MLB Player News

Pederson went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's victory over the Pirates.

Pederson homered for the second consecutive game, bringing his season total up to 13. The young slugger has looked a lot more like the strong power threat we saw in his first two major-league seasons. He's posting career-best marks in batting average (.266) and slugging percentage (.562) while maintaining strong on-base skills (.346). Pederson is currently situated on the strong side of a platoon in center field and also mans the leadoff spot in starts against right-handed pitchers.

Stanton was 2-for-5 with two runs scored, a two-run home run and two strikeouts in Tuesday's 8-5 win over the Braves.

Stanton has slowly but surely come around in 2018, although his 113 strikeouts in 322 at-bats still aren't pretty. The 28-year-old has a .267/.339/.509 slash line with 20 home runs and 48 RBI in 82 games this season.

Martinez went 2-for-5 with two runs scored, a home run and four RBI in Tuesday's 11-4 win at Washington.

Martinez finished June with a .347/.425/.612 slash line with seven home runs and 20 RBI, and has shown no sign of slowing down. The 31-year-old leads the majors with 26 home runs and 71 RBI through 87 games.

Ohtani (elbow) was activated from the 10-day DL ahead of Tuesday's game against the Mariners, Jeff Fletcher of the Southern California News Group reports.

Ohtani will immediately rejoin the starting lineup and bat sixth as the Angels' designated hitter Tuesday. Expect to see him in the lineup regularly since his injured elbow didn't impact any part of his swing during batting practice sessions or simulated games in recent weeks. In regards to pitching, the 23-year-old's status is still uncertain and he will be reevaluated in a couple weeks.

McCutchen is not in the lineup versus Colorado on Tuesday, Kerry Crowley of the Bay Area News Group reports.

McCutchen will get a rare day off following 11 straight starts as Hunter Pence gets the nod in right field. Over the past two games, McCutchen has gone 0-for-10 and will look to clear his head before returning to the starting nine for Wednesday's series finale.

Goins agreed to a minor-league contract with the Phillies on Tuesday.

Goins will report to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The infielder played in 41 games with the Royals this year, slashing .226/.252/.313 with nine extra-base hits and six RBI. He will serve as added organizational depth for Philadelphia, but don't expect to see him make an impact at the major-league level.

Reed was optioned to Triple-A Fresno on Monday.

Reed appeared in just one game, going 0-for-3 Friday against the Rays. He's hit a solid .266/.379/.536 for Fresno this season. Joe Smith (elbow) was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list in a corresponding move.

Goins was outrighted to Triple-A Omaha on Monday after passing through waivers unclaimed.

As a 30-year-old with a career .228/.274/.333 batting line in the majors, Goins unsurprisingly failed to attract interest from other teams after the Royals dropped him from their 40-man roster last week. He'll now head to Omaha and await another opportunity with Kansas City, which may not come if the Royals' infielders enjoy relatively sound health the rest of the season.

Cespedes (hip) was able to resume a running progression Tuesday, Matt Ehalt of The Record reports.

Manager Mickey Callaway added that Cespedes is no longer feeling any soreness in the hip/quadriceps area, and that Tuesday's running "went really well," even though he was only going at 75 percent during a series of 60-yard sprints. The outfielder is expected to continue his progression over the next couple weeks while sprinkling in baseball activities once he's cleared to do so.

Miller went 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs in Monday's victory over the Twins.

Miller made his presence felt Monday, most notably by taking a four-pitch walk with the bases loaded in the 10th inning to secure a walk-off victory for his club. Miller started the last five games and has injected some life into the Brewers' offense -- albeit in a small sample size -- posting a .941 OPS over 33 plate appearances since joining the club. He figures to continue starting frequently against right-handers as long as he continues to produce at the plate.