MLB Player News

Votto is out of Saturday's lineup at San Diego due to back tightness, though he is still available to pinch hit, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

It's unclear how long Votto has been dealing with the injury, but the fact he's still available off the bench suggests it to be a minor issue. The Reds have a scheduled off day Monday, so it wouldn't be surprising for the team to remain cautious and hold the veteran first baseman out of the lineup for Sunday's series finale.

X-rays on Alonso's hand were negative Saturday, Matt Ehalt of Yahoo Sports reports.

Alonso appears to have avoided serious injury, but it's unclear if he'll require any time off.

Alonso will undergo an X-ray on his right hand Saturday, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

It's unclear what exactly is the problem for Alonso, but more should become clear following further tests. If he's forced to miss time, Dominic Smith would see an expanded role at first base.

Votto is on the bench Saturday against San Diego.

Votto will sit for just the third time this season. The veteran owns a mediocre .227/.311/.409 line with an uncharacteristically poor 27 percent strikeout rate. Kyle Farmer will get the call at first base.

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

With Jarrod Dyson entering the lineup in center field, Ketel Marte will shift to the middle infield for the afternoon and bump Flores to the bench in the process. Flores could see his playing time drop after the Diamondbacks acquired utility man Blake Swihart from the Red Sox on Friday. Swihart will join the team in Pittsburgh for Arizona's series opener Monday against the Pirates and could be the mix for starts at second base in light of Flores' struggles this season.

Cooper (calf) is hitting and fielding while doing some mild running, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

"He's progressing along, that's for sure," Marlins manager Don Mattingly said Friday. "He was doing some outfield drills today. He's already been taking ground balls and hitting. He's doing running progression and will do curves either today or tomorrow." Cooper's rehab so far has taken place in Miami under the eyes of the Marlins' trainers, but he's expected to head to the team's spring training complex in Jupiter next week while the club is on the road. The 28-year-old will need to get in some rehab games before rejoining the big club, and a concrete timetable for his activation won't become clear until then.

Alonso went 2-for-4 with a walk, a solo home run and a second run scored in Friday's 5-4 win over the Cardinals.

His sixth-inning blast off Ryan Helsley proved to be the difference, giving the Mets a 5-1 lead that just held up after St. Louis mounted a comeback. Alonso had gone just 4-for-20 with a double over the prior six games, creating a bit of worry that major-league pitchers were beginning to figure him out, but the rookie still has an impressive seven homers and a .333/.425/.739 slash line through his first 19 contests.

Rizzo went 1-for-2 with a triple, two walks and an RBI in Friday's 5-1 win over the Diamondbacks.

Rizzo's first triple of the season brought home the Cubs' third run of the game in the fourth inning. The 29-year-old slugger is struggling to begin the year with a .169 batting average, but perhaps reaching base three times will help him get on a hot streak.

Walker went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run Thursday against the Braves.

Walker took Chad Sobotka deep in the seventh inning to record his sixth homer of the season. After a short slump during which he went 0-for-10 with seven strikeouts across a four-game stretch, Walker has smacked three home runs in his last four games. While Jake Lamb (quad) is progressing, Walker should get the chance to continue his strong run of early-season power production.

Freeman went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Thursday against the Diamondbacks.

Freeman took Matt Andriese deep in the eighth inning to account for the Braves' only run on the day. It was his second home run of the season, though he has paired that with six doubles. His profile remains similar to past seasons as he has 14 walks compared to 13 strikeouts and is hitting .324/.446/.946 through 79 plate appearances.