MLB Player News
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Joseph Ortiz 2B | MIL
Brewers' Joey Ortiz: Playing time on upswing
Ortiz will start at third base and bat seventh in Sunday's game against the Orioles.
Ortiz will pick up his third start in four games at third base, with the lefty-hitting Oliver Dunn having drawn just one start during that span. Notably, the Brewers have faced four right-handed pitchers over that stretch, so the righty-hitting Ortiz could be moving into a full-time role after he initially looked to be a short-side platoon player for Milwaukee. Ortiz is slashing .333/.438/.444 through his first 32 plate appearances with the Brewers this season.
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Oliver Dunn 2B | CHW
Brewers' Oliver Dunn: Losing work to Ortiz
Dunn is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Orioles.
Dunn is on the bench for the third time in four games, with all of his absences coming against right-handed pitching. The rookie looked to have gained traction as the Brewers' everyday third baseman after getting on base at a .400 clip through his first seven big-league games, but he's starting to lose playing time to Joey Ortiz after going 2-for-13 with six strikeouts over his past three contests.
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Andruw Monasterio 3B | BOS
Brewers' Andruw Monasterio: Sent to minors
The Brewers optioned Monasterio to Triple-A Nashville on Sunday.
The 26-year-old has just nine plate appearances through the first couple weeks of the season, so he'll head to Triple-A with Milwaukee in need of outfield depth while Christian Yelich (back) is banged up. Monasterio will be a top candidate to rejoin the Brewers when infield depth is needed.
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Oswaldo Cabrera LF | NYY
Yankees' Oswaldo Cabrera: Knocks key homer Saturday
Cabrera went 2-for-8 with a home run, a double, a walk and three total RBI in Saturday's doubleheader sweep of the Guardians.
Cabrera had the Yankees' biggest hit in Game 1 of the twin bill, swatting a two-run homer in the sixth inning that proved key in a narrow 3-2 victory. The third baseman added a run-scoring double in the nightcap to round out a productive day. Cabrera has reached base safely via hit or walk in all but one of his 11 contests so far this season and is slashing .317/.378/.585 with three homers, 11 RBI and eight runs through 45 plate appearances.
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Rafael Devers 3B | SF
Red Sox's Rafael Devers: Sitting again Sunday
Devers (shoulder) is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
The 27-year-old's absence from the starting nine will extend to four games Sunday as he continues to nurse a sore left shoulder. According to Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic, Devers is going through pregame work Sunday, and manager Alex Cora expects the third baseman to be back in the lineup Monday versus Cleveland. Bobby Dalbec will receive another start at the hot corner with Devers still sidelined.
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Matt Chapman 3B | SF
Giants' Matt Chapman: Homers, scores thrice in win
Chapman went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a walk and three runs scored in Saturday's win over the Rays.
Chapman first came around to score in the top of the sixth inning after drawing a walk -- one of three walks allowed in succession by Chris Devenski. The third baseman scored again on a Thairo Estrada home run in the next frame before launching a solo shot of his own in the ninth with the game already well in hand. Chapman is still batting just .186 in April following Saturday's two-hit performance, though he has now registered multiple hits in two of his last three contests.
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Tyler Wade SS | TEX
Padres' Tyler Wade: Registers third steal
Wade went 1-for-3 with a walk, an RBI and a stolen base Saturday in a loss to the Dodgers.
Wade knocked in a run with a seventh-inning single and proceeded to steal second base but was stranded there. The theft was his third of the campaign, second-most on the Padres behind Ha-Seong Kim. Wade has 82nd-percentile sprint speed and has swiped as many as 17 bags in an MLB season (in 2021 with the Yankees), so he could be a sneaky source of steals while he's playing regularly. However, he'll almost certainly lose playing time once Manny Machado -- who so far has been limited to DH duties while recovering from offseason elbow surgery -- returns to playing the field.
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Jeimer Candelario 3B | LAA
Reds' Jeimer Candelario: Returns to action
Candelario went 1-for-4 with a double and run scored in Saturday's 5-0 win over the White Sox.
Candelario returned to action after being held out of Friday's game and was back in the leadoff spot despite a season-opening slump. He entered the game on a 1-for-16 run and without a hit in 10 straight at-bats.
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Jon Berti 3B | CHC
Yankees' Jon Berti: Headed to injured list
The Yankees placed Berti on the 10-day injured list Saturday with an adductor injury, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.
Berti is slashing .211/.250/.211 across 21 plate appearances to start the season, and he will now be unavailable for at least the next 10 days. Kevin Smith was selected from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a corresponding move in order to make up for lost depth in the Yankees' infield.