MLB Player News

Abrams is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Red Sox, Mark Zuckerman of NatsJournal.com reports.

The Nationals are closing out their series in Boston with a day game after a night game and left-hander Payton Tolle is starting for the Red Sox, making it an ideal time for the left-handed-hitting Abrams to receive a breather. Nasim Nunez will slide over from his usual spot at second base to replace Abrams at shortstop.

Caissie went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run and a second run scored in Tuesday's rout of the Rockies.

The Marlins plated runs in seven of their nine innings en route to a 14-3 win at Coors Field, and Caissie got in on the offensive barrage in the eighth by crushing a John Brebbia fastball 453 feet into the second deck in right field. Caissie caught fire in the back half of June, and over his last 12 games he's produced a .394/.447/.818 slash line with two doubles, four homers, nine runs and 11 RBI while reducing his strikeout rate to a somewhat palatable 26.3 percent.

Turner went 2-for-5 with a double, a home run, two runs scored and three RBI in Tuesday's 8-0 win over the Pirates.

Only three of the Phillies' 12 hits on the night went for extra bases, but Turner had two of them including a two-run homer off Brandan Bidois in the eighth inning. The star shortstop has gone yard in back-to-back games and has hit safely in eight straight, batting .342 (13-for-38) during that heater with three doubles, two home runs, one steal, six RBI and nine runs.

Sanchez (10-3) picked up the win Tuesday, scattering three hits and two walks over seven scoreless innings in an 8-0 rout of the Pirates. He struck out nine.

The southpaw became the first starting pitcher in the majors this season to reach double-digit wins, although the Dodgers' Justin Wrobleski joined him later Tuesday night, and Brewers reliever Aaron Ashby has an MLB-leading 11 victories. Sanchez fired 66 of 92 pitches for strikes in a dominant performance that wasn't even derailed by a small cut on the top of his left thumb he picked up in the second inning. Over 11 starts and 76.2 innings since the beginning of May, Sanchez has dialed up a 1.53 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and 86:10 K:BB to emerge as one of the frontrunners for the NL Cy Young Award. He'll look to keep rolling in his next outing, which is scheduled to come on the road early next week in Kansas City.

Chandler (3-8) took the loss Tuesday, giving up five runs on seven hits and two walks over 6.1 innings as the Pirates were blanked 8-0 by the Phillies. He struck out six.

The right-hander kept things close until running out of gas in the seventh inning after 97 pitches (65 strikes), but Chandler had no margin for error with Cristopher Sanchez locked in for Philly. It's the first time since June 2 that Chandler has been tagged for more than two earned runs, and over six starts on the month he posted a 4.28 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 27:12 K:BB in 33.2 innings. He'll look to bounce back in his next outing, which is set to come on the road this weekend against the Nationals.

De La Cruz batted leadoff and went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Tuesday's 7-2 loss to Milwaukee.

Fresh off the injured list a week ago, De La Cruz endured a four-game stretch in which he had one hit in 14 at-bats but has turned that around. He's hit in three straight games since, going 4-for-13 with a home run, a double, two RBI and three runs scored. De La Cruz has served as the leadoff hitter the last four games since Blake Dunn (elbow) landed on the injured list.

McLain entered Tuesday's game as a pinch hitter and played an inning in center field. He went 0-for-1 and caught a line drive in a 7-2 loss to the Brewers.

McLain pinch hit for center fielder TJ Friedl in the eighth inning before finishing the game in the outfield -- his first time playing there as a major-leaguer. Normally an infielder, McLain did pregame drills in the center field the last two days and could get more work in games there as the Reds cope with injuries to Blake Dunn (elbow) and Dane Myers (shoulder).

Kepler went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Tuesday's 8-2 win over the Giants.

Kepler, who recently completed an 80-game suspension, was hitless in his first nine at-bats with Arizona before snapping that run of futility with a first-inning double. He later singled and scored in the fourth. Kepler has started four of his five games with the club, taking over the strong side of a platoon in left field with Lourdes Gurriel, who's been the team's primary designated hitter since Kepler's arrival.

Velazquez went 2-for-2 with a solo home run and a walk in Tuesday's 5-3 win over Atlanta.

Velazquez put the Cardinals on the board with a solo homer off Martin Perez in the fourth inning. It was his third homer of the year. Since being recalled May 29, the slugger is batting .316 (12-for-38) while starting almost exclusively against southpaws. He is unlikely to earn everyday at-bats, but the Cardinals should continue rotating him into the lineup in place of Alec Burleson, Lars Nootbaar or Nathan Church whenever they face a left-handed starter.

Stewart went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a double and two RBI in Tuesday's 7-2 loss to the Brewers.

Stewart accounted for all of Cincinnati's offense Tuesday. In the first inning he opened the scoring with a solo homer off Brandon Sproat, and he doubled home Elly De La Cruz in the sixth to chase Sproat from the game. The young first baseman is batting .317 over his last 10 games while recording five multi-hit performances and driving in 12 runs during that stretch.