MLB Player News

Harper, who is out of Wednesday's lineup against the Phillies and was pulled in the bottom of the ninth inning of Tuesday's game, has been battling a cold recently, Dan Kolko of MASN Sports reports.

This doesn't sound like a serious illness, and he may have just been replaced in Tuesday's game with the Nationals protecting a 5-3 lead and Michael Taylor offering a defensive upgrade with the assumption the team wouldn't bat again. Unless there is another issue that has not been reported, it would be surprising if Harper wasn't back in the lineup at home against the Brewers on Friday. The Nationals have an off day Thursday.

Harper is not in the lineup against Philadelphia on Wednesday, Jorge Castillo of The Washington Post reports.

Harper will take a seat after going 0-for-3 with a walk, three strikeouts and one run scored during Tuesday's victory. This appears to be a standard day off for the outfielder, though he did deal with a minor illness this past weekend. In his absence, Michael Taylor will start in center field. Expect Harper back in the lineup for Friday's series opener versus the Brewers.

Carpenter went 2-for-5 with a run in a win over the Pirates on Tuesday.

Carpenter had allowed NL pitchers a brief respite during a recent slump, but no more Mr. Nice Guy -- he's 7-for-13 with four doubles, two RBI and three runs over his last three games. The veteran infielder is having a "down month" in batting average (.260) compared to his incandescent July (.333), but he's offset the downturn with a .383 on-base percentage, .583 slugging percentage, eight home runs and 14 RBI.

Pederson (knee) is back in the lineup Tuesday against the Rangers.

Pederson had been out of the lineup for three straight games after a foul ball struck his knee Friday, though he did appear off the bench twice. He'll be a full participant Tuesday, leading off and playing left field.

Meneses was named the International League's Most Valuable Player on Tuesday, Tom Housenick of The Morning Call reports.

Meneses is the second straight Phillies' minor leaguer to win the award, following in the footsteps of Rhys Hoskins last season. He's hit .314/.364/.519 with 22 homers through Monday's games in order to earn the honor. Like Hoskins, Meneses is a right-handed first baseman who has dabbled in the outfield, but Hoskins had a long track record of minor-league success and did his damage at age 24, while Meneses finally had his breakout season as a 26-year-old. Meneses isn't on the Phillies' 40-man roster, so a September callup appears unlikely. He doesn't have a clear path to playing time in Philadelphia next season, either, but he seems to have done enough to earn a look in spring training, possibly with a different organization that has no clear answer at first base.

Belt is not in the lineup Monday against the Diamondbacks, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Belt will give way to Austin Slater at first base with a lefty in Patrick Corbin toeing the rubber for the opposition. The 30-year-old is hitting just .190/.227/.214 in 11 games since returning from the disabled list earlier in the month.

The Cardinals anticipate that Ozuna (shoulder) will be able to return from the 10-day disabled list when first eligible Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Ozuna's activity has been limited the last few days while he waits for a cortisone shot to take effect, but the fact that he traveled with the team to Colorado over the weekend suggests only a short-term absence should be in play for the outfielder. Once he's reinstated from the DL, Ozuna should slot back into an everyday role for the Cardinals, forcing Tyler O'Neill and Jose Martinez to fight for at-bats at the other corner-outfield spot.

Harper (illness) entered Sunday's game as a pinch hitter for Michael Taylor in the eighth inning and stayed in to play center field, going 2-for-2 with a double, two runs scored and three RBI.

It looks like Harper is over the bug that caused him to go 0-for-11 in his previous three games. Prior to the illness, he'd been slashing a stellar .385/.442/.679 through 20 games in August, so expect the slugger to get right back on track now that he's 100 percent again.

Turner went 3-for-5 two doubles, five RBI and two runs scored Sunday against the Padres.

Turner capped off a strong weekend series against the Padres by recording his second five-RBI performance in the past week. In the three games, he went 7-for-15 with a home run, nine RBI and three runs scored. That's a microcosm of his performance in August, as he is hitting .409 with a slugging percentage north of .700 across 84 at-bats.

Reyes went 1-for-2 with a solo home run Sunday against the Dodgers.

Reyes took Hyun-jin Ryu deep in the second inning to record his 11th homer of the season and second in as many days. He's flashed his power upside throughout August, posting a .283 ISO for the month entering Sunday's contest. Despite the strong stretch, Reyes remains behind Travis Jankowski on the depth chart, leaving him on the short side of a platoon.