MLB Player News

Meneses was named the International League's Most Valuable Player on Tuesday, Tom Housenick of The Morning Call reports.

Meneses is the second straight Phillies' minor leaguer to win the award, following in the footsteps of Rhys Hoskins last season. He's hit .314/.364/.519 with 22 homers through Monday's games in order to earn the honor. Like Hoskins, Meneses is a right-handed first baseman who has dabbled in the outfield, but Hoskins had a long track record of minor-league success and did his damage at age 24, while Meneses finally had his breakout season as a 26-year-old. Meneses isn't on the Phillies' 40-man roster, so a September callup appears unlikely. He doesn't have a clear path to playing time in Philadelphia next season, either, but he seems to have done enough to earn a look in spring training, possibly with a different organization that has no clear answer at first base.

Choi is not in the lineup Tuesday against the Braves, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Choi will take a seat on the bench with no designated hitter spot available in Atlanta's National League ballpark. With the Rays playing in Atlanta on Wednesday as well, Choi could find himself out of the lineup until Friday's series opener against the Indians. He'll be available off the bench.

Soler (toe) served as the designated hitter for Triple-A Omaha in his first rehab game Monday, finishing 1-for-4 with a walk, RBI and three strikeouts.

Soler saw the field for the first time since June 15 after an extended recovery from a fractured toe. Because he hasn't seen consistent at-bats for two-plus months, Soler will likely require multiple games in the minors to get his timing back before making his way back to the big club at some point in early September. According to Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com, the Royals aren't expected to use Soler in the outfield upon reinstating him 60-day disabled list, so the 26-year-old will presumably be used exclusively as a DH during his rehab assignment.

Ohtani (elbow) went 2-for-5 with a home run, three RBI and a pair of runs scored in Monday's 10-7 win over Colorado.

Ohtani returned to the lineup after sitting against a southpaw Sunday. The two-way star has been limited to just hitting after suffering a UCL sprain early in June, but the injury hasn't affected his impressive offensive output (.276/.354/.547 with 15 homers). Ohtani did throw a successful 50-pitch simulated game prior to Monday's contest, so a return to the mound this season shouldn't be ruled out.

Ohtani (elbow) threw a 50-pitch simulated game Monday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

If Ohtani manages to make a return to the hill sometime in September, the Angels will schedule him to pitch on six days rest. Manager Mike Scioscia stated Ohtani's sim game went well, and that his stuff is good enough to get big-league hitters out right now, per Fletcher. Ohtani is slated to toss another bullpen later in the week, although it's unclear what the next step will be.

Belt is not in the lineup Monday against the Diamondbacks, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Belt will give way to Austin Slater at first base with a lefty in Patrick Corbin toeing the rubber for the opposition. The 30-year-old is hitting just .190/.227/.214 in 11 games since returning from the disabled list earlier in the month.

Jimenez went 3-for-4 with a triple, double, walk and three RBI for Triple-A Charlotte in its 10-4 win over Gwinnett on Sunday.

Jimenez has tallied at least three hits in three of his past four games for Charlotte and owns a 1.027 OPS across 199 plate appearances in the International League since earning a promotion from Double-A Birmingham in late June. It's evident at this point that Jimenez is ready for a taste of the majors, but due to service-time considerations, the White Sox may not be willing to indulge him until 2019.

The Cardinals anticipate that Ozuna (shoulder) will be able to return from the 10-day disabled list when first eligible Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Ozuna's activity has been limited the last few days while he waits for a cortisone shot to take effect, but the fact that he traveled with the team to Colorado over the weekend suggests only a short-term absence should be in play for the outfielder. Once he's reinstated from the DL, Ozuna should slot back into an everyday role for the Cardinals, forcing Tyler O'Neill and Jose Martinez to fight for at-bats at the other corner-outfield spot.

Harper (illness) entered Sunday's game as a pinch hitter for Michael Taylor in the eighth inning and stayed in to play center field, going 2-for-2 with a double, two runs scored and three RBI.

It looks like Harper is over the bug that caused him to go 0-for-11 in his previous three games. Prior to the illness, he'd been slashing a stellar .385/.442/.679 through 20 games in August, so expect the slugger to get right back on track now that he's 100 percent again.

Turner went 3-for-5 two doubles, five RBI and two runs scored Sunday against the Padres.

Turner capped off a strong weekend series against the Padres by recording his second five-RBI performance in the past week. In the three games, he went 7-for-15 with a home run, nine RBI and three runs scored. That's a microcosm of his performance in August, as he is hitting .409 with a slugging percentage north of .700 across 84 at-bats.