Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 30 Luis Robert Jr. is not in the White Sox starting lineup for Sunday's finale against the Rays. Robert is not in the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays, Vinnie Duber of AllCHGO.com reports. It's not completely clear at this time whether Robert is out of the lineup due to the tightness in his right hamstring, or if this is a continued punishment for not running hard to first base that saw him removed early in the loss to the Rays on Saturday. Adam Haseley is starting in center field and leading off for the White Sox with Robert out of the lineup. Rays' Yandy Díaz: Still out Sunday. Díaz (shoulder) is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox, Ryan Bass of Bally Sports Sun reports. Díaz will be out of the lineup for the second consecutive game after he exited Friday's contest with soreness in his left shoulder. The 31-year-old should be available off the bench and will now have Monday's team off day to aid in his recovery before potentially missing more time. Luke Raley will start at first base in Sunday's series finale. April 29 Randy Arozarena hit two homers and drove in four runs as the Rays topped the White Sox 12-3 on Saturday. Arozarena went 2-for-5 with two homers and four RBI scored in Saturday's victory over the White Sox. The Rays were down 3-0 and getting no-hit after six tonight, yet it turned into another rout anyway. Arozarena smacked a three-run shot in the Rays' 10-run seventh inning and popped a solo shot in the ninth. Arozarena is hitting .333/.400/.590 with seven homers and 28 RBI, making him a definite candidate for AL Player of the Month honors for April. Arozarena is also on pace to surpass his career-high mark of 20 homers. Yandy Díaz came off the bench to walk twice against the White Sox on Saturday. Díaz was again held out of the starting lineup because of shoulder soreness, but he was able to take two plate appearances and play three innings on defense tonight. Díaz left Friday's game against the White Sox with left shoulder soreness. He went 1-for-2 with a run scored before exiting. Dodgers' Miguel Vargas: One double on Saturday. Vargas went 1-for-4 with his fifth double of the season in Saturday's 1-0 victory against the Cardinals. It was his second consecutive 1-for-4 game after Vargas hit his first homer of the campaign on Friday night. While Vargas has shown good discipline at the plate this season -- he ranks second on the team with 16 walks and has recorded a solid 20.9 percent strikeout rate -- the 23-year-old's overall production has been mild. He's slashing .221/.358/.351 with one home run, five doubles, a triple, 11 runs, eight RBI and one stolen base through 96 plate appearances. Royals' Aroldis Chapman: Collects win Saturday. Chapman (1-1) struck out two in a perfect inning, earning the win Saturday versus the Twins. Chapman faltered a bit in Arizona, allowing three runs (two earned) over 1.1 innings in two appearances, but he got back on track Saturday. The hard-throwing lefty has pitched well this season with a 1.74 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 19:3 K:BB across 10.1 innings. He's added a save and two holds. Chapman continues to be part of the late-inning mix, though Scott Barlow has seen the bulk of the closing duties on the rare occasions the Royals have a lead to protect. Astros' José Abreu: Down to sixth in lineup. Abreu was moved down to sixth in the lineup, at least against righties and he went 1-for-4 in a 6-1 loss to the Phillies on Saturday. Abreu began the season hitting cleanup and was moved down to fifth in the lineup for the last four games against righties, and now he slips to his lowest spot since joining the Astros. The veteran first baseman is hitting .243 with a .276 OBP and zero home runs this season. He has hit one home run in his last 81 games. The replacement of Yuli Gurriel with Abreu for this season has always been controversial and Abreu's performance so far shows that. Yordan Álvarez returned to the Astros' lineup for Saturday's contest against the Phillies. It's a significant development for the Astros that Álvarez was feeling well enough to get back into Houston's lineup at designated hitter on Saturday evening following a four-game absence due to neck discomfort. In the game, Álvarez went 2-for-3 with a walk adding his double #4 of the season in a 6-1 loss to the Phillies. The White Sox confirmed that Luis Robert Jr. was pulled from Saturday's game against the Rays due to a managerial decision, and not due to injury. Oscar Colás went hitless. It was Robert's lack of hustle on a dribbler to the left side of the mound that he would have easily beaten out for a single had he been running to first base that sparked the decision from manager Pedro Grifol. It's certainly not a good look for the 25-year-old outfielder to by lollygagging to first base when the team is in the midst of a nine-game losing streak. It's unclear if this was all the discipline that he'll get, or if he may sit out another game or two. Stay tuned. Robert's spot was filled by Oscar Colás who went 0-for-3 with 3 LOB in an ugly 12-3 loss to the Rays. The Athletics confirmed that Aledmys Díaz was pulled from Saturday's affair against the Reds due to a left hamstring injury. He'll head for further evaluation, which should determine the severity of the injury and how much time the versatile infielder may miss. Kevin Smith replaced him at shortstop on Saturday and could be in line for additional playing time if Díaz winds up landing on the injured list.