MLB Player News

Kurtz went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run and a walk in Friday's loss to the Marlins.

Kurtz launched his 20th homer of the season with a two-run shot to center in the bottom of the third inning. The star first baseman snapped a nine-game homer drought with this long ball, but he still sits tied for sixth on the AL home-run leaderboard while tying Shea Langeliers (thumb) for the team lead. Kurtz is batting .269 with an excellent .966 OPS across 29 games since the beginning of June.

Garcia went 2-for-4 with a walk, two home runs and three RBI in Friday's 9-5 win over the Pirates.

The Nationals launched five homers in total on the night, with Garcia and Daylen Lile both going yard twice. Garcia's blasts came in the first inning off Mitch Keller and the seventh off Isaac Mattson, and the 26-year-old infielder has slugged a stunning nine home runs in last last 13 games, a surge that has seen him produce a .415/.478/1.148 slash line with 12 runs and 17 RBI. Garcia's 18 homers on the season in just 82 games have already tied his career high, and his 62 RBI tie him for third in the majors behind only the Athletics' Nick Kurtz (66) and the Cardinals' Jordan Walker (63).

Vargas went 3-for-5 with one RBI in Friday's 7-4 extra-innings loss to the Brewers.

Vargas started at first base against left-hander Kyle Harrison and delivered a good game. While Vargas remains a regular in the lineup versus southpaws, his playing time versus right-handers has been limited lately. He hit just .100 over 23 games in June to lose out on a starting role and will likely be limited to utility duties as long as Arizona's infield is mostly healthy. Vargas is hitting .263 with a .709 OPS, seven home runs, 45 RBI, 38 runs scored and a stolen base over 273 plate appearances this season.

Bauers went 3-for-6 with a double, one RBI and one run scored in Friday's 7-4 extra-innings win over the Diamondbacks.

Bauers has a pair of three-hit efforts over his last four games. The first baseman is hitting .265 (13-for-49) over his last 15 contests, but he's also struck out 21 times in that span, as he's started to swing and miss more frequently. Overall, he's hitting .269 with an .864 OPS, 15 home runs, 52 RBI, 50 runs scored, 13 doubles, one triple and five stolen bases across 77 contests as a regular in the lineup for much of the campaign.

Olson went 2-for-3 with two solo home runs and a walk in Friday's 5-3 win over the Mets.

Olson snapped a 16-game power drought with solo shots in the fifth and eighth innings. It marked the second multi-homer game of the campaign for the veteran slugger, who had doubled in three of his past six games entering Friday. For the year, he's slashing .273/.345/.538 with 22 home runs, 54 RBI, 57 runs scored and two steals across 374 plate appearances.

Walker (back) is batting fourth and playing first base Friday against the Rays.

Walker was removed from Wednesday's game against the Twins with lower-back stiffness, but Thursday's off day provided enough rest for the slugger. Walker is slashing .239/.310/.469 with 19 homers, 56 RBI, 45 runs scored and a 30:81 BB:K across 361 plate appearances this season. However, after a hot start to the campaign, Walker is batting .210 with a .702 OPS and 93 wRC+ since the beginning of May.

Contreras will appeal the seven-game suspension he received Thursday, allowing him to keep playing until the appeal process is completed, Evan Drellich of The Athletic reports.

MLB issued bans for Contreras and teammate Nate Eaton (three games) along with Washington pitchers Cade Cavalli (seven games) and Miles Mikolas (five games) for their roles in a benches-clearing incident that occurred Tuesday. Contreras' suspension was set to begin Friday, but he'll remain active for the Red Sox's series opener against the Angels while he waits for appeal process to play out.

Contreras received a seven-game suspension Thursday for his actions during and following Tuesday's benches-clearing incident against the Nationals, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.

The benches-clearing incident Tuesday was sparked after Cade Cavalli struck out Contreras, which led to Contreras being ejected. Along with the first baseman, Nate Eaton was also suspended for three games. On the Nationals' side, Cavalli received a seven-game suspension and Miles Mikolas a five-game ban. Unless Contreras appeals the suspension, he won't be able to play until July 11.

Manager Will Venable said Monday that Murakami (hamstring) traveled with the team for its road trip and is considered day-to-day, but the White Sox haven't yet established a timeline for the first baseman to begin a rehab assignment, MLB.com reports.

Per Chuck Garfien of Chicago Sports Network, Venable said last Friday that Murakami was sprinting at about "85 percent," and the 26-year-old rookie has presumably increased the intensity of his running in the week since then. Assuming Murakami does in fact require a rehab assignment prior to being activated, he likely won't be available for the White Sox until at least next week. Jacob Gonzalez has been filling in as Chicago's primary first baseman since Murakami was placed on the 10-day injured list May 30 after straining his right hamstring.

Atlanta designated Tellez for assignment Thursday.

Tellez was with the big club for three weeks but received only one start and 11 plate appearances, going 2-for-10 with a home run. He's likely to pass through waivers and would have the ability to elect free agency at that point.