MLB Player News

Velazquez (undisclosed) began a rehab assignment with the Angels' rookie-level Arizona Complex League affiliate last Wednesday and has gone 3-for-10 with a double, a triple, a walk, two RBI and two runs through three games.

Velazquez has been sidelined at Triple-A Salt Lake since late April due to an unspecified injury. The 28-year-old infielder spent nearly all of the 2022 campaign in the big leagues, but he was optioned to the minors in spring training coming off a season in which he slashed a dismal .196/.236/.304 with a 34.1 percent strikeout rate across 349 plate appearances with the Angels.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a win over the Brewers on Sunday.

Smith joined the Athletics' offensive barrage in the seventh inning, leaving the yard via a 383-foot shot to left field for his fourth homer of the season. The shortstop had been mired in a 3-for-20 slump over the eight games prior to Sunday's, but manager Mark Kotsay appears committed to continuing to afford Smith near-everyday playing time for the moment.

Downs (undisclosed) began a rehab assignment Thursday with the Nationals' rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate and has gone 0-for-2 with three walks and a run over two games.

Downs has been on the shelf at Triple-A Rochester for nearly a month due to an unspecified injury, but he looks as though he's on the mend. Prior to being deactivated, the 24-year-old infielder hit .154 with no home runs and three stolen bases over 49 plate appearances in the International League.

Lindor went 0-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Sunday's loss to the Pirates.

The Mets managed only three hits and one run on the day, but Lindor found a way to contribute a little value. The pilfer was his second in the last four games and sixth of the year, but the shortstop has struggled to find any kind of consistency on offense this season. Over the last month, Lindor is slashing just .205/.256/.402 in 28 games with six homers, two steals, 14 runs and 16 RBI.

Tovar went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 5-4 win over the Padres.

Tovar opened the scoring in the first inning with his fifth homer of the year. He's hit safely in nine of 10 games during June, going 12-for-38 (.316) with five extra-base hits and five RBI. The shortstop continues to see regular playing time, and he's posted a .253/.295/.412 slash line with 27 RBI, three stolen bases and 30 runs scored over 63 contests.

Neto went 2-for-4 with two solo homers and three runs scored in Sunday's win over Seattle.

Neto ripped a solo homer in the second and eighth innings, snapping a 14-game homerless drought. After ending May in a 1-for-19 skid, the rookie shortstop has gone 8-for-23 (.348) with a 4:5 BB:K and seven runs scored in June. He boosted his season slash line to .253/.337/.404 with 15 extra-base hits, five steals and 20 RBI through 190 plate appearances.

Mauricio will undergo an MRI on his ankle in the coming days, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

Mauricio was involved in a collision at second base at Triple-A Syracuse on June 4, and although he's appeared in games recently, he'll undergo further testing to determine the extent of his ankle injury. As long as the issue isn't serious, he could be in the mix to be called up relatively soon since he's slashing .320/.360/.524 with eight homers, 38 runs, 35 RBI and nine stolen bases in the minors this year.

Franco went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run and an additional run scored in Sunday's 7-3 win over the Rangers.

Franco went over a month between homers, with his last coming May 9 in Baltimore. The shortstop hit a solid .276 over that 27-game span, but he slugged just .362 in the same stretch. His long ball Sunday was his career-best eighth of the campaign, coming in just his 63rd contest. He's added 32 RBI, 41 runs scored, 22 stolen bases, 19 doubles and two triples while slashing .299/.360/.486.

Turner went 3-for-5 with one double, three runs scored and one steal in Sunday's victory over the Dodgers.

Turner scored all three times he reached base and stole his ninth base of the season. The shortstop slashed just .208/.257/.368 across 25 May contests, but he's off to a hot start in June, totaling 13 hits (five for extra-bases), five RBI, nine runs and two steals over 10 games.

Volpe is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox.

After sitting out the front end of a doubleheader with the White Sox on Thursday, Volpe proceeded to start in each of the subsequent three games but recorded just one hit in 10 at-bats over that stretch to bring his batting average down to .187 for the season. The Yankees aren't yet ready to pull the plug on Volpe as their everyday shortstop, though he'll likely have a shorter leash than he did earlier in the season with his production trending down in a hurry.