MLB Player News

Rizzo went 1-for-3 with a walk, a solo home run and two runs scored in Wednesday's win over the Phillies.

Rizzo continued his hot streak at the plate, as he's now 14-for-36 over his last 10 games with three home runs and eight RBI. The slugging first baseman figures to continue posting strong numbers all summer.

Freeman went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Wednesday against the Padres.

Freeman didn't quite match his monstrous performance from Tuesday, but remained productive by blasting his 11th home run of the season. This marked the first time on the season that he has hit home runs in consecutive games. Although he lags behind the National League leaders in home runs, he is fifth in the league with a .561 slugging percentage.

Goldschmidt went 4-for-5 with three doubles, two RBI and one run scored Wednesday against the Giants.

Goldschmidt continued to show signs of life at the plate and has now recorded seven hits in his past 11 at-bats, including four extra-base hits. He's still hitting just .233/.344/.429 for the season, but he has seen his average rise from .201 to .233 over his past 19 games. While it'd be an overreaction to say Goldschmidt is approaching his form of past seasons, this recent stretch is a positive sign that his performance will improve as the season progresses.

Bell is out of the lineup versus the Dodgers on Wednesday.

Bell will head to the bench after going 0-for-12 over the past three games. As he looks to clear his head, David Freese will get a start at first base while batting sixth in the order.

Bell went 0-for-4 against the Dodgers on Tuesday and is batting .160 in his last 50 at-bats since May 20.

The first baseman has totaled only four homers and 32 RBI in 214 at-bats despite batting fourth in the lineup for all of 2018. Surprisingly, the switch hitter is struggling against right-handed pitching, slashing just .235/.310/.367 after compiling a line of .259/.342/.470 in 2017. Bell's OPS has dropped year-over-year (.800 to .695) while his .133 ISO mirrors his 2016 mark -- well off last season's .211 ISO. Bell has played in 59 of Pittsburgh's first 60 games, and while he might be due for a day off, the team will likely continue to roll with the first baseman on an everyday basis.

Goldschmidt went 3-for-4 with a double Tuesday in the Diamondbacks' 3-2 win over the Giants.

The three knocks tied Goldschmidt's season high and give the first baseman multi-hit performances in three of his last 10 appearances. He's slashing .308/.386/.564 over that stretch while striking out in 22.7 percent of his plate appearances, more than seven points lower than his season rate. It amounts to progress for Goldschmidt amid a down season, but it's still fairly troubling that the 30-year-old has delivered the bulk of his production on the road rather than at Chase Field. Likely due in some part to the humidor that was installed in Arizona this spring, Goldschmidt is hitting just .169/.326/.274 at home for the campaign.

Freeman went 4-for-4 with a home run, two doubles, two RBI and three runs scored in Tuesday's win over the Padres.

Freeman tagged starter Jordan Lyles for a home run -- his 10th of the year -- as well as two doubles, giving him 18 on the season. Freeman is now slashing .339/.435/.554 with 29 extra-base hits. He's tied for third in the NL with 42 RBI, and his 38 runs lead all MLB first basemen.

Santana went 1-for-3 with a double, two walks, an RBI and a run scored in Tuesday's win over the Cubs.

After sitting below the Mendoza Line for much of the opening two months, Santana's batting average is slowly creeping back up to respectability. The .220 average would mark a career worst over a full season, but he's sporting a .343 OBP. With five walks over the past two games, he now has more walks (39) than strikeouts (35) on the year.

Rizzo went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Tuesday's 6-1 loss to the Phillies.

Rizzo was productive in this one but his teammates didn't offer a ton of support around him, notching just one other extra-base hit all game. The 28-year-old first baseman has been trending in the right direction at the plate, as he's batting .412 over his past 10 games with two home runs and eight RBI. The good stretch has Rizzo's season average up to .250 to go along with a .773 OPS.

Cabrera is not in the lineup Sunday against the Cubs.

Cabrera will take the day off after going hitless in six at-bats and striking out a season-high three times in Saturday's extra-innings loss to the Cubs. The veteran second baseman is now hitting just .143 over his last seven games, but his season average still sits at a comfortable .294 mark. He'll give way to Luis Guillorme at second base Sunday.