MLB Player News

Brantley isn't starting Monday's game against the Angels, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Brantley picked up a pair of hits and an RBI in Sunday's matchup with the Rangers, but he'll take a seat for Monday's series opener. Tony Kemp will man left field and hit eighth in Brantley's stead.

Dickerson isn't starting Game 2 of Monday's doubleheader against the Rockies, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports.

Dickerson picked up three hits and an RBI in Game 1, but he'll head to the bench for the nightcap. Mike Yastrzemski gets the call in left field and will bat sixth in Dickerson's absence.

Winker (side) is available off the bench Monday, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Winker left Sunday's game in the middle of an at-bat due to side tightness. His absence doesn't appear to be a long one, however, as he passed pre-game tests Monday. Derek Dietrich starts in left field in his absence.

Choi is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Yankees, Juan Toribio of MLB.com reports.

Both Choi and Nate Lowe will head to the bench with a southpaw (James Paxton) on the bump for New York, but the two could be fighting for one spot in Tampa Bay's regular lineup against right-handed pitchers. Even though Choi is the more battled-tested option at the MLB level, Lowe boasts a higher pedigree and may have surged ahead of Choi in the playing-time battle after batting .471 with three home runs and seven RBI in the four-game series in Baltimore over the weekend.

Winker (side) is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Cubs.

Winker's absence was fully expected after he was forced to exit Sunday's loss to the Rockies with an injury to the lower left side of his body. The Reds are planning to send him in for a more thorough examination Monday, which should provide more specificity regarding the injury along with a potential recovery timeline. For now, the team is viewing Winker's injury as a day-to-day concern.

Dickerson (back) is back in the lineup for the first game of Monday's doubleheader against the Rockies.

Dickerson left Friday's game with back tightness and did not appear in either game over the weekend. He'll play left field and bat cleanup in Monday afternoon's game, though there's a good chance the Giants sit him for the nightcap to avoid overtaxing his back.

Brantley went 2-for-5 with a walk, a double, an RBI and a run scored in Sunday's 12-4 win over Texas.

Brantley has reached base safely in 12 straight games, posting a .360/.411/.500 slash line during that stretch. He's enjoying his finest season since 2014 while sitting in the middle of the Astros' batting order and leads the team with a .324 batting average.

Martinez went 2-for-6 with a solo home run in a loss to the Dodgers on Sunday.

After Xander Bogaerts brought Boston to within a run with a solo shot in the eighth inning, Martinez immediately followed with his own blast to tie the score 4-4. The long ball was Martinez's first in July and 19th overall this season. Through 82 games, he is slashing .297/.368/.533 in 330 at-bats.

Ozuna (fingers) is still dealing with swelling in his right hand after originally experiencing multiple finger fractures June 28, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

The news had been better for Ozuna earlier in the week, as he appeared to be making steady progress in his recovery. However, the veteran outfielder has apparently hit a bit of a sticking point with his swelling, which is preventing him from testing his grip strength. Given that Ozuna will need to show he's capable of handling a bat without any encumbrance whatsoever before activation, his return timeline seems firmly up in the air at the moment. In fact, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that Ozuna himself estimates he's at least "two to three weeks away."

Winker confirmed that his injury was to his lower left side or back, and that he'll be evaluated further Monday to determine whether he needs to go on the IL, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. "My lower left back, side area tightened up," Winker said. "I was feeling some tightness in my right rib cage as well."

Winker hasn't had an injury of this nature before. Given that the Reds have no off days scheduled until July 24, they might be compelled to make a roster move if Winker needs to sit out more than a day or two.