MLB Player News

Walker is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rockies.

Walker will head to the bench after four straight starts, during which he recorded six hits in 16 at-bats. Though Kevin Cron will man first base in the series finale, Walker appears to have re-established himself as the clear top option at the position while trimming his strikeout rate to a manageable 20.6 percent thus far in June, well down from his season-long rate (28 percent).

Walker went 2-for-4 with a run scored in Wednesday's 6-4 loss to the Rockies.

Walker's hit in four straight games (6-for-16) and maintains the role as the primary first baseman, but his at-bats could dwindle soon. Jake Lamb (quadriceps) is nearing a return from a rehab assignment, per Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic, which could lead to Walker being on the short side of a platoon at first base.

Goldschmidt went 1-for-2 with a walk-off home run in a 2-1 win over the Marlins on Wednesday.

Goldschmidt came on as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning and struck out, but he came through in his next opportunity in the 11th inning with a walk-off home run. The 31-year old was given the day off after producing a .050/.174/.200 slash line in his last six games. Perhaps this could be the burst of momentum that snaps Goldschmidt out of his slump.

Freeman went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and two runs scored Wednesday against the Mets.

Freeman took Steven Matz deep in the first frame for his 21st homer of the season. While always a stellar hitter, Freeman has flashed exceptional power of late, smacking seven extra-base hits -- including four home runs -- in his past 11 games. He's now posted a very strong .315/.403/.606 line across 335 plate appearances for the season.

Cooper was scratched from Wednesday's lineup at St. Louis with a sore left triceps, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Cooper was scheduled to start at first base and bat third Wednesday but will instead take at least one day off to recover from the triceps issue. Yadiel Rivera will take over at first base in his absence.

Goldschmidt is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Marlins.

Goldschmidt is slashing just .179/.270/.321 with two homers in 16 games this month, so he'll take a seat for the second time in five games as he looks to hit the reset button. In his place, Rangel Ravelo is starting at first base and hitting fifth Wednesday.

Votto is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Astros.

Due to the quick turnaround for the series finale, Votto will head to the bench for the first time since May 29, ending a streak of 15 consecutive starts. Derek Dietrich will fill in at first base for Votto, who is getting on base at a .373 clip in June but still hasn't hit for much power (two home runs, five doubles in 51 at-bats).

Bell went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in a 5-4 loss against the Tigers on Tuesday.

The solo bomb was Bell's 20th of the season, but unfortunately, he grounded into a double play with two runners aboard and only one out in the ninth. Bell is still a candidate to hit 40 long balls and/or 50 doubles, but he has cooled off considerably in June. He is 8-for-37 (.216) with two homers and nine RBI in the last 10 games. Overall, Bell is batting .319 with 50 extra-base hits, 66 RBI and 53 runs in 276 at-bats this season. He possesses a 1.040 OPS.

Alonso went 4-for-4 with two walks, a home run, two doubles, three runs scored and three RBI on Tuesday against the Braves.

Alonso reached base in each of his plate appearances while also notching three extra-base hits, highlighted by his two-run homer in the fourth inning. It was his 24th long ball of the season, and he's outpaced by only Christian Yelich across the majors. Alonso has shown no signs of slowing down of late, homering four times in his past 10 games. He's hitting .274/.359/.624 across 301 plate appearances for the campaign.

Freeman went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Tuesday against the Mets.

Freeman took Jacob deGrom deep in the final frame to record his 20th homer of the season. He's been getting on base at a prolific rate for much of the campaign, and that hasn't changed of late. In his last seven games, Freeman has racked up five multi-hit performances as well as two home runs, nine runs scored and 10 RBI. He has a very strong .313/.402/.597 line across 331 plate appearances.