MLB Player News

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.

Diaz is not in the lineup against Boston on Friday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Diaz will retreat to a spot on the pine after going 0-for-2 with a pair of strikeouts during Thursday's loss. In his place, Lourdes Gurriel is set to start at shortstop and bat second.

The Royals placed Herrera on the paternity list Friday.

Herrera will likely miss this weekend's series against the White Sox as he can spend up to three days on the paternity list. Paulo Orlando was recalled from Triple-A Omaha for the Royals.

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.

Fletcher went 2-for-5 with a solo home run Thursday against the Mariners.

Fletcher took James Paxton's second pitch of the game deep for his first career home run. His playing time has been cut with the return of Shohei Ohtani, as he now only gets regular playing time on the short side of a platoon at third base. He has flashed limited power through 66 at-bats this season, and with his playing time now lagging, his fantasy value is limited to the deepest of leagues.

Story stayed hot Thursday against the Diamondbacks by going 1-for-3 with his 18th home run of the season.

Though Story's streak of multi-hit performances came to an end, he still didn't disappoint as he sent a Randall Delgado offering 407 feet to right field for another long ball. He and the Rockies will close out the first half with a home series against the Mariners that gets underway Friday.

Adrianza (hamstring) was activated from the 10-day DL on Thursday, Brandon Warne of Zone Coverage reports.

As expected, Adrianza will return to the fold prior to Thursday's series opener against the Rays after missing the minimum 10 days due to a left hamstring strain. Look for the 28-year-old to be utilized as a reserve infielder upon his return, now that Jorge Polanco is back in action. Across 64 games this year, Adrianza is hitting .261 with a .724 OPS.

Correa (back) will not return until after the All-Star break, Julia Morales of AT&T SportsNet reports.

As expected, manager A.J. Hinch ruled Correa out for the final weekend in the first half of the 2018 campaign, and added that the shortstop will require a rehabilitation assignment in the minor leagues prior to his return. In previous days, Correa has resumed throwing, fielded groundballs, and did some light hitting in the batting cage. If all goes well, he should be able to embark upon a minor-league assignment next week. Expect an update on his status later on this weekend as he continues to ramp up activities.

Story went 2-for-4 with a double, run and stolen base Wednesday in the Rockies' 19-2 win over the Diamondbacks.

Story actually generated one of the more modest stat lines on a night the Rockies fell one run shy of matching a franchise-best total, but the shortstop has probably been the most consistently productive hitter in the lineup over the last few weeks. He turned in his sixth consecutive two-hit performance Wednesday and has recorded multiple hits in 10 of his last 13 starts. Dating back to the beginning of June, Story is slashing .357/.388/.615 with six home runs, four steals, 23 RBI and 19 runs in 35 games.