MLB Player News

Bell is not in Thursday's lineup against the Nationals.

The first baseman is batting .169 in his last 59 at-bats and has just one homer in 2018. For the season, Bell is slashing .237/.305/.331. By comparison, he slashed .235/.340/.407 with four homers through the first 27 games in 2017. David Freese will start in Bell's place Thursday.

Bell is out of the lineup Thursday against the Nationals, Bill Brink of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Bell will be joined on the bench by fellow lineup regulars Francisco Cervelli and Jordy Mercer as the Pirates wrap up their series in Washington with a matinee. With just one home run and a .237 average across 131 plate appearances this season, Bell has been a disappointment thus far for the Pirates and fantasy owners, but there's no indication that he's in any real danger of consistently losing at-bats to David Freese, who will start at first base in Bell's stead Thursday.

Shaw went 3-for-4 with two home runs Wednesday for Triple-A Sacramento in Las Vegas.

Shaw had struck out nine times in his previous 14 at-bats, so this was a much needed slump buster. His .263/.320/547 slash line and seven home runs in 103 plate appearances is on par with what most were expecting in his return trip to the Pacific Coast League, but his 38.8 percent strikeout rate is very concerning, specifically regarding his short-term prospects. He will need to get the strikeouts under control before he can be viewed as a viable option in the big-league outfield.

Rizzo went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's loss to the Rockies.

Rizzo had a brutal opening month of the season, but he's now left the park in consecutive games -- his first two blasts since a solo shot on Opening Day. The 28-year-old has just a .171/.269/.280 slash line on the year, but should eventually start turning it around as he's been plagued by an unsustainably low .164 BABIP.

Hoskins is batting second for the third straight game Wednesday against the Marlins.

The Phillies shuffled their lineup at the start of the week, bumping the struggling Carlos Santana back to fifth while moving Hoskins to second and Aaron Altherr to cleanup. The altered order should see Hoskins lose some RBI but gain some runs, a largely fantasy-neutral outcome, but he'll also see a small increase in his total number of plate appearances.

Bour (back) is back in the lineup Wednesday against the Phillies, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Bour had missed four starts with back spasms, though he was able to return as a pinch hitter Tuesday. He's hitting a solid .253/.356/.448 with five homers through his first 101 plate appearances.

Bour (back) went 1-for-2 with a solo home run in Tuesday's win over the Phillies in extras.

Pinch hitting for Jarlin Garcia in the sixth inning, Bour took Zach Eflin deep for his fifth homer of the season and then remained in the game at first base. Manager Don Mattingly could elect to keep Bour out of the starting lineup again Wednesday, giving his back extra rest with an off day coming Thursday, but it appears as though the slugger is ready to rejoin the starting nine.

Walker delivered a pinch-hit solo home run in the Diamondbacks' 4-3 win over the Dodgers on Tuesday.

Walker joined the Diamondbacks nearly a month ago following a stay at Triple-A Reno, but he has been limited to just one start and 14 total at-bats during his time with the big club. As he displayed with Tuesday's home run off Clayton Kershaw -- which measured an estimated 479 feet, according to Statcast -- and throughout his 2017 campaign at Reno, Walker boasts impressive power, but his swing-and-miss ways and lack of defensive flexibility seem likely to limit him to a bench role so long as he sticks around in Arizona. It would probably take an injury to Paul Goldschmidt before Walker receives a longer look.

Freeman went 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a run scored Tuesday against the Mets.

Freeman played a part in all of the Braves' offensive production Tuesday, lacing a two RBI double down the right-field line in the first inning and later coming around to score in the same inning. It's been business as usual for him this season, and though he only has four home runs, he has 17 extra-base hits and is hitting .318/.435/.561 in 107 at-bats.

Rizzo went 1-for-4 with a leadoff home run in Tuesday's loss to the Rockies.

Rizzo has been struggling this season, so manager Joe Maddon moved him up in the order Tuesday in an effort to get him going, and it paid immediate dividends in the first inning. The slugging first baseman went 15-for-50 with five homers and 12 RBI in a limited run as the leadoff hitter last season, and after Tuesday's blast, he'll likely get a few opportunities there at least in the short term.