MLB Player News

Ohtani is penciled in to pitch during next week's series in Detroit, Maria Guardado of MLB.com reports.

The two-way phenom was spotted throwing a bullpen session Saturday afternoon, and as Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register notes, Ohtani typically does that four days before a start on the mound. With that in mind, Ohtani seems to be on track to start Wednesday opposite Mike Fiers. The Angels decided to push Ohtani back from Sunday, citing workload concerns. Ohtani is in the lineup as the designated hitter Saturday, batting fifth against the Yankees, and it seems likely that he will DH on Sunday and Monday as well before taking a day to rest.

Winker is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rockies.

The 24-year-old will take as seat as interim manager Jim Riggleman goes with Adam Duvall and Brandon Dixon in the outfield corners against lefty Tyler Anderson. Winker is just 4-for-32 against left-handed pitching so far this season.

Canha went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in a loss to the Diamondbacks on Friday.

Canha's 376-foot shot to left in the third inning ended up representing the only run of the night for the Athletics. After a hot start to the season that saw his average as high as .339 on May 2, the outfielder has slashed just .164/.215/.328 over 65 plate appearances since.

Ozuna, who was benched for the Cardinals' last game Wednesday for arriving to the ballpark late, went 2-for-3 with a double in his return to the starting lineup against the Pirates on Friday.

Ozuna's unfortunate case of oversleeping interrupted a two-game hot streak in which he'd gone 5-for-7 with an RBI, a walk and two runs. However, he was able to pick right up where he left off, posting a third straight multi-hit effort on what was an otherwise bleak night for the Cardinals offense. Ozuna has already raised his average 26 points to .260 during the three-game stretch, a sign he may finally be ready to start delivering on his considerable offensive upside.

Martinez went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a 6-2 victory for the Red Sox over the Braves on Friday.

Martinez had just one hit in his last 11 at-bats coming into this contest but he dispatched of the brief lull in short order by launching his 16th home run with a fourth-inning blast off Julio Teheran. He now has a brilliant .326/.381/.653 slash line through 190 at-bats in his inaugural campaign with the Red Sox.

Soler went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 8-4 loss to the Rangers.

It's his sixth homer of the year but his first in 14 games, and Soler hit only .189 (10-for-53) during his power drought. The 26-year-old still boasts a .285/.381/.473 slash line on the season despite the slump, however, and he could be ready to start heating up once again.

Cespedes (hip) began his running program Friday, Tim Britton of The Athletic New York reports.

Cespedes took batting practice for the first time Friday since hitting the disabled list May 13 and appears to be ramping up his rehab work. The timetable for the 32-year-old's return and whether he needs a minor-league rehab assignment remains unclear, so Brandon Nimmo should continue to see an increased role for the Mets in Cespedes' absence.

Cabrera (hamstring) is scheduled to participate in some running drills Friday, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News reports.

Cabrera is taking another step forward in his recovery process after looking much improved during Tuesday's batting practice. He doesn't appear to have any limitations at the plate, so his last hurdle before returning will likely be to demonstrate that his hamstring can hold up on the basepaths.

Cespedes (hip) took batting practice on the field prior to Thursday's matchup against Milwaukee, Tim Britton of The Athletic New York reports.

Cespedes took the next step in his recovery process by getting in some swings during batting practice -- this was the first time he's been able to participate in BP since hitting the disabled list May 13. His timetable for a return remains unclear, but it's good news that he was finally able to swing a bat.

Winker went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's win over the Pirates.

The 24-year-old's shot to left-center field proved to be the difference in the Reds' 5-4 win. It was the first home run of the season for Winker after he hit seven homers in just 121 at-bats last year. There's probably more power to come, but Winker is not hitting for a high average nor is he playing everyday, making him tough to deploy in shallower mixed leagues.