MLB Player News

Pederson (hip) is not in the lineup for Thursday's contest in Kansas City.

Pederson had to be lifted from Wednesday's game with left hip discomfort, so it's not a surprise he's not ready to play in Thursday's matinee. Whether Pederson will wind up requiring a stint on the injured list is unclear. Brandon Nimmo is getting a day at designated hitter for the Rangers, and Ezequiel Duran will play right field in the series finale.

Suarez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 5-4 loss to the Padres.

Suarez extended the Reds' lead to 4-2 in the eighth inning with his solo shot off Ron Marinaccio, his fifth long ball this year and just his second in his last 24 games. Suarez has gone 3-for-9 with a pair of extra-base hits in his last two contests after going just 3-for-36 (.083) in his previous 10 games. Overall, the veteran is slashing .211/.282/.354 with 18 RBI and 14 runs scored across 163 plate appearances this season.

Smith served as the designated hitter and went 0-for-3 with a walk in Wednesday's 8-0 loss to Miami.

Smith made a fourth consecutive start as the designated hitter and is 2-for-11 with three walks and an RBI during that stretch. As to be expected, all four starts have come against right-handers. The Diamondbacks have used LuJames Groover and Ildemaro Vargas at first base during those contests. Since being activated from the 60-day injured list, Smith is batting .105 (2-for-19).

Eldridge went 1-for-4 with a walk, a grand slam and a second run scored in Wednesday's 11-10 win over the Nationals.

Per Maria Guardado of MLB.com, the 21-year-old slugger's blast put him in the record books as the youngest player in history to hit a walk-off grand slam, breaking a mark that had been held by Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente since 1956. Eldridge has caught fire and bashed his way into an everyday role over the last couple weeks, slashing .426/.500/.766 across his last 13 games with seven doubles, three homers, 10 RBI and 15 runs.

Ohtani took a no-decision Wednesday against the Pirates, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits and three walks while striking out four in 6.2 innings. He also went 1-for-5 with a two-run home run.

Remarkably enough, Wednesday marked the first time this season that Ohtani gave up more than two runs in a start. Even so, the two-way phenom has now recorded three consecutive quality starts and has attained this feat in all but one of his 11 outings. Ohtani will carry a sparkling 1.06 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 73:21 K:BB over 67.2 innings into his next scheduled appearance at home against the Rays. As a hitter, he's now slashing a robust .299/.413/.527 with 12 homers, 39 RBI, six stolen bases and 46 runs scored over 294 plate appearances.

Pederson was removed from Wednesday's game against the Royals with left hip discomfort, Kennedi Landry of MLB.com reports.

Pederson went 0-for-1 with a walk before leaving Wednesday's contest in the fifth inning. It remains unknown whether his hip will cause him to miss additional games, but the Rangers may provide more information after the game.

Rooker won't play in Wednesday's game against the Brewers due to knee soreness, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Manager Mark Kotsay said the team will wait to see how Rooker feels leading up to Friday's game against the Rockies before deciding whether he needs to spend time on the injured list. Carlos Cortes will work as the Athletics' designated hitter Wednesday while Lawrence Butler starts in right field, and that could be the defensive alignment the team uses if Rooker has to miss more time.

Rooker isn't in the lineup for Wednesday's game against Milwaukee.

Rooker has slashed .243/.300/.541 with three homers and eight runs scored across his last 10 games, but the A's will now have him begin on the bench for a second consecutive game. Carlos Cortes will move into the DH spot as a result, opening up right field for Lawrence Butler.

Benintendi is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against Atlanta.

With a tough lefty (Chris Sale) on the bump for Atlanta, the left-handed-hitting Benintendi will retreat to the bench. Randal Grichuk will enter the lineup as Benintendi's replacement at designated hitter.

Ozuna is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.

Ryan O'Hearn will get the nod at designated hitter Wednesday after Ozuna filled that spot in the lineup the previous two games while going 1-for-7 with four strikeouts. After signing a one-year, $12 million deal in February, Ozuna has been a major disappointment so far for the Pirates. He's striking out at a career-high 29.1 percent clip and has posted a .580 OPS through 50 games, a bottom-five mark among players who have logged at least 200 plate appearances.