MLB Player News

Ahmed is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Pirates.

Josh VanMeter will pick up a start in the infield of place of Ahmed, who started in all three games of the Diamondbacks' weekend series versus the Cubs while going a collective 3-for-10 at the plate. The 27-68 Diamondbacks are expected to sell off multiple veterans ahead of the July 30 deadline, but since Ahmed's four-year, $32.5 million deal won't expire until after the 2023 season, he's more likely than Eduardo Escobar, David Peralta or Kole Calhoun to stay put in Arizona.

Ahmed went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Sunday's 6-4 win over the Cubs.

Ahmed doubled off Zach Davies to lead off the third inning and drove in a run in the seventh. That was just his second extra-base hit in July. The 31-year-old is slashing .212/.278/.311, his worst line since 2016. He has just two long balls after hitting 19 in 2019. In addition, he's batting .159 in his last 15 games.

Mateo entered Sunday's loss to the Nationals as a pinch runner and stole two bases in addition to scoring a run.

The speedster ran for Victor Caratini with the Padres trailing by a run in the ninth inning. He promptly stole second base, then swiped third and came around to score the tying run on a Trent Grisham single. Mateo's speed gives him value to the big club, but he hasn't started a game since June 13 and is batting only .200 with a 28.6 percent strikeout rate this season.

Adames went 2-for-2 with a home run, two RBI, two runs and a season-high three walks in Sunday's victory over the Reds.

Adames has been a star at the plate ever since being acquired by the Brewers back in May, and he just completed his most-productive series since joining the club, going 8-for-13 with two home runs, seven RBI, six runs and three walks in the Brewers' three-game sweep of the Reds to open the second half. Adames now owns a .976 OPS since joining the Brewers -- a mark that would rank him sixth among all players over the course of the season.

Williams will start in center field and bat eighth Sunday against the Marlins.

Though he'll crack the starting nine in the series finale, Williams looks like he'll be relegated to a short-side platoon role in center field while Odubel Herrera (ankle) is on the shelf. The lefty-hitting Travis Jankowski is getting Sunday off with a southpaw (Braxton Garrett) on the bump for MIami.

Adrianza remains out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays.

Adrianza appeared primed for an enhanced role when Ronald Acuna (knee) went down with a season-ending ACL tear shortly before the All-Star break, but Atlanta's recent acquisition of Joc Pederson effectively closes the door on Adrianza's potential window of opportunity. Expect Adrianza to continue to serve as a utility player for Atlanta, a role that should afford him only a couple starts per week.

Grissom (undisclosed) has gone 3-for-8 with a double and four walks in his three games since returning from the 7-day injured list at Low-A Augusta on Wednesday.

Grissom was sidelined for about three and a half weeks with his injury. The 20-year-old shortstop is slashing .277/.381/.378 with two home runs and seven stolen bases across 178 plate appearances at Low-A this season.

Crawford (hamstring) is batting sixth and playing shortstop in Sunday's game against the Cardinals.

As manager Gabe Kapler speculated, Crawford is ready to start the series finale in St. Louis after appearing as a pinch hitter and drawing a walk Saturday. The veteran has been on absolute tear this month, hitting .556 with five extra-base hits and seven RBI in nine games.

Edman is on the bench for Sunday's series finale against the Giants.

Edman sits following an 0-for-3 performance Saturday that dropped his average to .225 in the last 10 games. The 26-year-old is just a .241 hitter against right-handed pitching, so he gets the day off against Johnny Cueto, with Matt Carpenter starting at second base and batting sixth.

Ahmed went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Cubs.

Ahmed snapped an 0-for-21 skid with a run-producing single in the fifth. The 31-year-old shortstop started the season slowly and hasn't recovered. He has a .579 OPS with two home runs and 16 RBI over 81 games.