MLB Player News

Lux (back) isn't starting Friday against the Padres, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

Lux continues to recover from a cortisone shot that he received in his back Saturday and will be held out of the lineup for a seventh consecutive game. It's not yet clear when he'll ultimately be able to return, but Chris Taylor will start at the keystone and bat eighth Friday.

Gorman is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Pirates, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Gorman started four straight games at second base earlier this week but now finds himself on the bench for the second straight contest. Alec Burleson will bat seventh as the designated hitter Friday, with Brendan Donovan leading off at the keystone.

Stott went 3-for-4 with one double and one RBI in Thursday's 6-5 loss against the Marlins.

Stott tallied an RBI double off Sandy Alcantara to tie the game in the fourth inning. The shortstop has recorded three hits in two of his last three games, and he has a .429 average in 21 at-bats over his last six games. The 24-year-old rookie has been great all around in his last 16 games, recording a .931 OPS over 61 plate appearances.

Hoerner went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple and a run scored in Thursday's 4-3 loss to the Reds.

Hoerner helped get the Cubs on the board with a leadoff triple in the bottom of the fifth inning before scoring on a sacrifice fly. He also recorded a double in the bottom of the seventh, his 20th of the season. Hoerner had been in a bit of a funk recently, slashing just .181/.234/.264 in 20 games leading up to Thursday, but he has started to turn it around with five hits in his last three games.

Donovan went 3-for-3 with a double and two runs scored in Thursday's 11-6 loss to the Nationals.

Donovan did his job as the leadoff man Thursday, reaching base in all five of his plate appearances. The effort increased his OBP to .400 on the season, good for fourth in the majors among batters with at least 300 plate appearances. His two runs now bring his total to nine in his last 10 games, as he has thrived hitting in front of Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado recently.

Gorman isn't starting Thursday against the Nationals, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Gorman started the last four games and went 3-for-13 with a homer, a double, two RBI and seven strikeouts. He'll get a breather while Albert Pujols serves as the designated hitter and bats sixth.

McNeil went 3-for-5 with a walk, a double, a run scored, two RBI and a stolen base in a 10-0 win over the Pirates during the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader.

After picking up an RBI on a sacrifice fly in the matinee, McNeil was one of six different Mets to record multiple hits in the nightcap, chipping in his third steal of the year as well. Over his last 30 games, McNeil is slashing a blistering .361/.390/.500, but the hits haven't turned into a lot of production as he's compiled just one homer, one steal, 11 RBI and 13 runs over that stretch.

Villar went 2-for-3 with two home runs and three RBI in Wednesday's loss to the Dodgers.

Villar smacked a two-run homer off Clayton Kershaw to open the scoring in the fifth and later added a solo home run in the seventh off lefty reliever Justin Bruihl. The third baseman recently endured a rough seventeen-game stretch during which he slashed .075/.269/.100, but he's bounced back with three home runs in his last three games. The 25-year-old crushes lefties with a 1.187 OPS in 49 plate appearances compared to a .311 OPS in 47 plate appearances facing righties.

Marte will play two of the three games in Colorado this weekend, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports. The Diamondbacks begin a three-game set in Denver on Friday.

Marte has an injury history at Coors Field, including his latest hamstring issue in mid-August which prompted two days off and several games limited to designated hitter. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said at that time that Marte would likely get one day off the next time the team travels to Colorado.

Chavis isn't starting the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader against the Mets.

Chavis started at first base during Wednesday's matinee and went 2-for-4 with a double and a strikeout. He'll take a seat while Ben Gamel starts at first base and bats cleanup in the nightcap.