MLB Player News

Harper went 3-for-5 with two home runs and four RBI in Sunday's 7-2 win over St. Louis.

The superstar took Cardinals starter Carlos Martinez deep in each of his first two at-bats, which is all Nationals ace Max Scherzer would need en route to a 12-strikeout victory -- his 10th of the year. The pair of bombs snapped an 11-game drought for Harper, who has now reached the 20-homer plateau for the fifth time in six seasons.

Ozuna finished 3-for-6 with two home runs and four RBI on Sunday in Milwaukee.

Ozuna launched a three-run shot off starter Junior Guerra in the third inning then led off the eighth with a 455-foot solo blast against reliever Paolo Espino. He's already just one shy of his two-time career high of 23 homers and is tied for ninth in the majors with 59 RBI.

McCutchen is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants, Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

McCutchen has punished opposing pitchers over the past several weeks, posting an absurd .505 on-base percentage in June, but he'll get the day off against Jeff Samardzija and the Giants. Gregory Polanco will take over in center field with Jose Osuna drawing the start in right.

Pederson is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Padres, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Pederson will take a seat for the second consecutive day as the team faces left-hander Dillon Overton on Saturday. Although the outfielder was on the bench Friday, he came in and went 1-for-1 with a single. In his place, Trayce Thompson gets another start in center, batting eighth.

Turner went 3-for-3 with a home run, two RBI and three runs scored in Friday's 10-4 win over San Diego.

A trip to the disabled list couldn't even cool off Turner's bat, as he is batting .415 (27-for-65) since returning June 9, maintaining his NL-best .390 batting average on the season. The veteran third baseman has contributed five homers over that span, supplying the power that was missing prior to his layoff.

Carpenter is not in the lineup Saturday against the Nationals, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports.

Carpenter will head to the bench with southpaw Gio Gonzalez pitching for the Nationals. It's possible Carpenter will continue to see some days off against lefties down the road in an attempt to get rookie Luke Voit more at-bats.

McCutchen (shin) is starting in center field and hitting third Saturday against the Giants.

He fouled a ball off his left shin in Friday's game, but the bruise was not serious enough to keep him out the following day. McCutchen hit .411/.505/.689 with six home runs and more walks (17) than strikeouts (12) in 90 June at-bats.

Carpenter could play some games at second base in the near future in order to open up playing time for rookie Luke Voit, Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com reports. "Just making sure we're covering all our bases if there's options," manager Mike Matheny said. "If we're faced with a tough lefty, that's something we're going to at least make sure we have covered.

Carpenter took grounders at second during infield work Friday, and he could see a handful of starts at the position until Kolten Wong (elbow) returns later in July. The 31-year-old has acquitted himself well at first base this season, but he was an All-Star second baseman in 2013 and also played 40 games at the keystone last season.

McCutchen expects to play Saturday after fouling a ball off his left shin, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports. "It hurts," McCutchen said with a smile after the game. "It's good, though - but it hurts."

McCutchen was also plunked in the back by an off-speed pitch Friday. The outfielder, who has reached base in eight straight plate appearances, finishes June with a .411 average, .509 on-base percentage, .689 slugging percentage and 1.198 OPS.

McCutchen suffered an ankle injury in Friday's game against San Francisco but doesn't expect to miss any time, Stephen J. Nesbitt of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

McCutchen still went 2-for-2 with a walk and a hit-by-pitch and managed a single even after suffering the injury. He says he'll play if he can walk, and he was walking just fine after Friday's game. Still, to be on the safe side, McCutchen should be considered day-to-day.