MLB Player News

Smith is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Phillies.

Platoon mate Randal Grichuk will replace Smith as the Diamondbacks' designated hitter while the Phillies send southpaw Ranger Suarez to the bump. Smith has logged just eight plate appearances against lefties all season.

McCutchen is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Padres.

McCutchen will receive a breather after serving as Pittsburgh's designated hitter for 12 straight games, slashing .298/.377/.511 during that stretch. The Pirates will give Joey Bart a day off from catching and deploy him as the DH in place of McCutchen.

Sheets is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

The left-handed-hitting Sheets will remain on the bench for the second day in a row while the Pirates send another lefty (Andrew Heaney) to the bump. Luis Campusano will replace Sheets as the Padres' designated hitter.

Steer went 2-for-5 with a double, two RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 11-6 loss to Washington.

He struggled at the beginning of the season while able to serve only as a designated hitter due to a shoulder issue, but since Steer has been cleared for defensive duties, his bat has come alive. Prior to April 20, Steer had a .390 OPS with three RBI over 15 games. Since then, he has an .851 OPS with eight RBI over 12 games.

Ohtani went 3-for-4 with a solo home run, two additional runs and a walk in a 10-3 win against Atlanta on Saturday.

Ohtani broke a 1-1 tie with a 415-foot solo homer to center field in the third inning. He reached base three other times in the rout and pushed his league-leading runs-scored total to 35. Ohtani's role as Los Angeles' leadoff hitter has been a factor in his accumulation of just 11 RBI so far this season, but the two-way star has otherwise been excellent with a .293/.396/.569 slash line while maintaining a 40-40 pace with eight homers and nine stolen bases through 31 games.

Bell isn't starting Saturday against the Reds due to a groin issue, but he could be available to pinch hit, Spencer Nusbaum of The Washington Post reports.

It doesn't sound like the Nationals are very concerned about Bell's injury, as Nusbaum notes that the team is "being careful" due to wet weather conditions. The veteran slugger's potential availability to pinch hit also suggests he isn't dealing with a serious issue. With Bell out of his customary DH role Saturday, James Wood is getting a day out of the field as the designated hitter while Alex Call is getting a start in left field.

Sheets isn't in the Padres' lineup for Saturday's matchup versus Pittsburgh.

The lefty-hitting Sheets will begin Saturday's game on the bench with Pittsburgh sending southpaw Bailey Falter to the mound. Sheets has just 10 at-bats against left-handed pitchers this season, going 2-for-10 with a double, an RBI, a walk and four strikeouts. With Sheets out of the lineup, Luis Campusano -- who was called up from Triple-A earlier in the day -- is getting a turn at DH.

Sheets went 3-for-5 with a home run and an additional RBI in Friday's 9-4 victory versus Pittsburgh.

Sheets put the Padres on the board in the fourth inning with a solo shot to right-center field and added a run-scoring single in the fifth. The three-hit effort came on the heels of a seven-game slump during which the veteran infielder/outfielder went 1-for-23 with three strikeouts. Sheets has collected hits in bunches this season -- he has more multi-hit performances (nine) than contests with one hit (five). Overall, he's slashing .281/.343/.461 with four home runs, 14 RBI, 11 runs and one stolen base over 99 plate appearances this season.

Stephenson started at designated hitter and went 2-for-3 with a walk, two doubles, two RBI and two runs scored in Friday's 6-1 win over the Nationals.

Stephenson was activated off the 10-day injured list and made his season debut after rehabbing an oblique injury. He caught several innings while on a rehab assignment, and having him DH was likely a way to slowly integrate Stephenson back into action. He was often used as a DH in past seasons to get his bat in the lineup as much as possible.

Smith is not in the lineup for Friday's game in Philadelphia.

It's southpaw Jesus Luzardo on the hill for the Phillies, so the left-handed-hitting Smith will begin the festivities on the bench. Randal Grichuk is in the designated hitter spot and batting third in the series opener.