MLB Player News

Reds first baseman Joey Votto homered and scored two runs as part of a 3 for 5 day Sunday against the Marlins.

The home run marked the first time Votto has homered in back-to-back games since September 2011. He now has three on the season and is hitting .328/.522/.516 and trails just teammate Shin-Soo Choo on the NL on-base percentage leaderboard.

Cubs manager Dale Sveum suggested the club's defensive struggles could result in a demotion for multiple players, including young first baseman Anthony Rizzo, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Rizzo made one of the Cubs' three errors in the field Saturday against Milwaukee. He is considered the Cubs' first baseman of the future, and some figured he would be up for good this season even with some early struggles. Sveum disagrees.

"I don’t think anything is invincible if you’re not performing," Sveum said. "That’s still the one main ingredient that has to happen to win baseball games. It’s not about what we think can happen three or four years from now."

Still, it's difficult to imagine the Cubs pulling the trigger on such a move. Rizzo hit .285 with 15 home runs in his first 87 games with the Cubs last season and has five home runs despite a .190 average early on this season. Most likely, Sveum is using the club's early struggles as a motivational tactic, but continued issues, either defensively and offensively, would be unadvisable for Rizzo.

Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera is out of the lineup Sunday against Houston, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports. 

Cabrera fell on his left wrist in the dugout before Saturday's game against Houston and was removed from the game for precautionary reasons after two at-bats. The official diagnosis is a "mild left wrist contusion" and he isn't expected to be out for long.

Barring any setbacks in the final game of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett Sunday, Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman (oblique) is expected to rejoin the team for Monday's series opener at Colorado, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. Freeman has played just five games this season and has been out since April 7 with a strained right oblique.

In his second outing with Gwinnett Saturday, Freeman went 5 for 5 with three singles and two doubles while also driving in two runs. He also played the entire game at first base and is scheduled do so again Sunday.

With Fernando Martinez coming off the disabled list and getting the start in left field Sunday against Cleveland, Astros outfielder Chris Carter got the game off. Carter is struggling at the dish and has gone just 1 for 19 (.053) over his last six contests. 

Carter, batting .219 overall on the year, has struck out 26 times in 17 games, though he does have four homers and nine RBI. 

Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera injured his left wrist when he slipped down the dugout steps before Saturday's game against the Astros, The Plain Dealer reports.

The 27-year-old was forced from the game in the first inning after two at-bats. X-rays came back negative, but Cabrera is not expected to play in Sunday's series finale.

Indians catcher Carlos Santana went 2 for 5 with a homer, two RBI and three runs scored Saturday night against the Astros. Santana also walked once in the 19-6 win.

The 27-year-old led off the third inning with his third homer, and in the fifth, he drove in Mike Aviles with a double.

Santana is 4 for 19 (.211) with three RBI in six games since returning from a wrist injury.

Indians shortstop Asdrubal Cabrera left Saturday's game against the Astros in the first inning with a left wrist contusion. He batted twice in Cleveland's eight-run first inning and went 1 for 2 with a run scored before being replaced by Mike Aviles.

The 27-year-old is considered day-to-day. Cabrera is batting .150 (9 for 60) through 15 games with two homers and three RBI.

Reds first baseman Joey Votto reached base five times and had his second home run of the season in a 3-2 win over Miami in 13 innings Saturday. He finished 4 for 6 with a walk -- the 14th time he has had four hits in a game, which represents a career high.

Votto, who went 11 games to start the season without a home run, has now had two over his past seven outings. His batting average is .305.

Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard, who is dealing with right groin tightness, is expected to return to the starting lineup Sunday, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Howard, who was held out of Saturday's game, was active during infield drills with his teammates and is expected to be available as a pinch-hitter.

"He's feeling better," manager Charlie Manuel said. "We decided to give him another day. He still has some stiffness and soreness. More than likely, he'll be ready to go [Sunday]."