MLB Player News

Ozuna went 2-for-4 with one RBI during Sunday's loss to the Reds.

The 27-year-old outfielder got the Cardinals into the scoring column during the third inning with an RBI single to left, scoring Matt Carpenter. Ozuna had a decent weekend series against Cincinnati, as he went 4-for-12 with two extra-base hits, two RBI and one walk. After a slow start to the season, he's batting .278 with six homers and 32 RBI across 59 games, although his WAR has dipped drastically so far this year in comparison to a season ago (5.8 in 2017 to 0.7 in 2018).

Choi was traded from the Brewers to the Rays on Sunday in exchange for Brad Miller and cash considerations.

Choi had been sent down to Triple-A Colorado Springs earlier Sunday, but he'll now head to Triple-A Durham following the trade. He's been shipped back and forth between the minors and the big leagues this season, slashing .233/.281/.500 with two homers and five RBI through 12 games as a Brewer.

Miller was sent to the Brewers from the Rays in exchange for Ji-Man Choi and cash considerations Sunday.

Miller will head to Triple-A Colorado Springs after being dealt to Milwaukee. Through 48 games with the Rays this season, Miller is batting .256 with five homers and 21 RBI. He figures to be called up in the near future, with some of the Brewers' middle infielders struggling to produce at the dish so far this season.

Cespedes (hip, quadriceps) will travel to Florida this week to restart a rehab program, Lindsey Adler of The Athletic New York reports.

Cespedes was placed on the 10-day disabled list May 16 with a strained right hip flexor and was cleared to begin a rehab assignment Friday at Double-A Binghamton. The stint with the affiliate lasted just two games, however, as Cespedes was lifted from Saturday's contest with a tight right quad, an injury the veteran battled in 2016 and 2017. In light of Cespedes' setback, manager Mickey Callaway stated the outfielder will need to go through a full-blown rehabilitation stint prior to returning from the disabled list. The exact timetable for his return should become more clear once he progresses through various checkpoints in his rehab.

Pederson is out of the lineup Sunday against the Braves, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Unsurprisingly, the lefty-hitting Pederson will find his way to the bench with southpaw Sean Newcomb twirling for the Braves. In Pederson's stead, Enrique Hernandez will pick up a start in center field and bat cleanup.

Goins is out of the lineup Sunday against the Athletics, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

The Royals' willingness to deploy Whit Merrifield in center field and designated hitter of late has opened up more time at the keystone for Goins, who started at the position in both of the past two games. The spike in opportunities isn't quite enough to give Goins much fantasy upside, even in most AL-only formats. He's hitting .237 over 98 plate appearances this season and has yet to record a home run or a stolen base.

Manager Ned Yost reported Soler (toe) is healthy enough to start Sunday against the Athletics but will be given the day off to rest, Rustin Dodd of The Athletic Kansas City reports.

Yost opted to proceed cautiously with Soler as he's dealing with a bruised toe. With an off-day Monday, Soler should be ready to rejoin the lineup Tuesday against the Reds.

Soler (toe) is out of the lineup Sunday against the Athletics, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Soler will hit the bench for the second straight game while he recovers from a bruised right big toe. With the Royals off the schedule Monday, Soler will be given three full days to recover from the issue, so the hope is that he'll be ready to play in Tuesday's contest against the Reds. Soler's absence Sunday will clear the way for Hunter Dozier to pick up another start in right field.

Belt (appendicitis) will begin taking swings Monday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Belt has been out since June 2 after undergoing an appendectomy. If he's able to take swings without any pain, it's reasonable to expect him to rejoin the Giants shortly thereafter. We should receive an update on his condition following Monday's workout.

Carpenter, who went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two runs in a win over the Reds on Saturday, has five of his homers on the season over his past 18 games entering Sunday.

Carpenter began to awaken offensively a few games prior to that stretch, but he'd still come into a May 21 game against the Royals having left the yard on just three occasions over his first 162 plate appearances (40 games), despite a 44.7 hard-contact percentage. He's managed to boost that already impressive number even further to 54.5 percent over the aforementioned 18-game span, and just as important, he's increased his flyball rate 12.5 points to 56.6 percent. The combination of the two has helped lead to the power surge, and it's also boosted Carpenter's season slugging percentage from a middling .351 to .433.