MLB Player News

Ahmed is out of the lineup Sunday against the Braves.

The Diamondbacks have been juggling three players (Ahmed, Ketel Marte and Daniel Descalso) between the two middle-infield spots of late, and it will be Ahmed's turn to head to the bench Sunday following three consecutive starts. Ahmed has been the top producer of the triumvirate in July, going 13-for-46 (.283 average) with seven extra-base hits, eight runs and five RBI across 11 appearances.

Rojas will start at third base and bat seventh Sunday against the Phillies, Clark Spencer of the Miami Herald reports.

Rojas' playing time trailed off earlier this month shortly after everyday third baseman Martin Prado's return from the disabled list, but the former has seen his starting opportunities tick back up heading into the break. With Prado getting a breather in the series finale, Rojas will enter the starting nine for the fourth time in five games. The 29-year-old's ability to play all four infield spots may continue to earn him a healthy workload, even though he lacks a direct path to a full-time role at any position.

Baez went 2-for-5 with a home run, a double and five RBI Saturday against the Padres.

Baez extended his hitting streak to a modest four games and has recorded at least one extra-base hit in each of them. Saturday marked his second five-RBI performance of the season, and he has driven in four runs on three other occasions. Given that, it's not especially surprising that he is tied for the National League lead in RBI, though that's hardly the only way he's stood out through 338 at-bats this season, as he also ranks among the league leaders in home runs, runs scored and slugging percentage.

Camargo is out of Saturday's lineup against the Diamondbacks.

Camargo will get a well-deserved day off after starting 10 straight games. He'll be replaced by Ryan Flaherty at third base.

Ahmed went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI in Friday's 2-1 win over the Braves.

Ahmed's seventh-inning RBI single broke a 1-1 tie and held up as the deciding run in the series opener. The shortstop also added to his career-best doubles total (20) earlier in the contest, giving him his fourth two-hit performance in seven games.

Baez went 2-for-4 with a double, two runs and a steal to help the Cubs to a 5-4 victory over San Diego on Friday.

A day after launching his 18th homer of the season, Baez continued his excellent first half with two more hits and a stolen base in this win over the Padres. It's been an all-around dynamic showing for the infielder so far in 2018, as this steal was Baez's 18th, which is already six more of his previous career high. As it stands, he's a legitimate threat to post a 30-30 season.

Story went 2-for-5 with a home run, a double and four RBI to help pace Colorado to Friday's 10-7 win over the Mariners.

Story's monster season continues, as his third-inning blast off Christian Bergman marked his 19th long ball of the season and brought his OPS to a sterling .906. After hitting just .239 last year, Story has rebounded with a .291 mark through 358 at-bats. He also has a solid .353 on-base percentage, and he's swiped 12 bases in 16 attempts for good measure, so there really isn't anything Story hasn't done in the first half of the season as he looks headed for a career-best campaign.

Turner is not in the lineup against the Mets on Friday.

Manager Dave Martinez elected to load up the Nationals lineup with left-handed hitters against Noah Syndergaard, moving Turner to the bench in favor of Wilmer Difo. Across his last five games, Turner has gone just 1-for-21 with 10 strikeouts, so this will also serve as a little breather to clear his head.

Owings went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base Thursday in the Diamondbacks' 5-1 loss to the Rockies.

With Jake Lamb resting in the series finale, Owings stepped in at the hot corner, marking just his third start at the position all season. Owings' playing time anywhere around the diamond or in the outfield has fallen by the wayside over the past few weeks with Lamb, A.J. Pollock and Steven Souza all returning from extended stays on the disabled list. So long as the Diamondbacks' lineup mainstays remain healthy, Owings is unlikely to earn more than a handful of starts per week.

Cruz, 19, was named the South Atlantic League Player of the Month for June.

After coming over from the Dodgers in a trade deadline deal last season, Cruz has emerged as a top prospect in the Pirates' system. He improved his contact rate significantly this year, as he's currently hitting the ball 14 percent more than last season with Low-A West Virginia. Interestingly, this increased contact rate hasn't sapped his power either, as he has 11 home runs and 17 doubles. This has helped him produce a .296/.355/.497 slash line through 81 games with the Power this season. Cruz's defense is still pretty rough however, as he tallied a whopping 27 errors at shortstop already. Given this, scouts tend to think he'll either end up at third base or a corner outfield spot. Either way, his bat will play at any of those positions, and his arm is strong enough to succeed around the diamond. It's tough to see him making a big leap in the organization this season, but if he can continue mashing at the plate, he could get up to Double-A or Triple-A by the end of the 2019 season.