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 27 Yandy Díaz went 3-for-5 with a solo homer on Thursday in the Rays' win over the White Sox. Díaz's long-awaited power breakthrough appears to be finally happening as he took righty reliever Kendall Graveman deep in the seventh inning for his seventh round-tripper of the season. The first baseman is well on pace to crush his career-high of 14 homers in a season, which he hit in 2019. He needed 307 at-bats to do so that year, while he's already reached half that total in just 92 plate appearances so far this season. The 31-year-old on-base machine is slashing .315/.407/.576 with 21 runs scored, seven homers and 16 RBI across 108 plate appearances. Aledmys Díaz went 0-for-3 with a HBP as the Athletics' third baseman Thursday in the loss to the Angels. Díaz entered the day as one of four position players at -0.9 rWAR, the worst mark of the year to date. He's hitting .143/.217/.202 in 92 plate appearances and he hasn't been played very good defense, though part of the problem there is that he's seen a fair amount of time at short and he's obviously stretched there these days. Díaz will probably bounce back some offensively, but he'd be better utilized playing a limited role on a contender than what he's doing now. Yoán Moncada is dealing with a disc issue in his back. White Sox general manager Rick Hahn told reporters Moncada won't start a minor league rehab assignment until later next week, at the earliest, but he's showing some improvement and isn't expected to require surgery. There isn't an exact timetable for his return, but fans shouldn't expect Moncada to return until sometime in mid-to-late May. Yasmani Grandal went 1-for-4 on Thursday in his return to the White Sox' lineup. Grandal wound up missing only one game due to back spasms. The 34-year-old veteran backstop holds a .785 OPS with two homers and seven RBI across 79 plate appearances over 21 games. Dodgers' Miguel Vargas: Did not play on Thursday. Vargas was absent from the Dodgers' lineup for Thursday's game in Pittsburgh, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reported. Mookie Betts handled second base. Vargas is getting on base at a .372 clip thanks to 16 walks, but a .681 OPS and zero home runs have left something to be desired, although he did steal his first bag of the season Wednesday. Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) threw a scoreless inning Thursday in a minor league rehab appearance for Triple-A Gwinnett. Iglesias recorded one strikeout and needed just 12 pitches (eight strikes) to retire all three batters he faced in his rehab debut. The 33-year-old closer isn't too far off from rejoining Atlanta's bullpen.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 27 Jorge Soler is not in Thursday's lineup against the Braves, Yuli Gurriel is playing. The veteran slugger will take a seat against right-hander Kyle Wright. Avisail Garcia is also on the bench Thursday while Jesús Sánchez plays right and Bryan De La Cruz starts in left. Yuli Gurriel is at first base and Garrett Cooper will DH. Dodgers' Miguel Vargas: Sitting out Thursday. Vargas is absent from the Dodgers' lineup for Thursday's game in Pittsburgh, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reports. Mookie Betts will handle second base. Vargas is getting on base at a .372 clip thanks to 16 walks, but a .681 OPS and zero home runs have left something to be desired, although he did steal his first bag of the season Wednesday. April 26 Yennier Cano gets Orioles out of trouble and ties record. In a 6-2 win against the Red Sox, Tennier Cano continued shining in his reliever role. Wednesday afternoon’s win featured some more clutch relief from Yennier Cano, who tied a club record dating to 1976 (Fred Holdsworth) for 24 consecutive batters retired to begin a season. That was after getting out the first four batters Cano faced today. He did not break the record because he hit the next guy with a pitch, but Cano got one more out and has still yet to allow a hit or run this season. Hitters are now 0-for-26 with a HBP against Cano this season. He is basically dominating them using his fastball 58.8% of the time, his wicked slider 19.6% - mostly to sentence hitters - and his changeup a 21.6% this year. After the game Cano said through team interpreter Brandon Quinones. “Hopefully, somebody will come around and break that record.” Aledmys Díaz was back in Wednesday's starting lineup. Aledmys Díaz was back in the A's starting lineup Wednesday versus the rival Los Angeles Angels. Diaz sat out Tuesday night's contest with the Angels but returned to the six-hole and man the hot corner Wednesday. He went 0-for-4 in the game with a strikeout. It's been an ugly start for the veteran who is hitting just .148 with one homer and a .426 OPS across 88 plate appearances so far this season. Yordan Álvarez (neck) remained out of the Astros' lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays. No surprise here as Álvarez missed his third consecutive game on Wednesday evening due to neck discomfort and seems extremely likely to be placed on the 10-day injured list. There should be an official determination on his status soon. Astros' José Abreu: Power still lacking. Abreu went 1-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored Tuesday against the Rays. Abreu tallied an RBI double and came around to score in the fifth inning of Tuesday's win. He now has at least one hit in seven of his last eight starts, which has resulted in a .273 average. Even with that positive production, he has only two extra-base hits in that span and four total on the campaign across 105 plate appearances. Overall, Abreu has maintained a 60 wRC+ and .256 wOBA. White Sox's Oscar Colás: Out again Wednesday. Colás was out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays. Colás finds himself out of the lineup for the fourth time in five games, with two absences coming against right-handers and two coming against left-handers. At this point, Colás looks to have moved into a reserve role after posting a .567 OPS through his first 71 plate appearances of the season, perhaps setting the stage for a demotion to Triple-A Charlotte so he can play regularly and regain some confidence at the dish. Gavin Sheets and Romy González could end up forming a platoon in right field moving forward. Reds' José Barrero: On the bench Wednesday. Barrero was out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rangers. Barrero had been scheduled to receive the day off Tuesday, but he was ultimately added to the lineup late as a replacement for Wil Myers (neck) and proceeded to 0-for-3 with a walk and a run in the Reds' 7-6 win. With Myers back in action for Wednesday's series finale, Barrero got a chance to rest.