MLB Player News

Sheets went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 4-1 loss to the Mariners.

Sheets has hit well in May, going 16-for-47 (.340) over 13 contests this month. He opened the scoring Saturday with a solo shot off Emerson Hancock in the fourth inning. Sheets is up to six homers, 23 RBI, 17 runs scored, one stolen base and a .290/.343/.481 slash line over 41 games. He continues to share designated hitter and first base with Luis Arraez, with most of Sheets' off days coming versus left-handed pitchers.

Ozuna went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional run and two walks in Saturday's loss to the Red Sox.

Ozuna entered Saturday having gone hitless over his past two games, but he snapped that stretch with a 417-foot solo homer in the first frame. The veteran DH added two walks and has now drawn an MLB-high 39 free passes this season. Ozuna's batting average is down a bit at .260 so far this season, but his OBP sits at .415 -- which is on pace for the second-highest mark of his career.

Ohtani (elbow) threw an up-down bullpen session Saturday that totaled 50 pitches, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

Ohtani split his work evenly between two simulated innings, with this session marking the most pitches he's thrown as he continues to work his way back from Tommy John surgery. The right-hander hasn't yet progressed to throwing breaking pitches, but he could begin to face hitters soon. Offensively, the two-way star continues to provide one of the most productive bats in the sport with a .305/.404/.667 slash line, 16 homers and 10 steals through 44 games.

Flores went 3-for-5 with three home runs and eight RBI in Friday's 9-1 win over the Athletics.

Flores set career highs with three homers and eight RBI in a single game. He took three different pitchers deep, including a grand slam off Athletics starter JP Sears in the third inning to open the scoring. With the monster game, Flores is back in a tie with Aaron Judge for first in the majors with 41 RBI. He's added 10 homers, 23 runs scored, a stolen base and two doubles while slashing .266/.318/.468 over 44 contests. Flores has carved out a near-everyday role between first base and designated hitter, though he'll occasionally sit against a right-handed pitcher.

Ohtani went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Friday's 6-2 loss to the Angels.

Ohtani has four homers and eight RBI over his last three games. That power surge, part of a larger binge of nine long balls and 19 RBI across 14 games in May, has helped him take over the major-league lead in homers at 16. He's added a .316 batting average, 1.106 OPS, 29 RBI, 49 runs scored and 10 stolen bases over 43 contests. Simply put, Ohtani continues to make the remarkable look routine.

Bell is not in the Nationals' starting lineup against the Orioles on Friday.

Bell will take a break Friday after going 5-for-18 with a 30 percent strikeout rate over his last five games. James Wood will serve as the Nationals' designated hitter and bat third against Orioles southpaw Cade Povich.

Ohtani went 2-for-5 with two home runs and six RBI in Thursday's 19-2 win over the Athletics.

This was Ohtani's first multi-homer game of the season. He contributed a sacrifice fly in the second inning, a three-run homer in the third and a two-run blast in the fourth to make a sizable impact in this rout. Ohtani joins Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber atop the major-league leaderboard with 15 homers this season, though the Dodgers' two-way superstar has hit eight of those long balls over his last 13 games. For the season, he's added a .310/.409/.673 slash line, 28 RBI, 48 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, eight doubles and four triples across 42 contests.

Ohtani went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, an additional run and a walk Wednesday against the Athletics in a 9-3 victory.

Ohtani jumped on Athletics starter Gunnar Hoglund's third pitch for a 403-foot blast in the first inning. The two-way star's bat has been so hot that the A's elected to intentionally walk him ahead of Mookie Betts with a runner on second in the eighth inning, though the strategy backfired when Betts doubled and Los Angeles went on to score five runs in the frame. Ohtani has been on a tear over his past 11 games, slashing .386/.491/.932 with six homers, four doubles, a triple, 12 RBI, 14 runs and a stolen base.

Burleson went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and two additional RBI in a 14-7 win over the Phillies in the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader.

Burleson sat for the first game, though he went 0-for-1 off the bench after avoiding left-handed starter Jesus Luzardo. The 26-year-old Burleson then made a big impact in the second game, which saw him deliver a go-ahead homer in the third inning and a two-run single in the fourth. Over 11 contests in May, he's gone 10-for-32 (.313) with three homers and nine RBI. Burleson struggled to tap into his power in April, but he's starting to come around now. He's batting .274 with a .705 OPS, three long balls, 15 RBI, 11 runs scored and three stolen bases over 125 plate appearances overall.

McCutchen isn't in the lineup for Tuesday's game versus the Mets.

McCutchen will start Tuesday's contest on the bench after going 1-for-3 with a walk during Monday's series opener. His absence will put Joey Bart into the DH spot while Henry Davis catches and bats ninth.