MLB Player News

Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes expects to start on Friday in Game 1 of Oakland's American League Division Series matchup with Detroit, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. Cespedes is expected to play the outfield after being limited to DHing down the stretch of the regular season. 

Cespedes said he felt better after taking batting practice Tuesday. After his first two rounds of batting practice, Cespedes had not hit one out of the park. He began warming up after that and ended up taking a couple pitches deep before the session was over. 

Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes is planning to be in the outfield for the playoffs, according to CSN.

Cespedes has been dealing with an injured elbow, and has been limited to serving as the designated hitter recently. He was able to take batting practice Tuesday after resting his elbow for a few days. He said he would be in the outfield if he had to throw left-handed. Cespedes is a righty. 

In 529 at-bats, Cespedes hit .240/.294/.442. 

Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper told the Washington Post he does not plan to have surgery on his left knee this offseason. Harper struggled with knee and hip issues for much of the season, but he says he just needs rest.

"I really don’t see (surgery),” Harper told the Post. “It’s more trying to take the time off and let everything settle down. Everything is just swollen and things like that. I really don’t see going under the knife or anything like that."

Harper played in 118 games this season, hitting .274 with 20 home runs, 58 RBI and 11 stolen bases.

Yoenis Cespedes was out of the Athletics' starting lineup for the second game in a row, as Brandon Moss served as the team's designated hitter for Sunday's series finale in Seattle.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the organization wants Cespedes to rest his right shoulder, which has felt sore since Friday's game, so that he will be ready for the American League Division Series. Cespedes did not hit or throw on Saturday, so the team does not have a clear sense of how much time he will need to recover.

Mets infielder Justin Turner returned from a hamstring injury Wednesday and went 5 for 11 over a three-game spain before recording an out as a pinch-hitter Saturday.

Turner entered Thursday's game as a pinch runner in the third inning before staying in to play third base, where he played complete games on Wednesday and Friday. He played first base Saturday after his pinch-hit appearance. Turner has hit .281/.321/.387 with two home runs and 16 RBI in 199 at-bats.

Cardinals second baseman Matt Carpenter has been among the best in the league at his position this season, but with top prospect Kolten Wong appearing close to joining the major-league team on a regular basis, the Cardinals could shift Carpenter to a new position in 2014, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

"The answer is," general manager John Mozeliak told the Post-Dispatch Friday after a question about Carpenter's future position, continuing after a pause, "I don’t think I need to answer that. The good news is we have some flexibility."

Carpenter leads all major-league second baseman in batting average (.321) and on-base percentage (.395). He leads all players in runs scored by a wide margin, with his 126 runs placing him 18 ahead of the player in second place (Mike Trout).

Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton delivered an RBI single in the bottom of the 10th inning to give his team a walk-off 2-1 victory over the Tigers Saturday.

It was the only hit in four at-bats for Stanton, who grounded into a double play earlier in the game. He has hit .249/.366/.482 with 24 home runs and 62 RBI in 421 at-bats.

Mariners shortstop Brad Miller was instrumental to Saturday's 7-5 victory over the A's, going 2 for 4 with two home runs and five RBI atop the Mariners lineup.

It was Miller's third two-homer game of the season, a surprising figure considering he has just eight home runs with the major-league team. His five RBI matched his monthly total heading into Saturday's game. Miller owns a .262/.316/.417 line with eight home runs, 36 RBI and five stolen bases in 302 at-bats.

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen homered on Saturday during a win at Cincinnati. McCutchen hit one of six homers hit by the Pirates on the afternoon against Bronson Arroyo and company.

McCutchen took Arroyo deep for his 21st HR of the season in the third inning for a solo shot with two outs. He finished the game going 2 for 5 with a single and is batting .317 on the year as the Pirates will play the Reds in the wild card game.

It was good to see McCutchen snap out of a cold funk he's been in Saturday. McCutchen was just 3 for 27 over his last eight games before Saturday's effort.

Blue Jays second baseman Ryan Goins hit his second home run of the year on Saturday in the second to last game of the season against Tampa Bay. Goins went deep in the fifth inning for a two-run homer. 

The second baseman went 1 for 4 with two RBI in the game and is nowbatting .263 on the season for the Jays. 

The 25-year-old Goins has at least one base hit in nine straight games and has five RBI over that span.