MLB Player News

Martinez (back) is questionable for Sunday's game against Tampa Bay, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Martinez was a late scratch Saturday due to back spasms and spent the day getting treatment. It doesn't sound as if he'll miss an extended period, but he could still miss a few more days.

Vogelbach is not in the lineup Saturday against lefty Mike Minor and the Rangers.

Vogelbach has only started against one southpaw this season. Jay Bruce will be the designated hitter in his absence.

Ozuna went 2-for-4 with a home run and five RBI in a 6-3 win over the Reds on Saturday.

Ozuna hit a third-inning shot off Tyler Mahle to lift the Cardinals to a 3-2 lead and added a two-run double in the fifth. The 28-year-old raised his batting average to .270 with 10 home runs and is third in the National League with 26 RBI.

Martinez was scratched from the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rays with back spasms, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.

Martinez is considered day-to-day, per Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic. Steve Pearce enters the lineup as a designated hitter in his absence.

Carpenter went 2-for-2 with two walks and a run in a loss to the Reds on Friday.

Considering the 12-1 final score in favor of Cincinnati, Carpenter was essentially the only bright spot offensively for the Cardinals on the night. The veteran infielder has struggled to hit for average thus far, but he's traditionally been a slow starter. Additionally, it's worth noting Carpenter's on-base percentage, currently at .342, has been on an upward trend during the latter half of April. Moreover, he continues to square up on the ball consistently, as he's generated an impressive 29.4 percent line-drive rate and 40.0 percent hard-contact rate over 111 plate appearances thus far this season.

Jimenez (ankle) will have an MRI on Saturday and the White Sox will update his status Sunday morning, Scot Gregor of the Chicago Daily Herald reports.

Saturday's game was postponed, but it doesn't seem like Jimenez would have been ready to return to action in any case. X-rays were negative, and the initial diagnosis was a right ankle sprain. He could wind up needing a stint on the 10-day injured list. The only real knock on Jimenez coming into the season is that he has typically missed double-digit games each season with nagging lower-body injuries.

Buxton fouled a ball off his leg in Friday's game but is available off the bench Saturday against the Orioles, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.

It caught him on the border of the bone and calf muscle, but Park says there is no real cause for concern. With this being a day game after Friday's night game, the Twins will be cautious with Buxton, but it sounds like he should be back in action Sunday.

Choi is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Red Sox, Josh Tolentino of The Athletic reports.

With the left-handed David Price taking the mound Saturday for the Red Sox, Choi will hit the pine. Yandy Diaz, Choi's usual replacement in this scenario, will take over at first base and bat leadoff for the Rays.

Buxton is not in Saturday's lineup against the Orioles, LaVelle E. Neal III of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

He is hitting .255/.300/.447 with a 24 percent strikeout rate over his last 47 at-bats and went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in Friday's game. Willians Astudillo will start in right field with Max Kepler shifting over to center.

Harper went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and walk in a 4-0 victory against the Marlins on Friday.

The 26-year-old hasn't struck out in seven straight plate appearances, which is a big deal because he's struck out in more than 29 percent of his plate appearances. While Harper leads baseball with 20 walks, he also has a league-high 34 strikeouts. Harper's on-base (.397) and slugging percentages (.521) are where they should be, but because of all the strikeouts, he is batting just .255. He also has six homers, 17 RBI and 16 runs with a stolen base in 94 at-bats.