MLB Player News

Carpenter is out of the lineup for the second straight game Sunday against the Pirates.

Carpenter didn't get the starting nod Saturday either, but his absence Sunday is most likely due to the fact that the Pirates are sending another left-handed pitcher to the mound in Jon Niese. The infielder did suffer a jammed finger earlier in the week, so it makes sense to give Carpenter an extra day of rest, especially now that the infield has gotten deeper due to the return of Jhonny Peralta. In the meantime, Jedd Gyorko will get the starting nod at second base for the second day in a row.

Harper is not in the starting lineup Sunday against the Phillies, Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post reports.

Harper will take a seat against southpaw Adam Morgan, as manager Dusty Baker will look to rest as many of his left-handed bats as possible, which includes giving lefty Ben Revere the day off as well. Harper has started to slip out of a recent slump since the start of June, going 10-for-32 to raise his batting average 12 points on the month. Look for the lefty slugger to return to action for an important three-game series with the Cubs that begins Monday. In the meantime, Chris Heisey will take over in right field.

Ozuna cranked his 12th home run of the season in Saturday's loss to the Diamondbacks.

The eighth inning solo shot was his only hit in five trips to the plate. Ozuna looked to be cooling off for a brief moment there, but is now 10-for-25 in his last five games with one home run and eight RBI over that span. He continues to be Miami's biggest run producer and is slashing .323/.368/.557 with 12 home runs and 37 RBI in 61 games this season.

Colon will make his third straight start at second base Sunday against the White Sox. He'll bat ninth in the order.

With the White Sox rolling out three straight left-handed starters in the series, Colon has entered the lineup for each game, effectively replacing Jarrod Dyson. In the first two games of the series, Colon went 3-for-8 at the dish, but he'll likely slide back into a reserve role once the string of opposing southpaw starters comes to an end.

Miller is out of the lineup Sunday against the Astros, freelance Rays writer Roger Mooney reports.

Miller will bow out of the lineup with lefty Dallas Keuchel twirling on the mound for the Astros. He'll give way to Tim Beckham at shortstop.

Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said Reed is "getting closer" to a big league promotion, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Luhnow said "there are certain things that we're definitely looking for that will give us confidence that he's going to consistently deliver up here. But I don't think we're that far away." It's possible Luhnow was referring to Reed's struggles against left-handed pitching (5-for-42 entering Wednesday), as they want him to be a regular in the lineup when he arrives in Houston, not as one-half of a platoon. Tyler White has struggled after a hot start to the season, batting just .172 over the last 30 days and .213 overall. Luhnow also suggested Super Two implications were not a concern regarding Reed's promotion, so expect to see him arrive in Houston in the coming weeks or even days.

Blackmon went 1-for-3 with a solo homer, a walk and two runs in Saturday's 5-3 victory over the Padres.

The 29-year-old went deep for the first time in June, after closing out May with three homers over two games. Blackmon has actually seen his average drop 20 points this month, but he's still carrying a higher number in that category (.296) than all but one of his previous five seasons. Where Blackmon's production is lagging this season is on the base paths, as he's managed to swipe only four bags after totaling 71 stolen bases over the prior two campaigns.

Carpenter is not in the lineup for Saturday's matchup with the Pirates.

Carpenter was removed from Thursday's game late due to a jammed finger, but homered in his return to the lineup Friday and there is no indication the finger is behind his absence Saturday. It's likely the case of facing southpaw Francisco Liriano, as Jedd Gyorko will replace Carpenter at second base and bat eighth for the Cardinals. The Pirates send another lefty to the mound Sunday, so it's possible he will receive back-to-back days off.

Miller went 2-for-4 with an RBI in Friday's 4-3 victory over the Astros.

The veteran shortstop broke out of an 0-for-9 mini-slump with his second multi-hit outing of June. Miller's early-season struggles, which saw him hitting under the Mendoza Line as recently as May 15, are now firmly behind him. He's seen his average rise 66 points since May 1, and he's posted three homers and 14 RBI over that span as well.

Carpenter (finger) went 2-for-4 with a go-ahead three-run homer, two walks and two runs scored in Friday's 9-3 victory over the Pirates.

The leadoff man hit the go-ahead blast in the eighth inning off reliever Neftali Feliz, plating Eric Fryer and Greg Garcia to give St. Louis a 3-2 lead. Carpenter's bat has been on fire since late May, as he's reached safely in nine of his last 10 games. He's also slashing .367/.486/.633 over 30 June at-bats, and already has five doubles and seven RBI this month as well.