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 25 Nestor Cortes yielded four runs -- three earned -- in five-plus innings Tuesday in a loss to the Twins. Cortes (3-1) was charged with the loss Tuesday in Minnesota after he allowed four runs (three earned) on five hits across five-plus innings. He struck out six and walked one. It was two runs through five, but Cortes gave up a double to Jorge Polanco and a homer to Byron Buxton to open the sixth. He was pulled at that point. Of his 13 whiffs, 11 came on his fastball. The 28-year-old has yet to give up more than three earned runs in any of his five starts this year and has a 3.49 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 28:5 K:BB over 28.1 innings. His next start is against the Rangers. Johan Oviedo was charged with five runs (four earned) over 5 1/3 innings on Tuesday in a no-decision against the Dodgers. Oviedo gave up a two-run double to Miguel Vargas in the opening frame, but managed to hold the Dodgers scoreless until the fifth inning and wound up being lifted after loading the bases in the sixth inning. The right-hander saw his quality start streak end at three, but Oviedo still exited the game in line for his third win of the season, only to see Colin Holderman serve up a game-winning blast to Chris Taylor in the eighth inning. Oviedo will take a 3.03 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 29:10 K:BB through 29.2 innings into his next outing, likely to come this weekend on the road against the Nationals. Marlins' Yuli Gurriel: Showcases power, speed. Gurriel went 2-for-4 with one homer, one RBI, one run scored and one steal in Tuesday's loss against the Braves. Gurriel swiped his first bag of the 2023 season Tuesday, taking second base after hitting a single in the second frame. The first baseman also came through in crunch time, clubbing a solo home run in the top of the ninth that brought the Marlins to within three, but they were unable to build momentum and mount a comeback. Though Gurriel is used primarily as a bench option for Miami, he's worth a look in daily formats when in the starting lineup against left-handed pitching considering his extremely low career 9.1% strikeout rate and .191 ISO. Yasmani Grandal was pulled from Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays due to back spasms. White Sox manager Pedro Grifol classified it as a day-to-day situation and said that Grandal could catch in an emergency situation. He also noted that the team shouldn't have to make a roster move. Consider him day-to-day for now, but be sure to check back to see how he's feeling on Wednesday. Royals' Aroldis Chapman: More runs allowed on Tuesday. Chapman allowed two runs - one earned - on three hits with one strikeout over 1/3 inning, but was still credited with the hold in a 5-4 victory against Arizona. Chapman started the year on an eight-inning scoreless streak, but it came to a close Monday when he allowed his first run of the season. Now in back to back outing he has been inefficient and showing similar performance to the 2022 start of the season with the Yankees. Chapman still has an excellent 17:3 K:BB with a 1.93 ERA and 0.96 WHIP through nine one third innings. Padres signed INF José Iglesias to a minor league contract. The 33-year-old officially opted out of his contract with the Marlins on Thursday and it didn't take him long to land another opportunity. He'll add depth for the Padres at the Triple-A level, but it'll likely take an injury in front of him for Iglesias to see time with the big league club. Diamondbacks' Lourdes Gurriel: Steals bag in loss. Gurriel started in left field and went 2-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and a run scored in Tuesday's 5-4 loss to the Royals. Gurriel swiped his first base of the season, but he's not typically a threat in that fantasy category. The outfielder entered 2023 with 14 steals (14 times caught) over 427 games during his MLB career. Gurriel has been the primary DH for the Diamondbacks and could see more opportunities in the outfield after the team optioned Jake McCarthy to Triple-A Reno on Tuesday. Miguel Vargas: Two hits on Tuesday. Miguel Vargas went 2-for-4 on Tuesday in a 8-7 win against the Pirates. The second baseman went 2-for-4 with his four double of the season and his RBI # 5 and 6. He also walked and scored a run. Vargas is slashing .231/.378/.323 with zero homers and six RBI this year. Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) is scheduled to face live hitters again -- perhaps on a minor league rehab assignment -- on Thursday. It may just be a live batting practice session, that hasn't been finalized yet. The 33-year-old right-hander is finally making tangible strides toward a return and should be ready to join the Braves' bullpen early in the month of May. Yordan Alvarez (neck) was absent from the Astros' lineup for Tuesday's showdown against the Rays. Astros manager Dusty Baker said earlier Tuesday in a local radio interview that Alvarez was "about the same as yesterday" and the club is waiting for team doctors to determine a course of action. It's possible the 25-year-old fantasy superstar, who sat out Monday's series opener due to neck discomfort, could wind up requiring a trip to the injured list. There should be some clarity on his status sometime this week. White Sox's Oscar Colas: On bench again Tuesday. Colas is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays. On the bench for the third time in four games, Colas looks to be at risk of losing his regular role in the outfield or possibly even facing a demotion to Triple-A Charlotte. After earning his way onto the Opening Day roster coming out of spring training, Colas has made little impact through his first 21 games in the big leagues. He enters Tuesday hitting just .219 with two extra-base hits (one home run, one double) and two stolen bases over 71 plate appearances. Yandy Diaz and Randy Arozarena combined for two hits on Tuesday. In a 5-0 loss to the Astros, Diaz and Arozarena went 2-for-7 with a walk and two