MLB Player News

Cabrera left Wednesday's game against the Nationals with back spasms before he took his first at-bat, MLB.com's Anthony DiComo reports.

It was a bizarre exodus, as Cabrera had not yet taken an at-bat or played the field before he was removed, so his owners in daily leagues will be left with a goose egg. Matt Reynolds replaced him at shortstop, and would figure to continue to see time there if Cabrera is forced to miss further time with the back issue. The Mets' starting shortstop has not experienced back spasms since the summer of 2014, and in that case he ended up missing almost a week with the discomfort. New York is off Thursday so his next chance to return would be Friday against the Dodgers.

Cabrera was listed in the starting lineup Wednesday against the Nationals but was removed before receiving an at-bat or playing the field due to back spasms, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reports.

Matt Reynolds replaced Cabrera in the lineup. With the Mets having a scheduled off-day Thursday, Cabrera will have an extra day to be potentially be healthy by Friday's game against the Dodgers.

The Mets believe Flores (hamstring) will be recovered and ready to start at first base immediately when he becomes eligible to come off the DL on Friday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

In this case, Flores would only take the first base position for 4-to-6 weeks while Lucas Duda rehabilitates from a stress fracture in his back. Flores would then return to a more limited reserve infield role once Duda returns. The 24-year-old Flores is slashing .180/.255/.280 in 50 total at-bats so far this season.

Hoskins went 1-for-4 with a grand slam home run for Double-A Reading on Tuesday.

Hoskins is 13-for-38 with two home runs over his last 10 games, raising his batting average to .263. He has eight home runs in 42 games this season, putting him on pace to exceed his 17 homers from last season. He is also on pace to strike out a lot more than last season as well. His strikeout rate has jumped nearly 10 percent this year.

Cabrera went 1-for-4 with a solo homer and three strikeouts Tuesday in Washington.

Cabrera is riding a .344 BABIP to a .283 average thus far, but extra-base hits like this homer have been few and far between as his .108 isolated power represents by far the shortstop's lowest mark since 2010. Add in a 19.6 percent strikeout rate that's 2.2 percent higher than his career mark, and you get a lot of signs that the 30-year-old is starting to decline.

Joseph went 1-for-3 with a RBI on Tuesday against the Tigers.

The 24-year-old hit safely for the second straight game after going 0-for-6 during the weekend. Joseph has been pretty streaky so far this season, but at least he managed to plate a run for the second straight game, so he's been finding ways to produce offense for Philadelphia.

Manager Pete Mackanin said at some point Howard's role could be reduced, but nothing is imminent, Jim Salisbury of CSN Philadelphia reports. "I'm going to look at it a week at a time," Mackanin said. "We'll see. At some point it might come to that, but I can't say it's imminent."

Howard went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts Monday, lowering his average to .156. He has just four hits in the month of May, but three of those hits were home runs. A reduction in Howard's role would lead to increased at-bats for Tommy Joseph, who is off to a solid start since his promotion from Triple-A. Howard is in the final year of his contract, so it would not be surprising to see the Phillies move him to a bench role or even release him if his struggles continue.

Joseph went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a double in Monday's loss to the Tigers.

Joseph got the start at first base against righty Mike Pelfrey while Ryan Howard was shifted to DH. Joseph is 6-for-20 with two home runs since he was promoted from Triple-A. The Phillies remain committed to a platoon at first base, but Joseph could force them to reassess if he keeps hitting and Howard keeps struggling.

Smith is not considered a short-term option to help the Mets at first base in the wake of Lucas Duda's back injury, Adam Rubin of ESPN New York reports.

Just 20 years old, Smith is getting his first exposure to Double-A to begin the 2016 season. Thus far, he's handled the jump reasonably well, hitting .272/.308/.407 with four homers, 31 RBI, and a 9:27 BB:K in 41 games. For now, the Mets will use a committee to replace Duda, which will likely feature Wilmer Flores as a regular at first base once Flores is back from the disabled list.

Flores (hamstring), who is set to begin a rehab assignment Tuesday at Double-A Binghamton, will be the team's top priority to play first base once he returns from the disabled list following Lucas Duda's placement on the DL, ESPN New York's Adam Rubin reports.

Eric Campbell will also be in the mix, but the Mets are holding off on moving David Wright or Neil Walker to first base in the coming weeks, while manager Terry Collins also said that Dominic Smith is not considered a short-term option. The Mets called up Ty Kelly from Triple-A to replace Duda on the roster Monday, but Flores could be in position for near everyday at-bats once he's healthy.