MLB Player News

Carpenter is out of the lineup Sunday against the Giants.

St. Louis manager Mike Matheny will use an exclusively right-handed lineup to counter southpaw Madison Bumgarner, with the lefty-hitting Carpenter giving way at third base to Jedd Gyorko. Carpenter had started each of the Cardinals' last 22 games and has been one of the top offensive producers in the league over that stretch, slashing .321/.439/.728 with eight home runs, 22 runs and 15 RBI.

Miller is out of the lineup Sunday against the Braves.

Tyler Saladino will draw his fourth straight start at shortstop Sunday and appears to have overtaken Miller as the primary option at that position, but the latter still may have a path to playing time at the other middle-infield spot. Jonathan Villar will get the nod at the keystone Sunday with lefty Sean Newcomb on the hill for Atlanta, but Miller boasts a .274/.348/.465 slash line and 123 wRC+ versus right-handers this season, a steep upgrade over Villar's .251/.297/.338 line and 70 wRC+ in those same matchups. That discrepancy might make Miller the preferred candidate to occupy the strong side of a platoon at second base.

Martinez is being held out of the lineup Sunday against the Royals due to a sore left calf and sore right foot, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Martinez fouled pitches off both of his legs during Saturday's blowout victory, so manager Alex Cora decided it was prudent to give the slugger a day out of the lineup to rest. Cora noted that Martinez would still be available off the bench to pinch hit Sunday and would likely rejoin the lineup Monday against the Rangers.

Martinez is out of the lineup Sunday against the Royals, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

The Red Sox haven't indicated Martinez is dealing with any sort of physical issue, so it appears he's merely getting a rest again Sunday, despite receiving the day off six days earlier against the Nationals. In between the two days off, Martinez has remained scorching-hot at the plate, delivering two-hit performances in each of his four starts. Steve Pearce will serve as Boston's designated hitter in the series finale with Martinez on the bench.

Turner went 1-for-4 with a pair of RBI in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Angels.

Turner served as the Dodgers' designated hitter, and his two-run single in the fifth inning proved to be crucial in a tight victory. It has been a grueling recovery process from a wrist injury for the 33-year-old, but he appears to be rounding into form with a .276/.389/.474 slash line, four homers and 11 RBI over his last 23 games.

Belt went 3-for-4 with a double and two RBI in Saturday's 3-2 loss to the Cardinals.

The Giants only managed eight hits on the day, and Belt provided their only extra-base hit. The first baseman is hitting .324 with a home run and six RBI over his last 10 games, pushing his slash line on the season up to .296/.387/.504.

Ohtani is day-to-day after fouling a ball off his right knee in the ninth inning of Saturday's game, Maria I. Guardado of MLB.com reports.

Ohtani doesn't seem to think it's a big deal, saying he thinks he'll be "fine." With a lefty in Alex Wood due up for the Dodgers in Sunday's series finale, the Angels will almost certainly hold Ohtani out and then reassess things following Monday's off day. The 24-year-old is just 2-for-16 since coming off the disabled list, including an 0-for-4 effort Saturday.

Canha went 3-for-4 with an RBI double in a loss to the Indians on Friday. He was also caught stealing on his only attempt.

Canha compiled the most hits of any Athletics player Friday, generating his first multi-hit effort since June 19 in the process. The 29-year-old outfielder has been steady at the plate since mid-June, raising his season average 26 points to .264 over his last 15 games. He should have a clear path to regular starts against both right- and left-handed pitching while Matt Joyce (back) is on the disabled list.

Blackmon went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and a second run scored in Colorado's 7-1 win over Seattle on Friday.

Blackmon went yard for the 16th time this season with a first-inning solo shot off Felix Hernandez. His .280/.353/.476 slash line through 327 at-bats would be considered terrific for most players, but it's actually lagging quite a bit behind the ridiculous standard he set last year, when he hit .331, posted an even 1.000 OPS, and clubbed 37 homers. Blackmon has remained a fantastic source of runs, as his current total of 65 leaves him fifth in the league. This was also his second three-hit effort in his last three games, so hopefully that's a sign he's gearing up for a hot streak that will pump his other numbers back toward the lofty levels he's capable of.

Martinez went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run and two runs to help Boston to a 10-5 victory over Kansas City on Friday.

he just continues to rake at an epic clip in his first season in Boston, with this second-inning blast off Jason Hammel giving him a league-leading 27 long balls on the season. Martinez is one of the most complete hitters in baseball, as demonstrated by his impeccable .328/.392/.647 slash line, and there's little reason to believe he won't remain as such through the rest of the season.