MLB Player News

Belt (concussion) is set to begin light conditioning work Friday, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

This is a significant step for Belt as he works his way back from a concussion that has kept him out since early August. Friday marks Belt's first workout since the concussion, according to Pavlovic. Considering that cardio work is a large indicator of a player's recovery progress, Friday's workout should shed some light on Belt's status moving forward.

Goins (forearm) will not miss any time after exiting Wednesday's contest, remaining in the lineup for the series finale against Tampa Bay on Thursday, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Goins will start at shortstop and bat eighth just a day after getting spiked in his left forearm while attempting to steal a base during the sixth inning of Wednesday's game. His X-rays didn't reveal any structural damage, and manager John Gibbons elects to keep Goins in the lineup for the divisional contest.

Winker is not in the Reds' lineup Thursday, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

With Jon Lester toeing the rubber for the Cubs, Winker will give way to Phillip Ervin in right field. Winker has acquitted himself well when in the lineup, though, knocking a .280/.357/.420 output across 56 plate appearances this month that includes his first two major-league home runs.

Martinez went 2-for-4 with a solo homer Wednesday in Houston.

Martinez has turned into an-all-or nothing slugger since being traded to Arizona in mid-July, mashing eight home runs in 24 games en route to a .595 slugging percentage but batting just .238. He also struck out once in this one, giving him 20 whiffs in the past 17 games.

Goins is being listed as day-to-day with a bruised left forearm after X-rays didn't reveal any broken bones, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

This is welcomed news for Goins, who was writhing in pain after getting spiked in Wednesday's game, forcing him to exit in the sixth inning. While he didn't rule out playing Thursday, the Blue Jays will wait and see how he's doing before making a decision. If he is forced to miss any action, Rob Refsnyder and Darwin Barney would likely hold down the middle of Toronto's infield.

Goins was prematurely lifted from Wednesday's game against the Rays with a forearm injury.

Goins was removed after he was spiked in the left forearm while attempting to steal second base in the sixth inning. The severity of the injury is unclear at this point, but he looked to be in serious pain as he walked off the field with a trainer. More should be known once he is further evaluated following the conclusion of Wednesday's contest. Darwin Barney moved over to shortstop to fill in for him, while Rob Refsnyder came on to play second base.

Pederson is out of Wednesday's lineup against the White Sox, Eric Stephen of TrueBlueLA.com reports.

He takes a seat with lefty Carlos Rodon on the mound. Chris Taylor gets the start in center field and Enrique Hernandez starts in left field as the Dodgers flood the lineup with right-handed hitters.

Vogelbach, 24, is hitting .324 with two home runs and 10 RBI over his last 10 games for Triple-A Tacoma.

The acquisition of Yonder Alonso from the Oakland Athletics all but assured that Vogelbach would be nothing more than a September call-up. However, both Alonso and Danny Valencia will be free agents after the season, so the possibility remains that Vogelbach could be vying for the starting job at first base heading into the 2018 campaign.

Miller will lead off and man second base Wednesday against the Blue Jays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Corey Dickerson has recorded four hits in 32 at-bats out of the leadoff spot for the past seven games, so manager Kevin Cash will have the outfielder and Miller switch spots in the lineup with the hope of igniting the offense. Miller is hitting just .162 while striking out 12 times in 37 at-bats in August, making it entirely possible that he'll be no better of a solution than Dickerson atop the order.

Martinez went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in Tuesday's 9-4 loss to the Astros.

Martinez has recorded just one hit in eight at-bats against his former team through the first two games of the series, but his struggles in making consistent contact have been a regular issue since the Diamondbacks first acquired him in July. While Martinez has lived up to expectations in the power department with seven home runs and a .563 slugging percentage in 80 at-bats with the team, he's hitting only .225 with a 30.1 percent strikeout rate during that time. That's certainly not what the Diamondbacks had anticipated from Martinez after the outfielder hit .314 while striking out in only 24.2 percent of his plate appearances with the Tigers prior to the trade.