MLB Player News

Martinez (foot) is set to begin a rehab assignment with High-A Lakeland on Friday.

During a Monday DH appearance for extended spring training, Martinez fouled a ball off his left foot -- not his injured right foot -- but X-rays were negative. This upcoming assignment is a positive step for the outfielder, who will rejoin the major-league club sometime next week if all goes well.

Harper was removed from Thursday's contest due to groin tightness, Dan Kolko of MASN reports.

The young superstar was lifted from the game in the seventh inning in favor of Chris Heisey, and although it wasn't revealed at the time, the Nationals seemed to just be playing things safely with Harper while they held the lead. Consider Harper day-to-day for now, with more details on his availability moving forward likely coming as Friday's start time approaches.

Buxton (undisclosed) was removed from Thursday's contest for precautionary reasons and will be re-evaluated Friday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

The young center fielder went through the concussion protocol following his exit, and after going through the program without a hitch, the Twins are considering him day-to-day. No word about his availability Friday has been revealed, but more information should become available following his upcoming evaluation.

Harper was lifted prematurely from Thursday's game against the Diamondbacks, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports.

It's currently unclear what forced Harper out of the game after just seven innings. He was 0-for-3 with a walk and a run before Chris Heisey took over for him in right field. More should be known about his status after the game.

Buxton exited in the fifth inning of Thursday's contest with the Athletics after running into the center field wall while making a catch, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

It's unclear if his removal was injury-related or not, but it's certainly not good to see something like this happen just when the former top prospect was finally getting comfortable in the batter's box. Buxton's status should become clearer after the game's conclusion, but in the meantime, Eddie Rosario will slide over to center field to fill the void while Max Kepler rounds out the outfield.

Cespedes (hamstring) could miss a longer period of time than initially hinted, Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports.

It's a bit of guesswork on Heyman's part, but he is often tuned in to such things, especially in his native New York market. Though he's rehabbing at the Mets' Port St. Lucie camp, Cespedes told him "this one hurts" around when the injury first occurred. Per Heyman, it was a bit of a departure from how Cespedes typically responds to questions about physical issues. Cespedes' fantasy owners may be without the stud slugger for at least another few weeks, but more information should be relayed in the near future. Of course, given the negativity surrounding this team's medical staff recently, it may be a convoluted process.

Ozuna went 2-for-4 with a walk and a solo home run in Wednesday's win over the Rays.

The fourth-inning blast was the second longest homer ever clubbed at Tropicana Field, hitting the Rays' 2011 wild card banner hanging high above the second deck in left-center. Ozuna now has eight home runs and 23 RBI in 26 games to go along with a cool .300/.360/.570 slash line.

Blackmon went 2-for-5 with an RBI double, another two-bagger and two runs in Wednesday's 11-3 win over the Padres.

The productive leadoff man was at it again Wednesday, posting his third multi-hit effort in the last four games and vaulting his average back over .300 in the process. Outside of a forgettable 0-for-6 day against the Diamondbacks on Sunday, Blackmon has hit safely in 16 other games since April 14, while his 25 RBI lead the Rockies and are fourth-most in the NL.

Vargas went 2-for-4 with a home run and five RBI in Wednesday's 7-4 win over the A's.

He supplied all the offense the Twins would need in this one, bringing home two runs with a bases-loaded single in the first inning and then launching a three-run shot off Kendall Graveman in the third. Vargas is now slashing .364/.417/.636 through six games since being called up.

Pederson (groin) will be activated from the disabled list Friday, MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports.

Pederson's groin injury was never considered serious, so he will be activated prior to Friday's matchup against the Padres. Owners will want to make sure the young slugger is in their lineup for what should be a good matchup against the right-handed Jhoulys Chacin.