MLB Player News

The combination of a personally difficult matchup and a season-long slump has motivated Giants manager Bruce Bochy to drop first baseman Brandon Belt to sixth in the lineup Friday night for the first time this season.

Belt is 2 for 16 lifetime against Arizona starter Josh Collmenter. He is also 2 for 23 on the year with a slash line of .067/.160/.087.

Rockies manager Walt Weiss gave outfielder Carlos Gonzalez and first baseman Justin Morneau the night off Friday against Dodgers right-hander Clayton Kershaw in Los Angeles. Morneau is 0-for-3 lifetime against Kershaw, while Gonzalez has five hits in 30 at-bats against the Dodgers southpaw.

With Gonzalez on the bench, Weiss chose to go with Charlie Blackmon in right field, Corey Dickerson in left field and Drew Stubbs in center field. Wilin Rosario started at first and batted cleanup in place of Morneau.

Indians left fielder Michael Brantley returned to the starting lineup Friday against the Twins after missing four starts due to a back injury. However, Brantley returned as the DH on Friday, with David Murphy getting the start in left field.

Mike Pelfrey is on the hill Friday for Minnesota. Brantley is batting just .100 (1 for 10) with one walk in his career against the right-hander.

The Indians are favored (-135) in Friday's game, per VegasInsider.com.

Left fielder Yoenis Cespedes has been all the Tigers could have envisioned early this season after trading for him in December. All they were waiting for was a home run.

He took care of that business Friday and it proved critical. His blast off White Sox standout Jeff Samardzija in the fourh inning tied the game and allowed Detroit to win it in the ninth.

Cespedes, who served as a designated hitter for the first time, now boasts a slash line of .302/.318/.512 and has hit safely in eight of 10 games.

Struggling Marlins outfielder Marcell Ozuna has been benched for the Friday night game against the Mets.

Ozuna hasn't had a multi-hit game since the season opener and is 4-for-28 since. He has just one extra-base hit on the year.

With second baseman Neil Walker receiving the night off, the Pirates moved center fielder Andrew McCutchen to the cleanup spot Friday against Milwaukee.

McCutchen has started all eight of his games at the No. 3 hole, with Walker at the cleanup spot. McCutchen is hitting .207 (6 for 29) with two homers and seven RBI to start the season. He is a

Blue Jays infielder Ryan Goins started at shortstop Friday vs. Atlanta in place of the injured Jose Reyes, who could be headed to the disabled list with a fractured rib. Goins and Steve Tolleson are expected to fill in at shortstop for however long Reyes is sidelined.

Goins is 1 for 3 with one walk and one strikeout in one game since his recall from the minors.

Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton launched his 155th career home run, passing Dan Uggla for the most home runs in franchise history. Stanton smacked a two-run home run off Dillon Gee in the second inning of Miami's 7-5 loss to the Mets at Citi Field on Thursday.

"I'll enjoy it later," Stanton said of his home run, per the Miami Herald. "Three and seven is the only record I know right now."

It was Stanton's first home run Sept. 8, three days before his season ended in when he suffered a facial fracture in Milwaukee. Stanton has also homered in four straight games against the Mets. he will look to make it five in a row against New York right-hander Bartolo Colon on Friday. He is 2 for 2 with a double and an RBI in his career against Colon.

The Red Sox made outfielder Yoenis Cespedes a preliminary offer on a contract extension before trading him to the Tigers in the offseason, according to CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman.

However, Red Sox personnel see Cespedes as "a businessman," which translates into Boston seeing it very unlikely Cespedes was going to sign before free agency, according to Heyman. 

There is no word on if the Tigers are making progress on a contract extension for Cespedes, who will be a free agent after the 2015 season. The 29-year-old outfielder is batting .308 (12 for 39) with one triple, four doubles and three RBI in nine games.

Marlins right fielder Giancarlo Stanton went 2 for 3 with a home run and two RBI in his team's 7-5 loss to the Mets Thursday.

Stanton's first home run of the season was a two-run blast in the top of the first inning, but the lead shifted back and forth during the middle innings, with the Mets ultimately coming out ahead. Stanton went 3 for 3 with four RBI Tuesday but had been hitless in four of his previous five games coming into Thursday. He has hit .242 with nine RBI and eight walks in 10 games.