MLB Player News

The Giants have benched their starting middle infield Monday. Both second baseman Joe Panik and shortstop Brandon Crawford are out against Mets left-hander Jonathon Niese.

It marks the first absence for Panik since May 21 and third for Crawford since three days later.

Crawford has certainly not struggled against southpaws this season. He is batting .333 (20-for-60). Panik has 19 hits in 68 at-bats against them in 2015.

Diamondbacks rookie shortstop Nick Ahmed tied a career best with three hits Sunday against the Rockies. He has accomplished the feat twice this season.

Ahmed had two singles and his eighth double this season in the 6-4 loss. He also scored a run.

The rookie middle infielder has been on a nice run offensively since early June. He is batting .313 with a .360 on-base percentage, .475 slugging percentage and .835 OPS in his last 23 games. He has three home runs, four doubles, nine RBI, 11 runs, six walks, eight strikeouts and two stolen bases in that span.

Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada tied a season high with three hits during an 8-0 win Sunday against the Dodgers. He has totaled three hits three times this season.

Tejada had singles in the fourth, seventh and eighth innings. He drove in a run with his single in the seventh.

Tejada, who had two runs and one strikeout Sunday, has multiple hits in two of his last three games. 

Since May 29, he is batting .252 with 10 doubles, nine RBI, 10 runs, eight walks, 24 strikeouts and one stolen base in 31 games.

Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford was the lone offensive bright spot for his team during a 3-1 loss to the Nationals on Sunday.

Crawford went 1 for 4 with a solo home run, his 12th of the season.

Crawford is hitting just .228 over his last 10 games, but he does have eight hits, three home runs and seven RBI.

The National League starters for the All-Star Game were announced Sunday, and leading the way after an impressive first half is Nationals slugger Bryce Harper, who racked up nearly 14 million votes to pace the field. 

Harper entered Sunday's game with a .344 average, 25 home runs and 60 RBIs, numbers that have him squarely in the conversation for the Triple Crown. He'll be joined in Cincinnati by players from an array of teams, unlike the AL's Royals-heavy squad. 

Catcher: Buster Posey, Giants
First baseman: Paul Goldschmidt, Diamondbacks
Second baseman: Dee Gordon, Marlins
Third baseman: Todd Frazier, Reds
Shortstop: Jhonny Peralta, Cardinals
Outfield: Bryce Harper, Nationals
Outfield: Matt Holliday, Cardinals
Outfield: Giancarlo Stanton, Marlins 

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa continued to shine bright during his rookie campaign on Sunday against the Red Sox.

Correa went 3 for 4 with a double, a home run and two RBI.

Over his last three games, Correa is hitting .500 with seven hits, two home runs and four RBI.

Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts went 2 for 4 with a double and two RBI in Saturday's win over the Astros.

Bogaerts is hitting an eye-popping .383 with 18 hits, six doubles and seven RBI over his alst 11 games.

Diamondbacks infielder Chris Owings collected three hits during Friday night's 4-3 victory over the Rockies. 

Owings finished the game 3 for 5, with all three of his hits going for singles. For Owings, it's his fourth game getting three hits. Since June 1, Owings has only posted three multi-hit games. Owings is now slashing .239/.262/.332.

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa hit a solo home run in the eighth inning of Friday's win over Boston. 

Correa went 3 for 6, scored twice and drove in two runs. He has three multi-hit games in the last five. 

Correa's homer gave Houston the lead in the eighth. After Boston tied the score, Correa drove in the game-winner with a bases-loaded single in the tenth.

Correa now has six homers and 17 RBI on the year. 

Diamondbacks shortstop Nick Ahmed is getting a break on Friday, as he is being held out of the starting lineup against the Rockies. Ahmed had started each of the last 11 games for Arizona, hitting at a .262 clip with three homers and six RBI over that stretch.

He'll cede the shortstop duties to Cliff Pennington, who is hitting eighth on Friday.