MLB Player News

Guerrero went 3-for-4 with a home run, double and two RBI for Triple-A Buffalo in its 6-1 win over Gwinnett on Wednesday.

The home run was Guerrero's first with Buffalo, but his .682 slugging percentage at Triple-A is actually 11 points better than his mark at Double-A New Hampshire. As anticipated, the move to the International League hasn't presented much of a challenge for Guerrero, who has continued to torch opposing pitchers since returning from the patellar tendon injury that sidelined him for most of June. He sports an impressive 8:2 K:BB through 31 plate appearances at Triple-A and is doing his best to make a case for a promotion to the big leagues before the 2018 campaign comes to a close.

Abreu went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, an RBI and a run scored in Wednesday's 7-3 loss to the Yankees.

Abreu's average had dipped to a season-low .250 on July 21, but he's rebounded since, going 25-for-67 (.373) with seven home runs and 15 RBI over the last 17 games. He may be headed for his least-productive season since coming stateside five years ago, but that Abreu can continue get results in middle of a lineup that offers little support reinforces the notion that he's a gifted hitter and middle-of-the-order threat.

Calhoun went 2-for-4 with a solo homer and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 6-0 win over the Tigers.

Calhoun opened the game with a bang, taking Blaine Hardy deep on just the second pitch he saw to give the Angels an early lead that they wouldn't relinquish. The 30-year-old has picked it up after a disappointing first half of the season, hitting .314 with six homers and 18 RBI across 18 games since the All-Star break.

Lowe was promoted to Triple-A Durham on Wednesday.

A 13th-round pick in 2016, Lowe had certainly been productive in the lower levels of the minors in 2016 and 2017, but this year has unquestionably been his coming out party. He earned the promotion to the highest level of the minors after going 13-for-28 (.464) with a pair of home runs, nine walks and three strikeouts over his last eight games for Double-A Montgomery. He has logged a 190 wRC+ at High-A, a 191 wRC+ at Double-A and 23 home runs over 101 games across the two levels. His batting averages on balls in play at those two levels were high, but not so high that we should write off the production. He also has a 63:60 K:BB this season, and had more walks (35) than strikeouts (30) at Double-A. Another promising element of Lowe's production is his spray chart -- he hit exactly the same amount (34.2 percent) of balls to the pull side as to the opposite field at Double-A, which suggests MLB teams won't be able to neutralize him via the shift. The big knocks on Lowe are his age (23), position (first base) and lack of pedigree. If he carries over this dominance against Triple-A pitching, we will likely find out how his tools play at the highest level sometime next summer.

Cron is not starting Wednesday against the Orioles.

Cron has been splitting time with Ji-Man Choi as the Rays' designated hitter, with the pair now alternating starts for eight straight games. Choi will get the call Wednesday.

Alonso went 4-for-5 with a home run, a double and four RBI in Triple-A Las Vegas' 9-6 win over Iowa on Tuesday.

Alonso went deep for the third time in four games and notched his third career four-hit performance after singling in his final at-bat of the afternoon. After hitting just .165 through his first 26 games in the Pacific Coast League, Alonso has adjusted impressively since late July. In his subsequent 17 contests, the first baseman has supplied a 1.170 OPS while homering six times and driving in 24 runs.

Kirilloff is hitting .368/.394/.540 with three home runs and two steals in 40 games (175 plate appearances) since his promotion to High-A Fort Myers.

His .419 BABIP at High-A is unsustainable, but even if we regress his batting average 50 or 60 points, he's still off to a very impressive start in the Florida State League. The main thing any Kirilloff detractor would point to is his 4.0 percent walk rate, but it's hard to expect a player who's sporting a 165 wRC+ while striking out just 15.4 percent of the time to be more patient. He has a chance to enter this offseason as a top-20 prospect for dynasty leagues and should open his age-21 season at Double-A.

Bell (oblique) was activated from the 10-day disabled list as expected Wednesday, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic Pittsburgh reports.

Bell will wind up missing just over the minimum with an oblique strain. Prior to the injury, he had hit a solid .329 with an .868 OPS over his last 25 games. Jose Osuna was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move.

Hiura is 4-for-23 with six strikeouts and one walk over his last six games for Double-A Biloxi.

His batting average has dipped from .302 to .286 over this mini slump, but while his .778 OPS may not meet the expectations of his dynasty-league owners, he has still been 21 percent better (121 wRC+) than the average Southern League hitter. Hiura figures to finish out the season with the Shuckers, receive an invite to big-league spring training, and then get assigned to Triple-A at the outset of the 2019 season. Milwaukee's acquisition of Jonathan Schoop, who is under team control through the 2019 season, at this year's trade deadline will allow the Brewers to hold Hiura down next season until he forces their hand.

Votto (knee) is expected to be in the lineup Friday against Arizona, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Votto aggravated a knee injury during Monday's game and was withheld from the starting lineup Tuesday and Wednesday. He will receive additional rest during the club's scheduled off day Thursday before likely returning to the fold for Friday's series opener. Brandon Dixon is set to make another start at first base in Votto's place Wednesday.