MLB Player News

Martinez is batting sixth and playing right field in his season debut Friday against the Angels.

After rehabbing a foot injury for the first month and a half of the season, Martinez will finally take back over in right field for Detroit. He went just 4-for-23 during his rehab assignment, but he did hit a home run in his final tuneup Thursday. He'll hit sixth for the time being, but he could move up in the order if Justin Upton starts to struggle.

Winker enters play Friday hitting .271/.360/.318 with no homers and no stolen bases. His sort of offensive stat line at Triple-A is incredibly unique, Zach Buchanan from the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

As Buchanan elaborates, Winker's lack of slugging prowess is not ideal given that he's not a plus defender in the outfield either. The presumption going into this season was that Winker would ultimately supplant Scott Schebler in the outfield, but he doesn't appear especially close to that promotion.

Brantley (ankle) is back in the lineup Friday against the Twins.

Brantley injured his ankle last weekend but it seems four full days of rest -- including Thursday's team off day -- provided sufficient maintenance. He is slated to return to left field and the three-hole to face right-hander Ervin Santana, and while Brantley has enjoyed limited success against Santana in the past (8-for-33), he is beating up on right-handed pitching to the tune of a .297/348/.547 line this season.

Belt went 1-for-4 with a walk and a solo home run in Thursday's 3-2 loss to the Reds.

Thursday's long ball ended an 18-game homerless stretch. Belt has maintained an excellent .358 on-base percentage, but his .221 batting average isn't helping fantasy owners. His .293 BABIP is over 50 points lower than the marks he posted in 2015 and 2016 when he batted .280 and .275 respectively, so expect his average to rise as more of his contacted balls start falling in.

Martinez (foot) was activated from the 10-day disabled list Friday.

Martinez's rehab at Triple-A Toledo was deemed sufficient with Jim Adduci's impending DL placement due to a strained oblique creating an opening on the Tigers' roster. Fantasy owners should follow suit and click JDM back into their lineups.

Martinez (foot) will make his season debut with the Tigers on Friday, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

His rehab timetable was cut short with the placement of Jim Aducci (strained right oblique) on the 10-day disabled list. Martinez went 1-for-14 with Triple-A Toledo, but the one hit was a home run Thursday. Fantasy players should throw him back in their lineups as soon as possible.

Canha went 2-for-4 with a run in Wednesday's 3-1 win over the Angels.

The 28-year-old had been jettisoned to Triple-A Nashville earlier in the season due to his struggles at the plate, so Wednesday's production was a step in the right direction with respect to his second big-league go-around of 2017. Canha hit just .242 over 81 plate appearances in the minors, but his nine extra-base hits (four doubles, five home runs) and 10 walks helped lead to a serviceable .358 OBP. He's expected to resume the platoon role in right field that he opened the season in, and will look to get back to the type of production he flashed in a rookie 2015 campaign during which he generated 41 extra-base hits (22 doubles, three triples, 16 homers) and 70 RBI.

Martinez (foot) is "50/50" to rejoin the Tigers sometime during the coming weekend, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.

The outfielder is serving as designated hitter for Triple-A Toledo on Thursday, and despite his 0-for-11 stretch with the Mud Hens so far, his workload is considered a sign that he's ready to resurface for his fantasy owners. Those in daily transaction fantasy leagues -- or those allowed to make changes Friday -- should prepare to slide him into their lineups.

Martinez (foot) is starting at designated hitter for Triple-A Toledo on Thursday, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Martinez is 0-for-11 on his rehab assignment with the Mud Hens, but he homered for High-A Lakeland on Saturday. The masher's progress makes him likely to return to the majors within the next week.

Miller isn't included in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Royals.

Miller has looked lost at the dish lately with a 5-for-45 (.111 average) over the Rays' past 14 games, so it appears manager Kevin Cash is giving the infielder a day off to hit the reset button. Even before this tailspin, Miller had been batting .247, and has yet to tap into the power that aided him to a breakout campaign in 2016. Miller is still a good bet to hold down an everyday role at second base for the foreseeable future, but if he fails to show much improvement, he could lose out on some reps to Tim Beckham once Matt Duffy (Achilles) returns from the disabled list, likely at some point later this month.