MLB Player News

Monasterio will start at shortstop and bat eighth in Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Monasterio will head into Sunday's contest riding a seven-game hitting streak, during which he's gone 10-for-20 with seven extra-base hits to bring his season-long slash line up to .250/.301/.442. He'll be making his fourth straight start and appears to have supplanted Tsung-Che Cheng as the preferred option at shortstop, but Monasterio likely won't have a long leash as an everyday player. Boston is expected to get Trevor Story (sports hernia) back from the injured list at some point in August, and everyday third baseman Caleb Durbin will begin getting pregame work at shortstop as well in an effort to increase his versatility.

Cheng is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Though he had been occupying the strong side of a platoon at shortstop with Andruw Monasterio since being called up from Triple-A Worcester on June 26, Cheng finds himself on the bench for a fourth straight matchup versus a right-hander. Monasterio appears to have at least temporarily settled into a near-everyday role at the expense of Cheng, who has produced a lowly .256/.318/.282 slash line through his first 44 plate appearances with Boston.

Bregman is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates.

After going 0-for-12 with two walks and four strikeouts in the past three games, the veteran third baseman will exit the lineup Sunday to end a run of 25 consecutive starts. Rookie Pedro Ramirez will step in at the hot corner for the series finale as Bregman's season-long OPS is down to .682 through 102 contests.

Seigler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Romy Gonzalez will draw the start at second base in place of Seigler, but both could be headed for bench roles after the Red Sox acquired Curtis Mead from the Nationals earlier Sunday. Though Mead had primarily been used at third base and first base with Washington, Boston interim manager Chad Tracy said that the infielder will see most of his initial opportunities at the keystone. With a .774 OPS in 29 games with the big club this season, Seigler has performed well enough to maintain at least a semi-regular role, so it's possible that he and/or Mead end up cutting into Masataka Yoshida's playing time at designated hitter.

Acuna (hamstring) could join Atlanta in New York on Monday and return from the 10-day injured list for the club's series opener against the Mets, Grant McAuley of the Marietta Daily Journal reports.

The five-time All-Star was believed to have a chance of playing Sunday, but he's not in the starting lineup against Baltimore and instead appears set to come off the IL a day later. Acuna landed on the shelf June 10 due to a Grade 1 left hamstring strain and kicked off a rehab assignment during the All-Star break, compiling a .231/.364/.346 slash line with six walks, one home run and one stolen base in nine rehab games between the rookie-level Florida Complex League and Triple-A Gwinnett.

Wong is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Wong will take a seat for the series finale after he went 1-for-6 with four strikeouts Friday and Saturday. Carlos Narvaez will get the nod at catcher Sunday.

Pinango is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

The left-handed hitter will hit the bench for the second time in the series, this time against southpaw starter Ranger Suarez. Davis Schneider will receive the nod in left field Sunday, but Pinango should hold down the strong side of a platoon until the Blue Jays get Jesus Sanchez (ankle) back from the injured list.

Cubs manager Craig Counsell said that Palencia (elbow) is scheduled to throw an up-and-down bullpen session Tuesday, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Counsell noted that Palencia felt great after completing a side session Sunday, prompting the Cubs to clear the right-hander to take another small step forward Tuesday with a bullpen session that more closely simulates a game. Assuming that goes well, Palencia could face hitters in live batting practice later in the week before heading out on a minor-league rehab assignment in the first week of August. The 26-year-old has been on the shelf since June 16 due to a mild right flexor strain, after he had previously missed about three weeks earlier in the season on account of a lat strain.

Taveras will start in right field and bat seventh in Sunday's game against Atlanta.

Taveras will be included in the starting nine for the sixth time in seven games and appears to have temporarily reclaimed a near-everyday role with Blaze Alexander (hand) on the shelf. Since the All-Star break, Taveras has gone just 3-for-19 (.158) with a 29.2 percent strikeout rate, so he'll likely need to improve his production to strengthen his grip on a regular spot in the lineup.

Encarnacion-Strand will start at third base and bat fifth in Sunday's game against Atlanta.

Encarnacion-Strand has sizzled at the plate since being called up from Triple-A Norfolk on July 16, going 9-for-24 (.375) with three home runs, nine RBI and a 1:6 BB:K. He'll be making his sixth consecutive start Sunday at third base, where he appears to have leapfrogged Coby Mayo on the depth chart.