MLB Player News

Junk (1-2) picked up the win in Wednesday's 4-1 victory over the Cardinals, allowing one hit and one walk over five scoreless innings. He struck out two.

The right-hander got a surprisingly early hook after just 56 pitches (38 strikes), but he was due to face the top of the St. Louis order for a third time in the top of the sixth, and manager Clayton McCullough didn't indicate after the game that Junk was dealing with any sort of injury. Junk has given the Marlins at least five innings in four straight outings, but if his usage continues to be this restricted, he'll have a hard time keeping that streak going. He'll take a 3.67 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and 17:7 K:BB through 27 innings into his next start, which is scheduled to come on the road early next week against the Dodgers.

Rengifo is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Tigers.

Rengifo will hit the bench after he had drawn starts in each of the last five games while going 5-for-16 with two doubles, two walks, three RBI, three runs and one stolen base. Joey Ortiz is back in the lineup Wednesday after sitting for three of those five contests, but he's put together a weak .192/.263/.192 slash line over 59 plate appearances, which has loosened his grip on the everyday role at shortstop. If Ortiz ends up losing playing time, Rengifo would likely take over as the Brewers' primary third baseman, with David Hamilton shifting over to shortstop.

Baty is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins.

Though he had been included in the lineup in each of the Mets' last six games while the team went up against right-handed starting pitchers, the left-handed-hitting Baty will take a seat while southpaw Connor Prielipp toes the rubber for Minnesota. With Juan Soto (calf) making his return from the injured list Wednesday, the Mets may only have one spot available in the lineup moving forward for either Baty and Carson Benge when the team faces right-handers. Both players have struggled to produce at the plate through the first four weeks of the season, with Baty owning a .498 OPS and Benge generating a .416 OPS.

Herrera went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 4-1 loss to the Marlins.

The 25-year-old spoiled Miami's combined shutout bid by taking Lake Bachar deep in the ninth inning. Herrera's bat is heating up -- he's hit safely in eight of the last 10 games, batting .263 (10-for-38) with all three of his long balls on the season along with six RBI and seven runs. He needs one more game played at catcher to reach 10 and gain eligibility at the position in common fantasy formats. That could happen as soon as Friday with Andre Pallante taking the mound versus Seattle, with Herrera having caught his four previous starts this year.

Melendez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins.

Left-hander Connor Prielipp is on the bump for Minnesota, so the left-handed-hitting Melendez will retreat to the bench after he had started each of the previous five games. The Mets will ease Juan Soto (calf) back in following a stint on the injured list by deploying him at designated hitter, but he'll likely resume playing left field on a full-time basis in short order to keep the DH spot open for Melendez. The 27-year-old has posted a 1.014 OPS through his first five games with New York since getting recalled from Triple-A Syracuse last week, and he should continue to play regularly versus right-handed pitching so long as he's wielding a hot bat.

Leahy (2-3) took the loss Wednesday, giving up four runs on eight hits and three walks over five innings as the Cardinals fell 4-1 to the Marlins. He struck out two.

All eight hits off the right-hander were singles as Miami batters played small ball, but Leahy also helped create some of his own problems as he walked home a run in the second inning. He exited the mound after 89 pitches (50 strikes) and has failed to finish six frames in his first five starts of the year. Leahy will take a 5.63 ERA, 1.67 WHIP and 15:11 K:BB through 24 innings into his next start, which lines up to come on the road early next week in Pittsburgh.

Benge is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins.

After starting each of the Mets' last six games and going 3-for-20 with a double, a walk, one stolen base and two runs over that stretch, the left-handed-hitting Benge will take a seat while southpaw Connor Prielipp takes the hill for the Twins. The Mets will roll out an all-right-handed-hitting outfield Wednesday featuring Tommy Pham, Luis Robert and Tyrone Taylor from left to right.

Nunez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against Atlanta.

Jorbit Vivas will enter the starting nine at second base while Nunez receives a day off. Nunez had started in each of the Nationals' previous six games, going 2-for-19 with four walks, three stolen bases, four runs and one RBI.

Smith is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Nationals.

Atlanta is giving Drake Baldwin a day off from catching but keeping his bat in the lineup at designated hitter, so Smith will be the odd man out of the starting nine. A non-roster invitee in spring training, Smith secured a spot on the Opening Day squad coming out of camp and has been a pleasant surprise for Atlanta early on, slashing .345/.362/.600 with four home runs, 17 RBI and 10 runs over 18 games.

Jimenez is day-to-day after X-rays on his left hand came back negative Wednesday, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Jimenez was hit by a Kyle Leahy pitch in his first plate appearance during Wednesday's win over the Cardinals and eventually exited the game. He is dealing with some bruising but has managed to avoid a fracture. Jimenez has played sparingly for the Marlins, as his start Wednesday was his first in two weeks.