MLB Player News

Bell went 2-for-3 with a walk, two doubles and two runs in Friday's 6-2 loss to St. Louis.

He topped an exit velocity of 110 mph with both doubles, an encouraging sign. In fact, Friday marked the first time Bell collected two or more extra-base hits in the same game since July 3 -- he leads the NL with 36 doubles. The first baseman's still looking for his first homer since July 5 but it appears his three-day rest period has paid dividends. Bell is 6-for-16 with a double and homer against Saturday starter Adam Wainwright.

Solano led off and went 3-for-5 with an RBI in Friday's 9-6 loss to the Phillies.

Solano got the nod at second base with the left-handed Drew Smyly starting for the Phils, and he batted leadoff as he usually does when starting against southpaws. The 31-year-old took advantage of the playing time and recorded his third three-hit game of the season. Solano is currently on the short side of a platoon at the keystone with Scooter Gennett while occasionally spelling Brandon Crawford at short. The utility infielder is slashing a healthy .338/.367/.480 over 53 games, but inconsistent playing time and a lack of power (four homers) and speed (one steal) eliminate any fantasy potential.

Naylor hit a pinch-hit, three-run home run in Friday's 7-1 win over the Rockies.

Naylor was called on to pinch hit for reliever Trey Wingenter in the eighth inning and came up with the Padres' biggest hit of the night to put an exclamation mark on their victory. The 22-year-old has mostly featured off the bench this season, hitting .242/.296/.403 with five homers, 22 RBI and 14 runs scored in 124 at-bats.

Alonso went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Friday night's win over the Nationals.

Alonso smacked a two-run homer in the fourth inning to cut New York's deficit to one, and the Mets would manage to come back in the bottom of the ninth for a 7-6 victory. The 24-year-old has been on a tear of late, as he's now left the yard in four consecutive matchups, putting him at 38 homers over 115 games this season. Alonso will aim to extend his homer streak to five in the second matchup of the series Saturday.

Bell will start at first base and bat fourth against the Cardinals on Friday.

The Pirates gave Bell two games off before Thursday's off-day in an effort to snap the 26-year-old out of a protracted slump. Bell is slashing just .209/.318/.429 with nine homers and 37 RBI since the end of May. He has four hits (including two doubles) in six career at-bats against Friday starter Dakota Hudson.

Alonso went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's win over the Marlins.

The slugging first baseman kick-started the Mets' offense with a first-inning blast off Jordan Yamamoto. Alonso has gone deep in three straight games to give him 37 homers on the year, and he's rapidly closing in on a couple of records: Cody Bellinger's NL rookie mark of 39 home runs in a season, and the Mets' franchise mark of 41 in a season held by Carlos Beltran and Todd Hundley.

Hiura went 3-for-4 with a pair of home runs, a double, three RBI and three runs Wednesday in the Brewers' 8-4 win over the Pirates.

Hiura had gone 4-for-32 at the dish over his prior nine games before busting out in a big way in the series finale in Pittsburgh, reaching base four times while posting a career-high three extra-base knocks. The rookie has more than lived up to his billing as a polished power-speed threat with 13 home runs and seven steals in 52 games, but he could still use further refinement in the field. He committed his 10th error after he was unable to corral a throw in the bottom of the fourth, preventing the Brewers from turning a potential inning-ending double play.

Freeman went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and two runs in an 11-7 victory against the Twins on Wednesday.

The 29-year-old has a home run in three straight contests, putting him one shy of the 30-homer plateau. With one more long ball, Freeman will reach 30 home runs for the first time since 2016. Freeman is on pace to set career bests in home runs, RBI and runs this season. He is batting .309 with 59 extra-base hits, 92 RBI, 90 runs and five steals in 446 at-bats this season.

Bell is not starting Wednesday against the Brewers.

As expected, Bell will stick on the bench for a second straight game as the Pirates look to give him an extended breather amidst his second-half struggles (.176/.299/.230 slash line in 22 games since the All-Star break). Jose Osuna is starting at first base and hitting cleanup in his place.

Cabrera is getting reps at first base, Jamal Collier of MLB.com reports.

The Nats don't have a platoon partner for Matt Adams at first base with Ryan Zimmerman (foot) and Howie Kendrick (hamstring) both on the shelf -- current backup Gerardo Parra also hits left-handed -- so if Cabrera can adapt quickly, there is a path to some playing time for the veteran switch hitter. That said, he's never played first base before in over 1,600 career MLB games, and his .709 OPS for Texas this season doesn't suggest he'll have a lot of fantasy value in Washington even if Cabrera does see semi-consistent at-bats.