers, 27 RBI, 22 runs scored and 10 doubles over 62 contests this season, though he's hit just .167 (8-for-48) in June. If Blackmon misses additional time, that may allow Montero to be in the lineup more often, as his playing time has started to slip.

Alonso went 3-for-5 with a walk, a run scored and two RBI in Monday's win over the Rangers.

The first baseman kept the line moving for the Mets in a 14-2 rout. Alonso still isn't supplying his usual power, but he's picked up the pace a bit in June, slashing .259/.348/.483 through 14 games with four doubles, three homers, nine runs and 12 RBI.

Freeman went 1-for-1 with two runs and five walks in a 9-5 win against Colorado on Monday.

Freeman's patience was on display in the victory, as he tied a Dodgers franchise record by drawing five free passes. The veteran isn't shy about taking walks -- his 14.6 percent walk rate on the campaign ranks eighth among qualified MLB hitters and is on pace for the highest mark of his career. Of course, Freeman is plenty capable when swinging the bat as well, as he's currently batting .302, putting him on pace for his fifth straight season hitting at least .300.

Brooks went 0-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base in Monday's 7-6 win over the Cubs.

The steal was Brooks' first at the major-league level. The 28-year-old has seen most of his playing time at first base, but he's hitting just .143 over his first nine contests, which hasn't been good enough to keep Wilmer Flores on the bench. Brooks has added a meager .393 OPS, one RBI, three runs scored and a 3:6 BB:K through 24 plate appearances. Brooks' time on the major-league roster may come to a close when LaMonte Wade (hamstring) is able to return from the injured list.

Busch went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk against the Giants in Monday's loss.

Busch gave Chicago its first lead with a two-run blast to center field in the sixth inning. It was his first long ball over his past 17 contests and just his second across his past 32 games. Busch began the campaign with six homers through 16 contests, so the fact that he's still yet to reach double digits in that category emphasizes the extent to which he's slowed down. Still, the first baseman has been hitting well lately, batting .370 over his past 27 at-bats.

Flores is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Cubs.

Flores had started at first base in each of the Giants' last five games, with three starts coming versus lefties and two coming versus right-handers. Though the Giants seem content to deploy Flores as their primary first baseman rather than a platoon bat while LaMonte Wade (hamstring) is on the injured list, Flores will nonetheless give way to rookie Trenton Brooks on Monday.

The Reds transferred Encarnacion-Strand (wrist) from the 10-day injured list to the 60-day IL on Monday.

Encarnacion-Strand had been on the IL since May 8 with a right ulnar styloid fracture and wasn't expected to begin a rehab assignment anytime soon, so the move to the 60-day IL won't affect his eventual timeline for a return. According to Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer, manager David Bell reiterated Monday that Encarnacion-Strand remains in a bit of a holding pattern in his recovery from the injury. After he had been expected to increase his activity earlier this month, Encarnacion-Strand's rehab progression was put on pause when he sought a second opinion on his wrist from a specialist, who determined that the 24-year-old was dealing with ligament damage. Bell said that the Reds will wait a few more days to see how Encarnacion-Strand's wrist responds to rest before a determination is made on his next step, which could include anything from resuming baseball activities to going under the knife for season-ending surgery.

Freeman went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 3-0 victory versus the Royals.

Freeman reached double-digit homers on the campaign with his sixth-inning solo blast. The veteran first baseman has begun to pick up the pace in terms of power, going deep four times in 14 contests in June after coming into the month with just six long balls across 59 games. Freeman's pair of hits Sunday also lifted his average back up to .300 -- he's slashing .300/.401/.502 in 319 plate appearances on the season.