MLB Player News

Pena was scratched from the lineup ahead of Thursday's game against the Royals due to health and safety protocols related to COVID-19, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The team notably hasn't placed Pena on the COVID-19-related injured list or indicated that he tested positive for the virus. He was presumably pulled from the lineup as a matter of precaution, likely due to him dealing with an illness or being viewed as a close contact of an infected person. Mauricio Dubon will pick up a start at shortstop in place of Pena.

Pena was scratched from the lineup ahead of Thursday's game with the Royals due to an unspecified reason, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

The Astros haven't provided an immediate explanation behind Pena's removal from the lineup, but he's presumably dealing with an injury. Just one week ago, Pena missed a game after suffering a mouth laceration in a collision with teammate Yordan Alvarez, but he cleared the concussion protocol and proceeded to start each of the past six games, going 7-for-29 with three home runs over that stretch. Mauricio Dubon will fill in for Pena at shortstop in Thursday's series finale.

Witt (hand), who remains out of the lineup for Thursday's game in Houston, is scheduled to field grounders and take swings as the Royals look to gauge his availability moving forward, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Manager Mike Matheny said that all scans conducted on Witt's right hand came back clean, but the club will wait and see how the star rookie responds to Thursday's on-field workout before a determination is made on when he might be ready to return to the lineup. Nicky Lopez is expected to fill in as the Royals' primary shortstop for however long Witt's absence may linger.

Cruz isn't starting the first game of Thursday's doubleheader against the Reds.

Cruz will get a breather after he hit .156 with three homers, a double, six RBI and four runs over his last nine games. Diego Castillo is starting at shortstop and batting fifth during Thursday's matinee.

Witt (hand) is not in the starting lineup Thursday versus the Astros, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Witt will be unavailable for a second straight contest after he was hit in the right hand by a pitch Tuesday. He remains day-to-day while Nicky Lopez takes over at shortstop again Thursday.

Diaz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Wednesday against the Royals.

Diaz took Brad Keller yard in the sixth inning to record his fifth homer of the season and second in as many games. He's been in the lineup for three of Houston's last four games, primarily at the expense of Chas McCormick. Despite the nice stretch, Diaz is hitting only .227/.275/.347 across 160 plate appearances on the season.

Correa was held out of the lineup for Wednesday's loss to the White Sox due to tightness in his legs, Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com reports.

It's unclear when the injury first surfaced, but it could help explain his 0-for-12 run across the previous four games. Correa will now have extra time to recover since the Twins have a scheduled day off Thursday, so he may be able to rejoin the lineup for Friday's series opener at Texas.

Crawford, who went 1-for-4 with a two-run triple in a win over the Padres on Tuesday, is hitting .333 with a hit-by-pitch, four RBI and four runs with men on base over his last five games.

The veteran shortstop is also 4-for-10 over his first two games back from suspension when factoring in Tuesday's clutch three-bagger. Crawford could be in the process of authoring his best season at the plate yet, as he's currently sporting a career-high .738 OPS, while his 22 extra-base hits put him nearly halfway to last season's total of 46 in 86 fewer games.

Smith isn't in the lineup Wednesday against Baltimore.

Smith went 1-for-13 with a run, an RBI, two walks and three strikeouts over the last three games and will get a day off Wednesday. Charlie Culberson is starting at the hot corner and batting ninth.

Berti (lower body) is starting in left field and batting leadoff Wednesday versus the Angels.

Berti is back in the lineup Wednesday after sitting out two consecutive games with lower body tightness. The 32-year-old has struggled recently from the plate, going 1-for-19 over his last five contests.