Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources
Jun 19
Luis Robert adds homer #18. Robert went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an RBI, and a strikeout against the Rangers in a 5-2 loss Monday. Andrew Vaughn and Robert got Chicago closer on the scoreboard (3-2) by hitting back-to-back homers in the sixth inning. For Robert is a new career-high mark - he broke his personal mark days ago - with 18 homers on the campaign. He is slashing 262/.317/.535 with 38 RBI in 71 games.
Jorge Soler powered Miami to an 11-0 win. Soler went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run and three RBI total in Monday's 11-0 win over the Blue Jays. The long ball Monday was his 21st of the campaign, reaching 20+ homers in three of his ten MLB seasons. The designated hitter is slashing .260/.363/.560 with 45 RBI, 40 runs scored, a stolen base and 12 doubles through 69 contests.
Yasmani Grandal went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts versus the Rangers on Monday.
Where are the walks? Grandal had an 11-game streak with zero walks last month, and now he has a 12-gamer going at the moment. Both rate as his longest such streaks since the first half of 2018, when he went 15 games in a row without a walk. Grandal's average is up, so he hasn't been dreadful offensively. Still, .253/.319/.394 with a total of 15 runs and 18 RBI in 59 games is pretty unimpressive. In the same game, for Texas Adolis García went 1-for-4 with his double #14 of the season, an RBI, a run scored, a walk and two strikeouts. As a result, he is batting .260/.333/.480 with 15 home runs and 57 RBI, which is second in the Majors.
42 RBIs for Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
Gurriel went 1-for-5 with two RBIs in Monday's 9-1 win over Milwaukee. Gurriel's RBI-liner with bases loaded in the first inning ignited the Diamondbacks' offensive giving them a 3-0 lead. Arizona ended up scoring six times in the first frame. After going 0-for-4 with a strikeout the rest of the game, Gurriel's two RBIs in the first inning allowed him to bring his season total to 42, half of his career high of 84 in 2021. He is having solid numbers this year slashing .280/.329/.506 with 11 home runs and 32 runs scored.
José Abreu continues to struggle at the plate.
José Abreu's stability in the Majors is truly concerning. The Astros' Abreu continued his poor performance in the batter's box on Monday, going 0-for-3 with a strikeout in their 11-1 loss to the Mets.He was substituted at the end of the game. After his performance on Monday, Abreu has gone two consecutive games without a single. He has hit 2-for-19 with an RBI and seven strikeouts in his last five games. At this point, the veteran first baseman needs at least one day off.
Dairon Blanco was absent from starting lineup. Andy Ibáñez with a single. Blanco was out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Tigers. Blanco was on the bench for the second time in the Royals' last three games. He entered the game as a pinch-runner in the 8th inning, replacing Salvador Pérez. While the 30-year-old is intriguing because of his speed, there's no guarantee he'll receive regular playing time, especially with Samad Taylor now in the majors to potentially take on an everyday role. In the same game for Detroit, Andy Ibáñez went 1-for-4.
José Iglesias has elected free agency.
The veteran infielder has once again opted out of his minor league deal and will explore the free agent market. He’ll assuredly land on his feet elsewhere before long — though again most likely on a minor league pact.
