MLB Player News

Cruz went 2-for-4 with a two-run home run during Sunday's 5-3 win over the Rockies.

Cruz' go-ahead no-doubter to right-center in the sixth put the Pirates up for good. Cruz, who also doubled, collected his first multi-hit game in 12 games and only his third since April 6. The talented shortstop, who broke a 17-game homer-less string Friday, has gone 14-for-42 (.333) over his last 13 games with two homers, six RBI and a steal.

Alexander is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Padres.

Alexander had started each of the previous three games at shortstop, going 1-for-9 with one walk. He'll give way to Kevin Newman for the series finale, but the playing time at shortstop will likely tilt in Alexander's direction until Geraldo Perdomo (knee) is ready to return from the injured list.

Shewmake will start at second base and bat ninth in Sunday's game against the Cardinals.

Shewmake will start in his fourth straight game, with two coming at second base and two at third base. He doesn't seem to be making much of a case to move into a full-time role at any position, however, as he went 0-for-9 over his previous three starts to drop his season-long slash line down to .140/.154/.240 over his 52 plate appearances.

Tovar is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates, Luke Zahlmann of The Denver Gazette reports.

Tovar will take a seat for the first time all season after starting in each of Colorado's first 33 games, enabling Alan Trejo to enter the lineup at shortstop. The Rockies are likely hoping that a day on the bench will be helpful for Tovar as he looks to break out of his recent funk at the plate; over his last nine games, he's slashing .128/.171/.154 with a 39 percent strikeout rate.

Lawlar (thumb) had a five-week postoperative follow-up last week and has been cleared to begin a strengthening program, Alex Weiner of Arizona Sports reports.

After Lawlar completes a one-week strength and conditioning program, the shortstop will advance to a baseball projection. In two weeks time, he'll be assessed for his response to baseball activity. If all goes well, the organization will begin prepping Lawlar for activation, which presumably includes a minor-league rehab assignment. It's unclear if the team will deploy him to the majors or assign him to Triple-A Reno.

Rocchio is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Angels.

Rocchio went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Saturday's 7-1 win, but he had been turning a corner of late offensively, going 5-for-14 with five walks against three strikeouts while stealing three bases in four attempts over Cleveland's preceding five contests. Gabriel Arias will get the starting nod at shortstop Sunday, but the Guardians are still seemingly viewing Rocchio as their preferred option at the position.

Baez will start at shortstop and bat eighth in Sunday's game against the Yankees.

Per Chris McCosky of The Detroit News, Baez has been dealing with lingering low-back soreness, which may explain why the Tigers held him out of the lineup for Saturday's 5-3 loss to the Yankees. The sore back doesn't look as though it'll be anything that forces Baez to the 10-day injured list, but he could start receiving more frequent days off, especially if he continues to underwhelm at the plate. After turning in a .671 OPS and .592 OPS in the 2022 and 2023 campaigns, respectively, Baez has declined further so far in his third season in Detroit. He carries a .183/.228/.258 slash line into Sunday's contest.

Kim went 1-for-5 with a home run and four RBI in Saturday's win over the Diamondbacks.

Kim went hitless in his first three at-bats before joining in on the party in the top of the seventh with a three-run homer, his fifth long ball of the season. The infielder would drive in another run in the ninth on a groundout, giving him a season-high four RBI in the contest. Kim has hit safely in three of his last four games, but he has only five games this season in which he's registered multiple hits.

Neto went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a stolen base Saturday in a loss to Cleveland.

Neto plated the only Angels run of the contest with a fifth-inning single. The shortstop followed with a stolen base, but he was left stranded in scoring position. Neto was batting .167 as recently as April 21, but he's turned a corner since, hitting .350 with two homers and six RBI over his past 11 contests.

Hamilton went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Saturday's 3-1 loss to the Twins.

Getting the start at second base and batting eighth, Hamilton swiped his third bag in 15 games for the Red Sox. The 26-year-old infielder is slashing just .214/.283/.310, however, and he offers little else for fantasy purposes. With Vaughn Grissom having recovered from the hamstring strain that cost him the first month-plus of the season and Ceddanne Rafaela still entrenched at shortstop, Hamilton has no clear path to consistent playing time.