MLB Player News

Marlins second baseman Donovan Solano remained out of the lineup for Sunday's game at Philadelphia due to lingering tightness in his left side. Solano was also sidelined Saturday with the issue, and was replaced at second base by Chris Valaika.

It seems Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard should draw more walks since the recent correlation has related in more home runs for the veteran slugger.

In case you haven't noticed, but Howard has drawn a walk in just two of his last 19 games. However, in both those games -- Thursday and Friday against the Marlins -- Howard hit home runs.

Whether or not that's pure coincidence or Howard being a more patient hitter will result in more home runs, you can't really argue with his results lately. After batting .161 through his first eight games, Howard has a slash line of .329/.354/.605/.959 in his last 21 games.

The high strikeout rate is going to hurt in Head-to-Head formats, but if he keeps this pace up, then it's possible Howard could threaten for a 30-homer, 100-RBI season. I definitely was getting impatient when Howard got off to a sluggish start, but now my concerns have died down and I think they have for most Fantasy owners as well.

Marlins second baseman Donovan Solano was scratched from the lineup for Saturday's contest against the Phillies due to tightness in his left side.

Solano is hitting .278 with one home run and five RBI in 108 at-bats. He was replaced by Chris Valaika at second.

Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera snapped a 10-game hitting streak Friday, going 0 for 4 and leaving six men on base in his team's 7-6 win over the Twins. Even with the streak, Cabrera has just a .217 batting average on the year.

Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard hit a double and a home run as part of a 2-for-3 night that also featured a walk. It was Howard's second home run in as many days, giving him five on the season.

Howard's .288 bating average represents a high mark for the season. He'll try and keep his power binge going as the series against the Marlins continues into the weekend.

Marlins second baseman Donovan Solano hit his first home run of the season Friday, representing his team's only scoring in his team's 4-1 loss to the Phillies. He also added a single to raise his season line to .278/.333/.324 in 118 plate appearances.

Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo extended his hitting streak to four games during a 6-5 loss to Cincinnati Friday. Rizzo finished 3 for 4 with a double and a run scored as he collected three hits for the second time during his four-game hot stretch to lift his batting average to .243 on the season.

Indians catcher Carlos Santana is hitting .395 with a .483 on-base percentage and a .711 slugging percentage. All three lead the American League.

Santana has walked in 14.6 percent of plate appearances and already has 14 extra-base hits. He has shown flashes of this talent throughout his first three seasons, and if April is any indication, 2013 could be a breakout year if he can avoid injuries. 

Joey Votto tied for the NL lead in walks last year, with 94. The Reds first baseman also finished second in the league in doubles, with 44. He did this while missing 51 games.

This year, Votto ranks eighth in Points among first basemen. He is again tied for the league lead in walks, while hitting .292. He's a bit off in his doubles (three) and home run (four) pace, which can be looked at two ways: either, at 29 years old, Votto has suddenly lost the power part of his game (highly unlikely), or Votto is due for a power explosion very soon, to bring his numbers up to the levels we've expected from him. From 2009-2011, Votto averaged 30 home runs and 38 doubles a year, while hitting .318. This slow start can be attributed to him shaking off rust and getting his timing back (in his last 12 games, Votto is hitting .321 with three home runs and two doubles).  

If someone in your Points league is treating Votto like a top 10 first baseman instead of a top three first baseman, it may be time to poke around and see what it would take to pry him loose. 

Astros outfielder Chris Carter homered for the sixth time in Tuesday's loss to the Yankees.

Carter has lived up to his billing as a one-dimensional power hitter so far. He's slugging a robust .454 but has just a .227 batting average and .303 on-base percentage. He struck out two more times Tuesday night and has now whiffed in a league-leading 46 of his 97 at-bats.