MLB Player News

Cron went 2-for-4 with an RBI single in a 4-2 win over the Rangers on Wednesday.

Cron's timely sixth-inning single to center plated Daniel Robertson and snapped a 1-1 tie. The 28-year-old now has an eight-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in 10 straight games, bumping his season average from .167 to .270 in the process.

Freeman exited Wednesday's game against the Phillies after being hit by a pitch on his left hand, Matt Gelb of The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

Freeman suffered the injury in the eighth inning and headed straight to the clubhouse without the athletic trainer coming out to see him. He'll likely undergo further examinations before the Braves update his status. It should be noted that Freeman missed 44 games last season after being hit by a pitch in the same area and fracturing his wrist.

Olson went 4-for-6 with three RBI and a run scored in Wednesday's 14-inning win over the White Sox.

Olson reached base six times in this one, as he also added a pair of walks to go along with the four singles. Strikeouts remain a bit of an issue, as he whiffed twice more Wednesday to give him 32 in just 73 at-bats on the year. After mashing 24 home runs in his 59-game stint in the majors last season, Olson has only left the yard three times in 2018, but the four-hit game provided a much-needed boost to his batting average.

Abreu went 3-for-6 with two RBI and two runs in Wednesday's loss to the Athletics.

Abreu legged out his third double of the year, part of his 2-for-3 showing with runners in scoring position in this one. The 31-year-old is languishing in the middle of a White Sox lineup that won't always put up many runs, but he's both driven in and scored nine already this season to go along with a .274 average.

Bell went 2-for-5 with a double, a run scored and three RBI in Wednesday's 10-2 win over the Rockies.

The young switch hitter continues to produce from the heart of the Pirates' order despite not yet finding his power stroke, and Bell now sports a .278/.338/.389 slash line with only one homer but 11 runs and 13 RBI in 18 games. Expect him to start putting more balls over the fence as the weather warms up.

Santana is out of the lineup for the first time Wednesday against the Braves.

Santana was the last remaining Phillie to have started every game. His batting line through 73 plate appearances has been objectively terrible, as he's hit .136/.260/.288. He's been hitting the ball hard, though, but the ball is going directly to fielders, as evidenced by his .125 BABIP. If he keeps performing the same way, his numbers are bound to improve. Rhys Hoskins will receive a rare start in his natural position of first base in Santana's absence.

Hoskins has the lowest groundball rate among qualified hitters, The Athletic Philadelphia reports.

Hoskins' 20.0 percent groundball rate is the lowest in baseball. Avoiding grounders is generally a good thing, though an extreme approach could cause some issues. A flyball-heavy approach can cause a low BABIP, as it's harder for a flyball to find a hole than it is for a grounder. That certainly hasn't happened for Hoskins so far this year, as he's ridden a .424 BABIP to a .327/.485/.592 line through his first 66 plate appearances. Expect that line to fall as more of his flyballs find outfielders' gloves, but as long as he's walking nearly as much as he's striking out (14:15 BB:K so far this year) and as long as enough of those flies are hit hard enough to leave the park, he should continue being a very productive hitter.

Rizzo (back) was activated from the 10-day disabled list Tuesday, Carrie Muskat of MLB.com reports.

As expected, Rizzo will return to the lineup Tuesday, taking his normal spot at first base and in the three hole of the batting order. To make room for him on the active roster, Efren Navarro was sent to Triple-A.

Blandino is not in the lineup Tuesday against the Brewers, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic Cincinnati reports.

Blandino started all four games in the weekend series with St. Louis, though he could only muster one hit in that span. This marks the second consecutive game in which he won't start, allowing Cliff Pennington to log another start at the hot corner.

Olson went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in an 8-1 win over the White Sox on Monday.

His 407-foot shot to right center in the fourth opened the scoring on the night and also marked the only time Olson put the ball in play. The young slugger struck out in his other three at-bats, continuing a troubling trend that's been an overriding theme in the early going. Factoring in Monday's trio of whiffs, Olson is sporting a mammoth 39.1 percent strikeout rate over his first 69 plate appearances. While that figure will undoubtedly get whittled down over time, he generated a 27.8 percent figure over 216 plate appearances in his rookie 2017 campaign. His bat-to-ball is still very much a work in progress.