strikeouts. Diaz was coming back of an injury and was the DH for the second game of the series against the reigning World Series champions. Athletics' Aledmys Diaz: Sitting out again Tuesday. Diaz was out of the lineup for Tuesday's contest against the Angels, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reported. Diaz was out of the starting lineup for the second time in three games. The veteran infielder took a seat with Kevin Smith getting the start at shortstop and hitting ninth against the Angels on Tuesday. Reds' Jose Barrero: Hitless after late addition to lineup. Barrero started at designated hitter and batted eighth in Tuesday's game against the Rangers. Barrero was scheduled to get Tuesday off, but he end up starting after all due to Wil Myers (neck) being scratched from the lineup. Barrero went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored. His slash line this year continues to be a poor one sitting at .217/.304/.300.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 24 Yennier Cano fired a scoreless ninth inning on Monday against the Red Sox to collect his first career save. With Félix Bautista unavailable after pitching twice in the last three days, Orioles manager Brandon Hyde turned to Cano to guard a one-run lead with the tying run already on-base in the ninth inning. He struck out Enrique Hernández and Triston Casas before coaxing a game-ending line-out from Jarren Duran to preserve the victory. The 29-year-old righty, who was acquired last year at the trade deadline from the Twins, has reeled off seven scoreless innings with a 9/0 K/BB ratio across six appearances to open the year. That'll work. Royals' Aroldis Chapman: Surrenders first run of season. Chapman (0-1) allowed a run on a hit and a walk with one strikeout over one inning, taking the loss Monday versus the Diamondbacks. Chapman started the year on an eight-inning scoreless streak, but it came to a close Monday. He walked Christian Walker and allowed a single to Gabriel Moreno before Nick Ahmed's fielder's choice plated the decisive run in the bottom of the eighth inning. Chapman still has an excellent 16:3 K:BB with a 1.00 ERA and 0.67 WHIP through nine innings. Unfortunately, the Royals' 5-18 start to the season has allowed him to pick up just one save and one hold. Chapman's usage suggests he's still at least slightly behind the struggling Scott Barlow in the closer hierarchy. Astros manager Dusty Baker told reporters that Yordan Alvarez was held out of the team's starting lineup on Monday night due to neck discomfort. That's so much worse than a regular night of rest. The 25-year-old superstar has been sent back to Houston to undergo an examination. Baker noted that Alvarez has been battling the neck pain for the past week or so, and it has now gotten to the point that the team is concerned. He also noted that it's still up in the air whether or not he'll require a trip to the injured list -- or if he could still be available during their series against the Rays that opens on Monday. Alvarez has been a run-producing machine so far for the Astros this season -- slashing .253/.367/.533 with six homers and 27 RBI in 20 games. Adolis Garcia: One hit Monday. After a sensational three homers on Sunday, Adolis went 1-for-4 on Monday night in a 7-6 loss to the Reds. Adolis scored and also struck out twice. In the same game, for the Reds, Jose Barrero went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. Raisel Iglesias faced hitters Monday Raisel Iglesias was set to face hitters in live batting practice Monday. Iglesias has yet to pitch in 2023 after experiencing shoulder discomfort toward the end of spring training. He would likely need a few rehab appearances before returning to the Braves, but it is good to see him take the next step in his recovery.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 22 Adolis García had three homers, two doubles and eight RBI as the Rangers crushed the A's 18-3 on Saturday. García was off to something of a slow start coming into this one, believe it or not. As is turns out, though, hitting three homers and doubling twice raised his OPS by 235 points. This was the first three-homer game of his career. He's the 14th player in major league history to collect five extra-base hits in a game and only the second ever with five extra-base hits and eight RBI. The only previous player to accomplish that feat was another Ranger: Josh Hamilton in his four-homer game on May 8, 2012. It's his first career five-hit or three-homer game. He topped his previous high in RBI by three. This was only the fourth time in MLB history that a player had three homers and two doubles, joining Alex Dickerson (Sept. 1, 2020), Matt Carpenter (July 20, 2018) and Kris Bryant (June 27, 2016). And then there is the biggest number here, as García hauled in 16 total bases. This was the 25th time in MLB history a player recorded at least 16 total bases. The record is 19 (Shawn Green, May 23, 2002). Hamilton was the only other Rangers player to get to at least 16, and he had 18 that day. The most recent 16 total-base game was Dickerson's aforementioned game in 2020. Jose Barrero went 2-for-2 with a walk and a steal versus the Pirates on Saturday. Barrero had a 44% strikeout rate and a 5% walk rate in his 174 plate appearances for the Reds last year. Right now, he's at 24% and 10%, respectively, which would rate as a massive improvement if he could keep it up. Fortunately, the team is giving him plenty of at-bats; he was expected to take a backseat to Kevin Newman, but that hasn't really been the case. Randy Arozarena delivered a game-winning RBI single in the 10th inning on Saturday, lifting the Rays to a 4-3 walk-off victory over the White Sox. Arozarena capped off an impressive three-hit performance by sending the Rays faithful home happy with a walk-off win. He took righty Dylan Cease deep for a two-run shot in the second inning -- his fifth round-tripper of the season -- and also added an RBI single off reliever Keynan Middleton in the fifth inning as well. The 28-year-old fantasy superstar has served as Tampa Bays' main offensive catalyst