MLB Player News

Diaz (hand) hit off a tee Saturday for the first time since landing on the injured list June 8, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Houston manager Dusty Baker said Diaz is "still a ways away" from returning. He was initially given a six-to-eight week prognosis, and it would seem logical the Astros give him until after the All-Star break. Houston has been getting by with a mix of Robel Garcia, Taylor Jones and Abraham Toro while their top utility man is sidelined.

Anderson went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two runs scored in Saturday's 11-5 loss to the Tigers.

Anderson went seven games without an extra-base hit before his two doubles Saturday. He came around to score on Jose Abreu singles. He leads the White Sox with 46 runs over 68 games. The shortstop extended a relatively quiet hitting streak to six games, during which he is slashing .296/.296/.370.

Wendle is on the bench for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

The 31-year-old has hit a lowly .177 off left-handed pitching in 2021, so he understandably gets a day off as the Rays face Robbie Ray. Wendle has struggled overall recently, hitting .156 with just one RBI in his last nine games. Wander Franco gets the start at third base Sunday.

Correa went 2-for-2 with two walks, a home run and two RBI in Saturday's 3-2 win over Cleveland.

He led off the fourth inning with a solo shot as part of an impressive overall performance. Correa has been on fire since the beginning of June, slashing .340/.463/.670 with eight of his 16 homers on the year, 25 runs and 25 RBI in 27 games. The 26-year-old picked the perfect time to stay healthy and put together his best numbers since 2017 with free agency looming in the offseason.

Crawford went 3-for-5 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in Friday's 5-4 extra-inning win over the Rangers.

Crawford continued his torrid stretch at the plate with his second three-hit performance over the last three games. The 26-year-old has been incredible since the beginning of June, slashing .362/.415/.543 with three homers, 15 RBI, 20 runs scored, two steals and 12:21 BB:K over 21 games. He's on pace to set career highs in every single offensive category.

Chang was optioned to Triple-A Columbus on Friday, Ryan Lewis of the Akron Beacon Journal reports.

Chang has struggled at the plate this season, slashing an undesirable .176/.211/.287 with just two homers, so his demotion comes as no surprise. Franmil Reyes (oblique) was activated from the IL in a corresponding roster move.

Allen owns a .333/.389/.494 slash line with 13 extra-base hits and 25 RBI across 177 plate appearances for Double-A Midland, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.

Gallegos cites a text he received from an organizational source that noted Allen "is coming along like a freight train" and will be "better than advertised when he arrives." That's certainly lofty praise, but the 22-year-old has apparently earned it by producing his best professional season at the plate at his highest level of the minors yet. It's worth noting Allen also has six steals and an acceptable 18.6 percent strikeout rate with Midland thus far, while his glove work is considered among the very best of any prospect in baseball.

Volpe is slashing .316/.444/.638 with 10 home runs, 45 RBI and 19 stolen bases for Low-A Tampa.

The Yankees' first-round pick in the 2019 first-year player draft has flashed both power and speed in his first campaign in A-ball while also walking more times (38) than he has struck out (37). He was especially hot in June, slashing .392/.515/.848 with seven homers and eight steals. The 20-year-old is regarded as a solid defensive shortstop, so he could ascend quickly through the organization's minor-league system if he continues to dominate offensively.

Crawford went 5-for-13 with two doubles, three walks and five runs across the just-concluded three-game series against the Blue Jays.

As those numbers imply, Crawford was a constant thorn in the side of Toronto pitchers over the three-game set. The veteran shortstop was on base six times alone over Wednesday's and Thursday's contests, and he now owns a .348/.368/.500 slash line across the 68 plate appearances covering his last 15 games.

Correa isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against Cleveland, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Correa was hit by a pitch in Monday's loss to the Orioles, but he started each of the last two games and went 0-for-7 with two runs, two walks and three strikeouts. Robel Garcia will take over at shortstop and bat ninth.