MLB Player News

Winker (ribs) recently started throwing and is expected to begin swinging a bat this week, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.

Manager David Bell said Wednesday that Winker had yet to resume baseball activities and was still "a couple weeks away" from returning from the injured list, but the outfielder has apparently made some progress over the past few days. Assuming he avoids any setbacks, the 28-year-old should continue ramping up his baseball work, and he's likely looking at a potential activation in mid-September.

Belt (personal) was activated from the bereavement list and will start at first base Sunday against Atlanta, Kerry Crowley of The San Jose Mercury News reports.

Belt stepped away from the team for the past few days following the death of his grandmother, but he's back in the lineup as expected for Sunday's series finale. The 33-year-old is slashing .211/.308/.649 with eight home runs, 12 RBI and 10 runs through 17 games in August.

Miller is not in the lineup Sunday against the Diamondbacks, Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Miller will head to the bench after going 3-for-8 with a homer, a triple and three RBI in the past two games. The 31-year-old is expected to see regular action at first base down the stretch with Rhys Hoskins (abdomen) out for the season, but catcher J.T. Realmuto, who is starting at first Sunday, will also see some playing time at the position.

Ohtani had X-rays on his right hand/wrist come back negative after he was hit by a pitch Saturday versus the Padres, and he remains on track to pitch Tuesday against the Yankees, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.

Ohtani was hit on the right hand/wrist by a pitch when he struck out during the first inning, but he never exited the contest and checked out OK after being evaluated. The 27-year-old went 0-for-4 with a walk, two runs and a stolen base -- his 20th steal of the season -- Saturday, and he'll have Sunday's scheduled off day to recover before potentially missing any action. Assuming Ohtani experiences no further issues, he should be back in the lineup at designated hitter Monday versus New York before taking the mound Tuesday.

Reyes went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a double and a walk in Saturday's 5-3 extra-inning loss to Boston.

The designated hitter has homered four times in his last nine games, giving him 24 long balls on the year. Reyes has gone 11-for-32 (3.44) in that nine-game stretch. The slugger is up to a .260/.333/.550 slash line with 65 RBI, 44 runs scored and four stolen bases while walking at a 9.8 percent rate. He's also striking out at a 30.7 percent clip, but he's more than made up for it with strong power hitting.

Alvarez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 5-2 win over the Rangers.

Alvarez opened the scoring in the second inning when he connected on a Kolby Allard offering and turned it around for his 27th homer of the year. Alvarez has now gone deep in five of his last eight contests, upping his season OPS to .888 in 469 plate appearances.

Martinez went 3-for-5 with a three-run home run and an additional run scored in Saturday's win over Cleveland.

Martinez made his presence felt when it mattered the most. With the game tied 2-2 in the top of the 10th inning, the veteran slugger blasted a three-run bomb off reliever Nick Wittgren and built a lead the Red Sox wouldn't relinquish. It was Martinez's 24th long ball of the campaign, but perhaps even more importantly, he managed to end two droughts -- an 0-for-18 slump and a nine-game homer drought.

Blackmon isn't starting Saturday's game against the Dodgers, Megan Garcia of MLB.com reports.

Blackmon hit his 10th home run of the season in Friday's win over the Dodgers, but he'll get a breather Saturday. Taylor Motter will start in right field and bat seventh.

Stanton went 2-for-4 with a solo home run Friday in an 8-2 victory versus the Athletics.

The slugger's mammoth 472-foot blast in the fourth inning was his 17th career long ball of at least 470 feet, per Marly Rivera of ESPN.com, which is the most in the majors by a wide margin over the past 15 seasons. Stanton has reached base in 23 straight games, during which he has slashed .329/.421/.671 with eight homers, 21 RBI and 16 runs.

Miller went 1-for-5 with a two-run homer and a strikeout in Friday's 7-6 win over the Diamondbacks.

Miller had gone hitless with three strikeouts in six at-bats across the two games prior to Friday's matchup, and he appeared to be on a similar track with an 0-for-4 start to the game. However, he tied the game in the bottom of the 10th inning with his 13th home run of the season. The Phillies announced Thursday that Rhys Hoskins (groin/abdomen) will miss the remainder of the season, so Miller is in line for extended time as the team's primary first baseman.