this season, batting .350 (28-for-79) with five homers, 22 RBI and three stolen bases through 20 games. White Sox's Yasmani Grandal: Tallies second homer. Grandal went 1-for-3 with a walk and a solo home run Saturday against the Rays. Grandal took Shane McClanahan yard in the fifth inning to tally his second homer of the season. It was Grandal's first long ball since Opening Day, though he has nine total extra-base hits across 72 plate appearances to begin 2023. That stands in contrast to last season when he managed only 12 total extra-base knocks in 376 plate appearances. Astros' Yordan Alvarez: Goes deep again. Alvarez went 1-for-5 with two-run home run in Saturday's win over Atlanta. Alvarez broke up Kyle Wright's shutout with a two-run shot in the sixth inning. It is the second game in a row Alvarez has smacked a go-ahead home run in Atlanta. The slugger has driven in 25 runs in 19 games this season. Dodgers' Miguel Vargas: Got Saturday off. Vargas sat Saturday against the Cubs, David Vassegh of AM 570 LA Sports reported. Vargas hit the bench after starting 10 straight games at second base. He hasn't gotten off to a great start this season, hitting .204/.371/.296 with zero homers, but his 14:15 BB:K at least indicates that he's seeing the ball quite well. Mookie Betts will start at second base, with Jason Heyward taking Betts' usual spot in right field. Yandy Díaz was removed from Saturday's game against the White Sox due to dehydration. The Rays announced that the hard-hitting first baseman will be reevaluated on Sunday. For now, the 31-year-old slugger should be considered day-to-day. April 21 Yordan Alvarez launched a go-ahead two-run homer in the ninth inning to lead the Astros to a 6-4 victory over the Braves on Friday. The Astros found themselves down 4-1 after the first inning, but they tied things up in the seventh before Alvarez took A.J. Minter deep with two outs in the top of the ninth. It was a 405-foot moonshot to distant right-center field. Alvarez went 1-for-4 on the night and now leads the AL with 23 RBI to go along with five homers and a .262/.388/.538 batting line. Hey, remember when everyone was worried about his hand? That feels like a distant memory. Raisel Iglesias (shoulder) made it through another bullpen on Friday without any issues. The next step for the right-hander will be to face live hitters, which likely isn't too far on the horizon. He'll likely then require a couple of outings on a minor league rehab assignment before he's ready to return to the Braves' bullpen. At this point, the best guess at a return date would be in early May. White Sox's Oscar Colas: Ending skid. Colas went 1-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored Friday against the Rays. Colas drove in a run with an infield single in the second frame and also came around to score. After a brief stretch of production to begin the season, he has gone only 9-for-46 across his last 15 games while striking out at a 25 percent clip in that span. However, he's shown recent signs of turning things around across his last two contests, as he's reached base three times in seven plate appearances. The White Sox appear willing to give Colas the chance to work through any struggles, as he's maintained consistent playing time despite posting a .233/.303/.300 slash line across 67 plate appearances on the campaign.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 19 Johan Oviedo gave up one run over six innings while striking out six on Tuesday in a win over the Rockies. Given a five-run cushion in the top of the first, Oviedo quickly settled down in his test at Coors. It wasn't until the fourth inning before he was tested. He walked Kris Bryant, coughed up a single to Ryan McMahon, and then Mike Moustakas hit a sacrifice fly driving home Bryant for the Rockies first run. He fired two shut-out innings before leaving the game after six. He generated 13 swinging strikes and notched a sublime 38 percent CSW. Oviedo is the Pirates’ No. 4 starter but his 2.22 ERA (six earned runs over 24 1/3 innings) in the early part of the season ranks among the Top 15 in the game. Baseball Savant reports that opposing hitters have a slim .191 expected batting average against his most effective pitch right now, the slider. His variety might not be overpowering, but that's not the point. Over six innings, Oviedo threw 84 pitches, mostly sliders, resulting in 32 called strikes and whiffs. In addition to striking out six and walking three, he gave up just three hits. He has a massive test against the Dodgers in his next outing on Tuesday. Yandy Díaz went 2-for-4 with a homer and a walk Wednesday against the Reds. Díaz hit a leadoff homer at 114.5 mph, the hardest-hit ball of his career, off Levi Stoudt. Hitting flyballs at a decent rate for the first time in his career, he has six homers in 17 games this year. Last year, he had nine homers in 137 games. Díaz has gone yard in back-to-back contests, and on the season he's batting .274 (17-for-62) with six homers, 13 RBI and 16 runs in 17 games -- a fantastic pace for a player whose career high in home runs is only 14, set back in 2019. Aroldis Chapman: Scoreless again. Chapman was scoreless in his seven consecutive outing this season after going one inning against the Rangers in a 12-3 loss on Wednesday. Chapman used 16 pitches - 9 strikes - facing the minimum striking out one. He has 13 strikeouts in 7 innings and has allowed only 2 hits in 2023. Cionel Pérez and Yennier Cano: Both saw action against the Nationals. In Wednesday's 4-0 win over the Nationals, Pérez and Cano combined once again. Pérez pitched 1/3 of an inning in the eighth inning, striking out one and walking two. Cano was brought in to relieve him, and with just five pitches, three of them strikes, Cano got two outs over Joey Meneses and Luis García. So far he has not allowed a run in four games with four strikeouts and his third hold of the season was this Wednesday. Cano has shown that he can serve the team well since being promoted to the senior roster. According to Baseball Savant, Cano has added 5-6" of vertical drop to his changeup and sinker this