MLB Player News

Joseph is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cubs, Kevin Cooney of Calkins Media reports.

Joseph will cede the starting first base spot to Ryan Howard, who will bat fifth. Joseph has begun to take over at first base lately due to Howard's struggles at the plate. Manager Pete Mackanin likely moved Howard into the lineup to give Joseph a day off, and to pack the lineup with left-handed hitters against righty starter Kyle Hendricks.

Manager Pete Mackanin said he is nearing a long-term decision regarding playing time at first base for Joseph and Ryan Howard, Corey Seidman of CSN Philadelphia reports.

Mackanin will likely name Joseph his starter at first base. He went 2-for-4 with a solo homer Monday and is now hitting .311 with five home runs since his promotion from the minors last month.

Howard will be back in the lineup Tuesday, according to manager Pete Mackanin, Meghan Montemurro of The News Journal reports.

This will be Howard's first start since May 31, as the Phillies gave Tommy Joseph a chance to prove himself at first base. Mackanin has stated that he will make a decision about how to move forward soon, but with Joseph recording multi-hit games in three of his five starts, it isn't looking good for Howard.

Santana went 2-for-4 with two RBI including a solo shot, his 10th home run of the season, in Sunday's win over the Royals.

For the third straight season Santana has been a liability in batting average, hitting just .223 so far in 2016, but he's walking more than he's striking out for the first time since his rookie season and he remains a solid power threat. If he can stay on his current pace, Santana has a chance at his first 30 HR season.

Abreu went 1-for-4 with a solo shot, his seventh home run of the season, in Sunday's loss to the Tigers.

It's his first homer since May 17, but Abreu has at least started to string together some hits, going 14-for-45 (.311) over his last 11 games. He still has only three RBI and four runs scored over that stretch, however, as he's far from the only White Sox hitter having trouble producing useful fantasy numbers lately.

Cron is out of the lineup Sunday against the Pirates.

The Angels ended up going with Albert Pujols at first base for all three games of their series in Pittsburgh, but Cron should be back in lineup Monday against the Yankees, when manager Mike Scioscia will be able to deploy Pujols at his usual DH spot.

Rizzo is out of the lineup Sunday against the Diamondbacks.

The opposing Diamondbacks are sending southpaw Patrick Corbin to the hill, so the timing was right for Rizzo to get just his second day off of the season, as he's hitting just .186 against lefties on the year. Kris Bryant will take over for Rizzo at first base, while Javier Baez gets the nod at the hot corner.

Howard will get a start during the Phillies' series against the Cubs this week, Evan Webeck of MLB.com reports.

Tommy Joseph will make his fifth straight start at first base Sunday, and then will be in the lineup Monday against Jon Lester. Howard will likely start Tuesday. If Joseph keeps hitting, Howard's opportunities will be limited the rest of the season.

Votto went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer, two runs scored and a walk in Saturday's 6-3 victory over the Nationals.

The veteran first baseman continued his recent resurgence, one that has seen him lift his average 20 points since May 22. Part of that improvement has been in the power department, as Votto now has four homers over his last nine games. He's also currently riding a six-game hitting streak, and is already slashing .357/.500/.714 over his first 14 at-bats in June.

Calhoun went 2-for-4 with a solo homer, two RBI and two runs scored in Saturday's 8-7 loss to the Pirates.

The 28-year-old posted his fourth multi-hit effort in his last six games, and blasted his third homer in the last five contests in the process. Calhoun has ramped up his impactful contact over the last three weeks, during which four of his six round-trippers on the season have transpired. A stellar May in which he slashed .324/.407/.438-- along with his 4-for-11 start to June-- has Calhoun's season line up to .302/.384/.455.