MLB Player News

Longoria entered as a pinch hitter, walked and scored a run in Saturday's 7-6 extra-innings win over the Cubs.

Longoria pinch hit for Alek Thomas in the bottom of the 13th inning and eventually made it to second base, from where he raced home on a Gabriel Moreno single to score the game-winning run. Longoria adjusted his slide at the last moment to avoid the catcher's tag. It was a rare highlight in the third baseman's recent performance. Longoria is 7-for-43 over 16 games since returning from a back injury in August, and Saturday's run is the only one he's scored during that stretch.

McMahon is not in the lineup for the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Giants.

McMahon was in the lineup and hit cleanup for the first game, but he wore the platinum sombrero and struck out in all five of his plate ppearances. Alan Trejo will take over at third base while hitting eighth in the second contest.

Monasterio will sit Saturday against the Nationals.

Monasterio has settled into an everyday role in the second half, with Saturday's off day being just his third since the break. His bat has been sub-par for an everyday corner infielder, however, as his .270/.344/.369 slash line is good for a modest 97 wRC+. Josh Donaldson will take over at the hot corner Saturday.

Baty (groin) remains on the bench Saturday against Cincinnati.

Baty is dealing with a groin strain, which is considered mild but is costing him key at-bats as he looks to make his case for a starting role next season. The battle for playing time at the hot corner in Queens seems wide open, with both Baty (.596 OPS in 97 games) and Mark Vientos (.588 OPS in 51 games) failing to stake their claim. Fellow rookie Ronny Mauricio (.743 OPS in 11 games) will start at third base Saturday.

Machado will be on the bench for Saturday's game against Oakland.

Machado finds himself on the bench for the third time in six games. That might be related to the elbow soreness that has limited him to designated hitter duty throughout September; with the Padres now 6.5 games out of the final NL Wild Card spot, they aren't incentivized to push Machado at all and risk further injury. Luis Campusano will be the designated hitter Saturday, with Brett Sullivan taking Campusano's usual spot behind the plate.

Davis will sit for the first half of Saturday's doubleheader against the Rockies, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Davis has swung a hot bat recently, homering three times in his last seven games while slashing .346/.433/.846. The veteran won't be asked to start twice in one day Saturday, but he'll likely return to the lineup for the nightcap and will be looking to tee off on lefty Kyle Freeland. In the afternoon game, Wilmer Flores starts at the hot corner.

Marte started at shortstop and went 3-for-4 with a run scored in Friday's 5-3 win over the Mets.

Marte delivered his second three-hit game in the last five starts. He slotted in at shortstop while Elly De La Cruz took a seat for the second time this week against a left-hander. As Reds manager David Bell guides the team during a playoff race, he has managed more tactically over the past week, such as playing lefty-righty matchups or sitting slumping players. One of those slumping is the switch-hitting De La Cruz, who is 1-for-23 against lefties going back to Aug. 23 and hitting .194 with a .526 OPS overall against southpaws. That slump is leading to more opportunities for Marte.

Baty (groin) isn't in the Mets' lineup Friday against the Reds, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Baty will miss his second consecutive start after being removed from Wednesday's game against the D-backs with left groin soreness. Ronny Mauricio will man third base Friday while Baty recovers.

The Pirates optioned Capra to Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday.

The return of Henry Davis (hand) from the injured list will push Capra off the active roster and back to the minors. Capra has played in just nine games this season for Pittsburgh, going 3-for-18 with an RBI and three runs scored.

Arauz hit a three-run home run in his only plate appearance during Thursday's 11-1 rout of Arizona.

Pinch-hitting for Francisco Lindor in the eighth inning with the Mets already ahead by seven runs, Arauz put an exclamation point on the victory when Scott McGough left a splitter up in the zone and watched it sail over the wall in right-center field. It's only Arauz's eighth hit in 58 at-bats for the Mets in 2023, but three of them have left the yard as the 25-year-old infielder continues to display a developing power stroke after he socked 14 homers in 95 games for Triple-A Syracuse this season.