year. That may have been the key to his early success. To determine if he will really have the expected results all year, we have to wait for the adjustment of the hitters and a larger sample size. Lourdes Gurriel Jr: Hitless on Wednesday. Gurriel Jr. went hitless on Wednesday in a 14-5 loss to the Cardinals. Gurriel went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts. His BA descended to .258 for the year even when in his last 7 games he his slashing .290/.290/.484. This is Gurriel's first year with the D-backs after spending five seasons with Toronto. Luis Robert and Oscar Colás: One hit each against the Phillies. Robert went 1-for-4 and added his sixth double of the season, along with a strikeout, in a 5-2 defeat against the Phillies on Wednesday. Likewise, Oscar Colás had a 2-1 afternoon with a strikeout as well.Colás was replaced by PH Romy González later in the game.This year, Robert is slashing .263/.282/.539. However, he is struggling right now with .111/.172/.222 in his last seven games.Colás has a .232/.295/.304 batting line with a home run and five RBIs in his MLB season debut. Randy Arozarena went 3-for-5 and stole his third base of the season Wednesday against the Reds. Arozarena's first-inning single left his bat at 114.3 mph, a new career-high for him. He also had a 101-mph lineout today. He's sporting a 60% hard-hit rate, up from 41% last year. Getting a partial day off as the DH in the afternoon contest, Arozarena reeled off his third straight multi-hit performance and his seventh in his last 14 games. The 28-year-old has been a key cog in the Rays' incredible start to 2023, batting .333 (24-for-72) with four homers, three steals, 14 runs and 18 RBI. Yoán Moncada (back) is likely to go on a brief rehab stint before rejoining the White Sox. Moncada is eligible to return Friday, but he's not expected back until next week. With Jake Burger playing so well, the White Sox aren't going to rush things.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 18 Yandy Díaz blasted a three-run homer on Tuesday in the Rays' 10-0 blowout victory over the Reds. Díaz went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run in Tuesday's win over Cincinnati. Díaz crushed his fifth homer of the year off lefty Nick Lodolo in the top of the second inning. He is just four homers shy of his total in 558 at-bats last season. The 31-year-old might be in the midst of a breakout season. He has raised his average launch angle from a mediocre 7.7 degree launch angle to a career-high 16.5 launch angle this year and has smashed five long balls in just 15 games compared to nine homers in 137 games last year. The 31-year-old Díaz is now slashing .259/.380/.552 with 12 RBI and 15 runs scored through 56 at-bats. Yordan Álvarez was pulled from Tuesday's battle against the Blue Jays in the eighth inning due to an apparent left ankle injury. Álvarez smacked an RBI (21) single to get the Astros on the board in the eighth inning, but was limping out of the batter's box and hobbled down to first base. He remained in the game to run the bases for a bit -- advancing to second on Kyle Tucker's single -- but was then lifted for a pinch runner. It's possible that it was just due to the situation, but be sure to keep an eye on his status heading into Wednesday's game. Rangers' Adolis García: Leaves the yard Tuesday. García went 1-for-4 with a three-run homer (4) and a walk in Tuesday's 12-2 win over the Royals. García hit the Rangers' second three-run blast of the day, following up one hit by Marcus Semien with one of his own in the eighth to extend the lead to 12-2. García is now tied for fifth in Major League Baseball with 17 RBI, which has saved him from an otherwise underwhelming slash line of .200/.246/.367 through 70 plate appearances this season. Marlins' Jorge Soler: Tallies three hits in win. Soler went 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Tuesday's victory over the Giants. Soler doubled with one out in the fourth inning before coming around to score on Jazz Chisholm's home run. Soler would add a pair of singles later in the game in the Marlins' 4-2 win. The 31-year-old outfielder has swung the bat well of late, going 7-for-16 with three doubles and two home runs in his last six games. Overall, Soler is slashing .263/.323/.649 with five homers, 10 RBI and eight runs scored through 62 at-bats this season. Nationals released OF Yadiel Hernández. Hernández was removed from the Nationals' 40-man roster last November and the organization has decided to part ways with him after just 10 games this season at Triple-A Rochester. The 35-year-old outfielder batted .267/.315/.412 with 19 homers and five steals in 218 games with the Nationals over a three-year period dating back to 2020. Luis Robert, Oscar Colás and Yasmani Grandal went 2-for-17 in a double header. In a doubleheader against Philadelphia on Tuesday, Luis Robert, Oscar Colás, and Yasmani Grandal combined to go 2-for-17. Luis Robert went 1-7 with two RBIs and two runs scored, three strikeouts, a walk, and his fifth double of the season. As for Colás, he played in only one game, finishing 0-for-3 with two strikeouts while seeing defensive action in the other. Grandal doubled in one game and finished 1-for-7 in both combined. After a 7-6 loss in the first game, Chicago won 3-0 in the second game. Dodgers' Miguel Vargas: Hitless on Tuesday. Vargas went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts Tuesday in a 5-0 win against the Mets. The promising infielder is slashing .186/.390/.279 with no homers and 3 RBI in 16 games and 60 plate appearances this season. Rays' Randy Arozarena: Tallies fourth homer. Arozarena went 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two runs scored Tuesday against the Reds. Arozarena took Nick Lodolo deep for a solo home run in the fourth inning to tally his fourth long ball of the season. He also singled to lead off the third inning, and the performance was his sixth multi-hit effort in his first 17 contests. Overall, Arozarena has gotten off to a very productive start, driving in 18, scoring 13 runs and swiping two bags all while maintaining a .313 average. White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said Tuesday that Yoán Moncada (back) is "feeling better." Grifol added that the club wants to wait until Moncada is back to 100 percent before activating him from the injured list, which seems to indicate that he won't be activated when first eligible on Friday. There should be a clearer timeline for his return sometime this week. Astros' José Abreu: Counting stats picking up. Abreu went 2-for-4 Tuesday against the Blue Jays. Abreu left two runners on base but lifted his BA to .253 for the season. He has yet to homer this season, but he has two doubles, two runs scored and four RBI across his last six games. Overall, Abreu has a very underwhelming 62 wRC+ and .260 wOBA after 79 plate appearances, but he continues to hit exclusively in the cleanup spot in the Houston lineup. Yennier Cano continues scoreless for the Orioles and gets his second hold of the year. Cano continues to have a good start to 2023 after being called up to the Orioles. Against the Nationals on Tuesday, he pitched a scoreless inning with a strikeout and faced the minimum amount of batters. Considering he faced four righthanders this season and had struck out all of them, he will be tested more often against them. Marlins signed RHP Ronald Bolaños to a minor league contract. Bolaños was released last month by the Royals and has found a new opportunity with the Marlins. The 26-year-old righty provides Miami with some extra organizational relief depth. He's made 18 appearances (five starts) in the majors since 2019.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 16 Jorge Soler went 1-for-4 with a double in his return to the Marlins' lineup on Sunday. The 31-year-old slugger sat out on Saturday after leaving Friday's game due to tightness in his back. It sounds like all is good now though and it shouldn't be a major issue going forward. Soler is now hitting .212/.281/.558 with four homers and eight RBI on the season. Another scoreless inning from Aroldis Chapman. On Sunday, Aroldis Chapman pitched one scoreless inning - the 8th - in a 5-4 loss to the Braves. A 23-inning pitch by Chapman saw him strike out the side while allowed a double - to Ronald Acuña - and walked one. With 12 strikeouts in 6 innings, Chapman has not allowed a run so far this season. Rays' Yandy Díaz: Two hits on Sunday. Díaz went 2-for-3 with a walk, a HBP, and a run scored in Sunday's 8-1 win over the Blue Jays. The 31-year-old had his second double of the year and is now batting .255 (13-for-51) through fourteen games with four homers, nine RBI, fourteen runs and a 9:10 BB:K. José Abreu: Hitless against the Rangers on Sunday. A 9-1 loss to Texas extended Jose Abreu's hitless streak to 13 at-bats. During his 0-for-4 outing, Abreu left a runner stranded and is now hitting .239/.282/.269 in a familiar slow start. White Sox's Yasmani Grandal: Was not in lineup vs. Orioles. Grandal was not in the lineup for Sunday's contest against the Orioles, Vinnie Duber of AllCHGO.com reported. Grandal got a day of rest after going 3-for-5 and driving in a run in the extra-inning win over the Orioles on Saturday. Seby Zavala was behind the plate and hitted eighth in his place. Adolis García: No hits on Sunday against the Astros. On Sunday night, García went 0-for-5 with a run scored and two strikeouts in a 9-1 win over the Astros. With three home runs and 14 RBIs, the powerful outfielder is slashing .200/.246/.367. Reds' José Barrero: Out Sunday vs. Giants. Barrero was not in the starting lineup for Sunday's contest against the Phillies. Barrero has been seeing regular playing time for the Reds as of late, but the 25-year-old took a seat for Sunday's finale against Philadelphia. Shortstop Kevin Newman hit eighth and handled shortstop duties. Gurriel's brothers were not present for Sunday's series finale. On Sunday, the Gurriel brothers did not participate in the game between their teams that ended in a 5-0 victory for Arizona over Miami's ace Sandy Alcántara. Yuli Gurriel, the eldest of the Gurriels, did not play for the second consecutive game. Miguel Vargas had one hit on Sunday. Vargas went 1-for-4 in Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Cubs, but made a costly error in the fifth inning, which led to a 1-1 tie. In his last three games, Vargas has gone three-for-11 with a run scored and no walks after returning to the Dodgers' lineup on April 14. During his first 11 games of the season, he walked 13 times.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 14 Johan Oviedo suffered a tough luck loss against the Cardinals on Friday after striking out a career-high 10 batters and allowing just one run in seven innings. After a great outing against the White Sox in his last start, Oviedo was even better here. He blanked the Cardinals over his first five frames before Nolan Gorman delivered a two-out RBI single in the sixth to break a scoreless tie. While things didn’t turn out the way Oviedo might have wanted, there was still a lot to like here. He induced 13 swings and misses — including seven on his slider — while throwing 66 out of 93 pitches for strikes. Overall Oviedo (1-1) allowed one run on six hits and a walk over seven innings Friday, striking out 10 and taking a loss against the Cardinals. After the game he said “I have confidence with all my pitches but especially my slider and curveball,” Adding “I’m trying not to do too much or try to be too perfect. Just have fun and not think about results or anything. I think that’s been huge for me.” Oviedo has been terrific over his last two outings, logging a 15:1 K:BB while allowing just one run across 13.2 innings. He forced 13 whiffs on 44 swings (29.5) and averaged 97.2 mph on his fastball Friday. He is showing an interesting 2.45 ERA through three starts. When he faces the Rockies at Coors Field in his next start, all this could change. Adolis García crushed a two-run homer on Friday night, powering the Rangers to a 6-2 victory over the Astros in Houston. García tagged Astros' starter Luis García for his 399-foot (104.5 mph EV) two-run blast in the third inning, increasing