MLB Player News

Votto (shoulder) will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Louisville on Friday, Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Votto began easing back into hitting drills about a week ago and evidently things must have gone well. The Reds have not set a target date for his return to the lineup, as they no doubt want to see how his shoulder responds in game action first. Votto has been on the shelf for the last two weeks with a left shoulder strain, which is the same shoulder he had surgically repaired last year.

Olson went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional run and a walk in Thursday's 8-5 victory against St. Louis.

Olson belted one of five Atlanta homers in the win, slugging a 410-foot shot to center field in the fifth inning. It was his fourth consecutive contest with a long ball, increasing his MLB-leading total in that category to 47. During the homer streak, Olson has gone 8-for-15 with four RBI and six runs scored.

Goldschmidt went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run, an additional run scored and a walk in Wednesday's 11-6 win over Atlanta.

Goldschmidt has swung a steady bat lately, batting .309 (17-for-55) with four homers and 11 RBI over his last 15 games. The first baseman's homer Wednesday came in the first inning and set the tone for the Cardinals in their second straight win over Atlanta. Goldschmidt is up to 23 long balls this year while adding 73 RBI, 79 runs scored, 10 stolen bases and a .277/.367/.457 slash line through 135 contests.

Olson went 3-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Wednesday's loss to St. Louis.

Olson belted a solo shot to right-center field in the sixth inning for his 46th long ball of the campaign. That's a career-high total for the first baseman and the most in the majors. Olson also leads the league with 115 RBI while slashing .270/.375/.591 over 618 plate appearances.

Wade is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's contest against the Cubs.

With lefty Jordan Wicks on the hill for Chicago, Wade will yield to Wilmer Flores at first base. Wade has a .663 OPS and just one of his 14 home runs this season against left-handers.

Flores went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a double, a walk and two runs scored in Tuesday's 11-8 loss to the Cubs.

Flores has drawn a walk in five straight games while adding a pair of solo homers in that span. He's hitting just .239 over his last 19 games, but that comes with a .535 slugging percentage, six homers and 12 RBI. For the season, the versatile infielder has a .288/.354/.535 slash line with 21 long balls, 51 RBI, 48 runs scored and 22 doubles, though he's yet to attempt a stolen base through 106 games.

Candelario is not in the Cubs' lineup Wednesday against the Giants.

Candelario is receiving a rare day off. His last game on the bench was Sept. 1, but that was part of a doubleheader. Prior to that, he had appeared in every game since Aug. 13.

Tellez is not in the lineup for Wednesday's contest against the Pirates.

Tellez hasn't been given a ton of playing time since he returned from the injured list last month, with this marking his fifth straight game on the bench. He did receive a couple pinch-hitting opportunities over that span, but Tellez is looking at a secondary role down the stretch. Christian Yelich is getting a start in the designated hitter spot Wednesday, with Tyrone Taylor covering left field.

Bell went 1-for-4 with a two-run home in Tuesday's 6-3 win over the Dodgers.

Bell put the Marlins ahead 3-2 in the fifth inning with a two-run blast off Clayton Kershaw, his 20th homer of the year. Bell had cooled off slightly after a red-hot start with Miami -- he'd gone 8-for-38 (.211) in his previous nine contests. Since joining the Marlins at the trade deadline, the 31-year-old third baseman is batting .271 with a .867 OPS and nine homers across 129 plate appearances.

Alonso went 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in Tuesday's 11-5 win over the Nationals.

After driving in the Mets' first run of the night with a sacrifice fly in the first inning, Alonso launched his 42nd homer of the season, and third in the last two games. Alonso sits three long balls behind Atlanta's Matt Olson for the major-league lead, and his 102 RBI on the season also rank second to Olson in MLB.