MLB Player News

Pena (illness) isn't in the lineup Saturday against Oakland, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Pena is out of the lineup for a third consecutive game due to the league's health and safety protocols, but it's encouraging that he hasn't been placed on the COVID-19 injured list. Mauricio Dubon is starting at shortstop and batting second.

Witt (hand) went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Friday's 4-3 win over the Guardians.

Witt missed a couple of games after he was hit by a pitch on the hand Tuesday versus the Astros. He's hit safely in his last three games, going 4-for-13 (.308) in that span. The rookie should be good to go for an everyday role at shortstop going forward. He's slashing .236/.285/.442 with 12 home runs, 13 steals, 42 RBI, 43 runs scored, 16 doubles and five triples through 78 contests.

Smith isn't starting Saturday's game against the Twins.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a run, an RBI and a strikeout Friday but will be held out of the lineup for the second time in the last three games. Charlie Culberson is starting at the hot corner and batting ninth.

Mateo isn't in the lineup Saturday against the Angels, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.

Mateo started in the last five games and went 2-for-15 with three runs, two RBI and two stolen bases. He'll get a breather while Ramon Urias shifts to shortstop with Tyler Nevin starting at third base.

Edman isn't starting Saturday's game against the Phillies, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Edman is getting a day off after he went just 1-for-19 with five strikeouts over the last five games. Edmundo Sosa will take over at shortstop and bat eighth.

Swanson went 3-for-5 with an RBI in Friday's win over the Nationals.

All three knocks were singles, something of a disappointment on a night in which Atlanta hitters piled up seven extra-base hits including four homers en route to 12 runs, but Swanson still cranked out his fourth multi-hit performance in the last eight games. The shortstop is batting .389 (14-for-36) during that surge, boosting his slash line on the season to .302/.359/.494 with 14 homers, 14 steals, 50 RBI and 52 runs through 85 contests.

Lindor went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-2 loss to the Marlins.

His towering blast off Steven Okert in the eighth inning gave the Mets their final gasp of offense on the night. Lindor is struggling again, batting only .226 (7-for-31) through the first eight games in July, and on the season the shortstop is slashing .240/.318/.417 with 14 homers, nine steals, 49 runs and 58 RBI through 83 contests.

Story went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Friday's 12-5 loss to the Yankees.

He took Nestor Cortes deep in the fourth inning, but the Red Sox were already staring into a 9-2 deficit at that point. Story has gone yard three times during his five-game hit streak, and while the surge has only lifted his slash line on the year to .224/.295/.432, he's still been productive with 15 homers, 10 steals, 46 runs and 55 RBI through 77 contests.

Perdomo went 2-for-3 with a walk and three runs scored in Friday's 6-5 loss to the Rockies.

Perdomo scored every time he reached base. The rookie shortstop, who is batting .202, maintains an acceptable .305 on-base percentage thanks to a 12.2 BB% (31 walks over 259 plate appearances). Perdomo is emerging from an 0-for-27 stretch, going 7-for-31 (.226) with a double, an RBI and six runs scored over his last nine games.

Castillo went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run, a walk and an additional run scored in a 4-3 loss to the Brewers on Friday.

Castillo was the only Pirate who could get to Brewers starter Aaron Ashby, and he did so in a big way with a two-run shot to left-center. The backup utility player now has 10 long balls on the season to go along with 23 RBI in 205 at bats. Despite showing a bit of pop in his bat, Castillo has struggled to get on base all season long and sports a meager .244 OBP. He is likely to remain in a backup role unless he can improve his 5.1 percent walk rate.