MLB Player News

Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes homered twice Thursday against the White Sox, the second time in the last three games he has done so.

Cespedes hit a solo home run in the fourth inning and another in the sixth, his only two hits in the game. He finished 2 for 4 in a 5-4 win in 10 innings.

Cespedes now has 13 home runs on the season, good for seventh in the American League. He has already homered four times in six June games after hitting five in May and four in April. 

Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper is set to visit Dr. James Andrews Monday to get a second opinion on his knee, as the swelling and inflammation haven't improved.

As a result, Harper is unlikely to come off the disabled list June 11, when he is first eligible, according to Nationals manager Davey Johnson.

"He's probably not going to be available to come off when he's supposed to come off," manager Davey Johnson told the Washington Times Thursday. "We haven’t been real successful with our treatment here. He constantly gets treatment here, but we've got to get that inflammation out of there."

Harper has tried to run in a pool, and even that low-impact workout caused the swelling to worsen, prompting the decision for a second opinion.

The initial diagnosis is that Harper has no structural damage in his knee, just a swollen bursa sac. The team continues to maintain that a surgical repair would be a "last resort," and Harper has said that he will not consider a cortisone shot in the knee.

"I don't want to put any of that stuff in my knee, in my body," Harper said. "I think that that would do some damage to my knee and I’m not going to do that at 20 years old."

With Lucas Duda sporting a tight quad and a left-handed pitcher on the mound, the Mets opted to give infielder Justin Turner his first start in the outfield Thursday against the Nationals. The Mets are not sure if Turner will continue to see playing time there moving forward, but he has been getting work in prior to games.

"We'll find out," manager Terry Collins told ESPN.com. "He catches them in batting practice. He runs them down. The speed is a little different when the game time starts, so we'll see. ... The ball is going to find you. And we've seen it everywhere. But this is not a big park, so it's not someplace where your range has got to be such and such or you've got to really worry about where you position yourself. 

The Mets' offense has been a concern recently, so if Turner, who is hitting .288 on the season in 80 at-bats, can show any kind of ability in the outfield the team might opt to let him play more often.

"Obviously I'd like to find my way in the lineup a little bit more than I have," Turner said. "Playing out in the outfield is just another option for him. So I'll go out there and prove that I can handle it and make him a little more comfortable maybe using me there whenever he needs me."

Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper (knee) told reporters Thursday he hasn't resumed baseball activities, but he's hopeful he'll go on a rehab assignment next week. He added the swelling in his knee hasn't gone down.

"I want to get back in this lineup 100 percent, not 80 percent," he said.

Nationals manager Davey Johnson said Harper will have his knee examined by Dr. James Andrews Monday.

Mets infielder Justin Turner had his first career start in the outfield Thursday against the Nationals. Turner, who has played one inning in his career in the outfield, enters play batting .214 (9 for 42) in his last 22 games (eight starts).

Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen has had two multi-hit games in four June appearances and has 13 multi-hit games since April 29. McCutchen is batting .331 (43 for 130) in his last 33 games, raising his season average from .216 to .284 in that span.

McCutchen is also slugging .500 with five home runs, seven doubles, eight stolen bases, 12 walks, 17 RBI and 21 runs in his last 33 games.

Cardinals infielder Matt Carpenter extended his hitting streak to 14 games Wednesday against the Diamondbacks, going 4 for 5.

He had the team's lone extra-base hit, a double off starter Wade Miley, and raised his batting average to .333 in a 10-3 loss.

Carpenter is hitting .450 during his hitting streak, with five strikeouts in 60 at-bats. He has seven extra-base hits and 14 runs scored during the streak. 

Astros outfielder J.D. Martinez homered Wednesday against the Orioles. Martinez was one of six Houston players to homer in the game. 

Martinez had a two-run shot in the fourth inning off Steve Johnson, his sixth of the year. He went 1 for 5 and is batting .268. 

He has hits in eight of his last 10 games with five RBI over that span. 

Cardinals infielder Matt Carpenter pushed his hitting streak to 13 games Tuesday against the Diamondbacks with a 2-for-4 performance. Carpenter is batting .418 (23 for 55) with one home run, one triple, four doubles, five RBI, six walks and 14 runs during the streak.

Since May 1, Carpenter has a slash line of .369/.462/.492/.953 in his last 30 games. Most of his success has come out of the leadoff spot, where Carpenter is batting .340 with a .435 on-base percentage in 36 games.

"Just given the way that I take an at-bat and, you know, get on base, I thought that there would be a possibility that I could be a good leadoff hitter, but I just never really fit the mold," Carpenter said, per MLB.com. "Never really got that opportunity. I've enjoyed it. I want to get on there for these guys and keep our offense rolling."

Athletics outfielder Yoenis Cespedes had his first-career two-homer game Tuesday during an extra-inning loss at Milwaukee. 

Cespedes had a two-run homer in the first and a solo shot in th sixth off Kyle Lohse. He finished 3 for 5 with three RBI and is batting .239.

Cespedes, who 11 homers and 33 RBI, has gone 7 for 18 over his last four games with five RBI.