MLB Player News

Blackmon will hit out of the three-hole for Thursday's game against Cincinnati, The Denver Post's Patrick Saunders reports.

With Nolan Arenado getting the day off, Blackmon will move from the leadoff spot to third while Raimel Tapia heads to the top of the order. Blackmon has been hitting the ball extremely well all season, hitting .311/.365/.571 with 18 home runs and 59 RBI, so this move comes as a surprise. All that said, Blackmon will likely return to the leadoff spot for Friday's game against the White Sox.

Jimenez, 20, is hitting .279/.358/.510 with eight home runs and a 32:17 K:BB in 147 at-bats for High-A Myrtle Beach.

Jimenez's plus-plus raw power and potentially plus hit tool are well known in prospect circles, but what's most impressive about his current campaign is the improved approach. After walking 5.4 percent of the time at Low-A, he is now walking 10.4 percent of the time at High-A, while cutting his strikeout rate from 20.3 percent to 19 percent. Jimenez is an elite hitting prospect, and could see a promotion to Double-A shortly after his appearance in this year's Futures Game.

Stanton is not in the Marlins' lineup Thursday against the Cardinals, Joe Frisaro of MLB.com reports.

Fresh off launching a pair of home runs Wednesday, Stanton will take a seat for the matinee clash following a night game, and he should be back in the lineup Friday. Ichiro Suzuki gets the nod in right field and bats seventh.

Ozuna went 2-for-5 with a double, a home run and two RBI in Wednesday's 9-6 win over the Cardinals.

The 26-year-old is heating up again, hitting .321 (9-for-28) over his last six games with three homers and 10 RBI. Ozuna now has 23 home runs on the year, keeping pace with Giancarlo Stanton for the Marlins' team lead.

Stanton went 3-for-4 with a walk, two home runs and four RBI in Wedensday's 9-6 win over the Cardinals.

The blasts came on consecutive at-bats in the first and second innings, giving Stanton 23 homers on the year and his 22nd career multi-homer game. The 27-year-old looks more than ready to defend his Home Run Derby crown prior to next week's All-Star Game.

Turner went 2-for-4 with his eighth home run and a pair of RBI in Tuesday's win over the Diamondbacks.

Turner has now homered seven times in 21 games since returning from the disabled list on June 9 after hitting just one through his first 39 contests. Even with this recent power binge, the career-high mark of 27 round trippers he set last season seems out of reach. At least he's no longer an empty batting average, though.

Cespedes (hamstring) is in the lineup Wednesday against the Nationals, Marc Carig of Newsday reports.

The veteran outfielder had been dealing with a hamstring cramp, although he'll be able to resume his normal role in the lineup as expected. However, the game has been delayed due to inclement weather, so if the rain refuses to let up, he may get an extra day to rest the ailment despite his name being on Wednesday's lineup card. If the game is played, he'll bat third and play left field.

Torrens was a late addition to the lineup Wednesday against the Indians, Dennis Lin of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Austin Hedges was scratched due to neck stiffness, so Torrens will be thrown into emergency catching duty to replace him. Torrens will bat ninth as the Padres take on Cleveland right-hander Trevor Bauer.

Harper is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Mets, Chelsea Janes of The Washington Post reports.

The young superstar hasn't gotten a day off for over a month, so he'll head to the bench for Wednesday's series finale. Brian Goodwin will slide over to right field to replace him, while Adam Lind fills the void in left field.

Carpenter went 2-for-4 with a walk in Tuesday's 5-2 loss to the Marlins.

The slugging leadoff man has started July off in fine fashion at the plate by hitting in three straight. Carpenter is in the midst of a modest long-ball drought, however, as his last home run came June 24. The 31-year-old's current .235 average is also notably lower than any he's ever posted in the last five seasons, but a .255 BABIP and career-best 46 percent hard contact rate hint at an eventual breakout.