MLB Player News

The 30-year-old McCormick is slashing .318/.423/.364 on the season but has been limited to just 29 plate appearances, and the Astros have also said that Cam Smith will start taking fly balls in centerfield. As Rome points out, “The entire premise of carrying McCormick centered on his ability to back up Jake Meyers in center field and serve as a late-game defensive replacement for Smith or Altuve in the corners.” If the Astros don’t need McCormick as a late-game defensive replacement and Zach Dezenzo begins to show more offensive promise, there is little need for McCormick on the roster. Rome adds, “The act of exposing Smith to center field accentuates how far McCormick has fallen in the organizational hierarchy. That he has taken 19 plate appearances since April 3 — and sacrifice-bunted during two of them — further demonstrates his standing.”

Ohtani’s sacrifice fly in the seventh inning gave the Dodgers their first and only run of the night as Ohtani and company were held to a combined three hits in the defeat. Ohtani is now riding an eight-game hitting streak and has 11 RBI to show for his efforts over that span.

Muncy is still dealing with pain and swelling and will probably need to miss a couple of games, but the Dodgers are hopeful that he was able to avoid significant injury and shouldn’t require a trip to the injured list. Things could change depending on how he’s feeling on Saturday, but it sounds like Muncy dodged a bullet on this one.

Contreras put the Brewers on the board in the first inning when he drove a slider from Justin Wrobleski 412 feet into left field. It was a three-run homer for Contreras and his fourth homer of the season. As it would turn out, that homer would be all the Brewers would need as the Dodgers were held to just one run on the night in a game that was dominated by Brewers starter Logan Henderson. Contreras continues to swing a hot bat and has now hit safely in seven straight games while slashing .329/.390/.384 on the month.

Henderson was masterful over five scoreless frames, allowing just two hits and three walks while keeping the Dodgers off the board. He struck out two of the first three batters he faced and didn’t allow a hit until the fourth inning, keeping a potent Dodgers offense at bay after being gifted an early 5-0 lead. Henderson lowered his season ERA to 2.74 on the year and is also boasting a solid 1.04 WHIP. His next start is scheduled for Wednesday at home against the Cardinals.

It was a rough start to the game for Wrobleski, who allowed the first three batters he faced to reach base. The third batter to reach base, William Contreras, did so via a three-run homer to give the Brewers an early 3-0 lead. He would allow one more run in the frame thanks to a sac fly by Sal Frelick, and gave up one more run in the second inning on an RBI double by Andrew Vaughn. Wrobleski wouldn’t allow another run over the next three innings, but the damage had been done and the Dodgers managed just one run on the evening. Wrobleski has been solid for most of the season, but has allowed five earned runs in two of his last three starts. Although, it’s worth nothing both of those starts game against two of the league’s top offenses. He gets a more favorable matchup in his next outing, which is scheduled for Wednesday against the Rockies.

The 1,000th hit of Contreras’ career came in the first inning when he tripled off of Connor Prielipp to drive in Wilyer Abreu, pushing the Red Sox’s lead to 2-0. Contreras has now hit in six-straight games while also driving in eight runs over that span. He remains one of the top bats in a Red Sox lineup that has struggled to produce runs this season.

Buxton drove in his first run of the night on an RBI single in the second inning to cut the Red Sox’s lead to 4-3. In the top of the seventh, the veteran center fielder would blast a 438-foot homer to center to bring home Luke Keaschall, again cutting into the Red Sox’s lead in what was a back-and-forth affair. Buxton has now homered eight times this month and has 16 total homers on the season. Despite the injury concerns, he remains one of the best power bats in fantasy when healthy.

Springer has now hit safely in five-straight games and has three extra-base hits over the span. The veteran slugger drove home two runs in the eighth inning to push the Jays’ lead to 6-2, but continues to struggle at the plate despite this recent string of success. He’s slashing just .190/.261/.317 on the month and remains one of the more disappointing fantasy players through the first half of this season.

Muncy was drilled on the right wrist by a 95-mph sinker from Aaron Ashby in the eighth inning and appeared to be in considerable pain afterwards before he was lifted for a pinch runner. He’ll head for imaging to rule out any potential fractures. Expect the Dodgers to provide an update on his status as soon as more information becomes available.

Lowe singled in the first inning and later came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Spencer Horwitz to give the Pirates an early 1-0 lead. He would later come around to score again in the eighth inning on an RBI single by Bryan Reynolds and has now hit safely in five-straight games while batting .412 over that span. Lowe has been swinging a hot bat all month, slashing .279/.383/.574 while also slugging four homers.