MLB Player News

Ozuna is out of the lineup Thursday against the Padres.

The hot-hitting Travis d'Arnaud will bat cleanup as the designated hitter, with Kevin Pillar covering left field and hitting eighth. Ozuna is just 1-for-17 (.059) with six strikeouts out of the gate this season.

Jimenez (hamstring) was able to play catch and do some running Thursday, James Fegan of The Athletic reports.

Jimenez said afterward that he would be able to pinch-hit Thursday if he was on the active roster. He's not, of course, after being placed on the injured list Wednesday, but it's a good sign that he could be ready to go when his 10 days are up or shortly thereafter.

Reyes is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Blue Jays.

Reyes has started at designated hitter in four of the Royals' first six games, going 1-for-12 with a solo home run. Rather than guaranteeing Reyes an everyday role, the Royals are likely to take a committee approach to the DH spot, though the 27-year-old could end up getting the lion's share of starts if he can trim down his strikeouts and re-emerge as the premium power hitter he was earlier in his career during stops with San Diego and Cleveland.

Ohtani (1-0) earned the win over Seattle on Wednesday, allowing one run on three hits and four walks while striking out eight batters over six innings. At the plate, he went 1-for-2 with two walks and an RBI.

Ohtani struggled early in the contest, walking the first two batters he faced before giving up a run-scoring single. He managed to get out of the first inning having allowed just that one run, and although Ohtani yielded five more baserunners in the subsequent two frames, Seattle was unable to score again while he was in the game. The two-way star clearly didn't have his best control Wednesday -- he issued four walks in total and also hit two batters in addition to uncorking a wild pitch -- so it's impressive that he was able to manage both a quality start and a win. Ohtani has impressed as both a pitcher and a hitter this season, allowing just one run and posting an 18:7 K:BB over 12 innings from the mound and posting a .286/.400/.571 slash line with two homers at the plate.

McCutchen went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in Wednesday's 4-1 win over the Red Sox.

The veteran outfielder has had a bit of a slow start at the plate to begin his second tour of duty with the Pirates, going 4-for-15 (.267) through six games with his only extra-base hit being a double, but he's drawn seven walks and stole his first base of the year Wednesday. McCutchen hasn't swiped double-digit bags since 2018, but the 36-year-old still boasted a sprint speed in the 90th percentile last year according to Statcast. If he keeps getting on base at a good clip, he could be one of the players who benefits most from MLB's rule changes to boost the running game.

Soler went 2-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI in Wednesday's 5-2 win over the Twins.

After taking Pablo Lopez deep for a solo shot in the first inning to open the scoring, Soler emphatically ended it with a three-run blast off Caleb Thielbar in the eighth with a line drive down the left-field line. The 31-year-old slugger had only 13 homers in 72 games last season, but Soler already has three in the first seven contests of 2023 along with three doubles, accounting for six of his seven hits.

White Sox manager Pedro Grifol told reporters before Wednesday's game against the Giants that he's hopeful Jimenez (hamstring) will miss only two weeks, Scot Gregor of the Chicago Daily Herald reports.

Jimenez strained his left hamstring going from first to third Monday, and he was placed on the injured list Wednesday. There's a chance that the injury could keep him out longer than those two weeks, but it appears the tentative timetable has the 26-year-old returning before the end of April.

Miller will take a seat Wednesday as the Rangers wrap up their series with the Orioles.

Miller will get a breather after he went 1-for-5 with a walk and a strikeout over the first two games of the series. Mitch Garver will draw the start at designated hitter and bat seventh versus Baltimore.

Choi will sit Wednesday versus the Red Sox.

Choi will get a breather after he started the first two games of the series in Boston, going 1-for-7 with a run scored and two strikeouts in those contests. Andrew McCutchen will take over as the designated hitter while Jack Suwinski starts in right field and bats sixth in the series finale.

Harper (elbow) took batting practice on the field before Wednesday's game against the Yankees, Alex Coffey of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

It's a positive step for Harper as he continues to recover from Tommy John surgery he underwent in November. Matt Gelb of The Athletic cautions that Harper still has several hurdles to clear before being deemed ready for game action, as he has yet to be cleared to slide into bases since doctors believe there's still some risk of him rupturing the surgically-repaired elbow. Harper could be back from the 10-day injured list as soon as the latter part of May, as the Phillies' decision not to put him on the 60-day IL to begin the season had already implied.