the Astros' early edge to 3-0. He also drew a walk in the contest, finishing the night 1-for-4. On the season, the 29-year-old slugger is now hitting .216/.268/.412 with three long balls and 13 RBI. Yordan Álvarez clobbered his fourth home run of the season on Friday, but it wasn't enough to power the Astros past the Rangers in the first game of their series. The 25-year-old slugger blasted his 354-foot (100.1 mph EV) off of left-hander Martin Pérez in the third inning, pulling the Astros to within two runs at 3-1. He would strike out in each of his other three at-bats in the contest -- finishing the night 1-for-4. Even so, it's difficult to argue with Álvarez's production early this season, as he's hitting .295 with 18 RBI and nine runs scored across 54 plate appearances. Jorge Soler was pulled from Friday's contest against the Diamondbacks due to back tightness. Marlins' manager Skip Schumaker noted that Soler was experiencing tightness in his lower back, which is why he was pinch-hit for in the seventh inning on Friday. It doesn't sound like it's an issue that should keep him out for long, it wouldn't be surprising to see him sit out on Saturday as a precautionary measure. Athletics' Aledmys Díaz: Belts first homer. Díaz went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to the Mets on Friday. The veteran infielder uncorked a 383-foot shot to left field in the fifth inning for his first round tripper in an Athletics uniform. The multi-hit effort was only the second of the season for Díaz, who'd been mired in a 1-for-18 funk over the previous five games and had recorded just one extra-base hit in his first 12 contests. Néstor Cortés pitched seven innings of two-run ball Friday against the Twins. Cortés struck out seven and walked none in a fine showing. The runs scored on homers from Carlos Correa and Kyle Garlick. Correa's was hit just 331 feet into the corner in right. White Sox placed 3B Yoán Moncada on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 11, with lower back soreness. Moncada hasn't played since Sunday and with progress remaining slow, the White Sox were forced to make a move. He could return before the end of next week if all goes well. Miguel Vargas returned to the Dodgers' starting lineup for Friday night's contest against the Cubs. The 23-year-old was held out of action the previous two games due to a minor injury, but he's good to go now. Vargas returned on Friday to face the Cubs and he went 0-for-3 with a strikeout. Despite a low start, the future star has an amazing 13 walks in 12 games and is slashing .179/.442/.286. A good outing for Orioles' Yennier Cano following his recall from Triple-A Norfolk. Cano had a good start to the 2023 season and was credited with a hold against the White Sox on Friday night. Cano relieved his Cuban partner Cionel Pérez - 0.1 IP, H, BB - and pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings and strikeout one batter - Eloy Jiménez - in the Orioles 6-3 win last night. Acquired as part of the Jorge López trade with the Twins last summer, Cano was hit hard in three appearances with the Orioles last season, but he'll hope for better results this time around. The 29-year-old figures to operate in middle relief.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 13 Yandy Díaz blasted a leadoff home run on Thursday as the Rays triumphed over the Red Sox yet again in Tampa Bay. Díaz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's 9-3 win over Boston. After the Red Sox took a 1-0 lead in the top half of the first inning, Díaz immediately evened the score -- crushing a Corey Kluber sinker for a 434-foot (111.0 mph EV) solo shot. It was his lone hit in four at-bats on the afternoon. Díaz has shown some unexpected power early this season -- he already has four long balls after hitting just nine in 473 at-bats last season. The 31-year-old is batting .275/.388/.600 with 13 runs scored and nine RBI while serving as Tampa Bay's primary leadoff hitter. Yennier Cano is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Norfolk to join the Orioles' bullpen on Friday. With Keegan Akin heading to the paternity leave list and Cole Irvin being optioned to Triple-A following Thursday's start, the O's are in need of a couple of fresh arms on Friday. The 29-year-old hurler has fired three scoreless innings with a 1.33 WHIP and a 4/1 K/BB ratio to begin the year at Triple-A. Randy Arozarena: One RBI on Thursday. Arozarena went 1-for-4 with a run scored, a RBI and a strikeout in Thursday's 9-3 win over the Red Sox. The 28-year-old has come out of the gate flying in 2023, batting .314 (16-for-51) through thirteen games with three homers, sixteen RBI, eleven runs and a 4:9 BB:K.

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources April 12 Jorge Soler went 2-for-4 with a solo homer on Wednesday, powering the Marlins to a 3-2 extra-inning victory over the Phillies. Soler came through with a clutch game-tying homer off lefty reliever José Alvarado to lead off the eighth inning. It was his fourth round-tripper of the year. The 31-year-old slugger, who reached base safely in three of his five plate appearances in the extra-inning marathon, has an astounding nine extra-base hits already through 12 games. Soler is supplying his usual numbers to begin the season, batting .217 (10-for-46) through 12 games with four homers and eight RBI. Lourdes Gurriel Jr. went 3-for-5 with a three-run homer on Wednesday in the Diamondbacks' win over the Brewers. Gurriel Jr. extended Arizona's early lead with a three-run homer to left field off starter Janson Junk in the third inning. It was his first long ball of the season. As part of that same game, Gurriel reached his 500th hit in Major League Baseball. Rays' Randy Arozarena: Slugs third homer. Arozarena went 1-for-4 with a home run and four RBI on Wednesday against the Red Sox. Arozarena got the Rays off to a quick start by blasting a three-run homer off Chris Sale in the opening inning to tally his third long ball of the season. He's impressed across the first few weeks of the new campaign by collecting at least one hit in 11 of his 12 starts, and he's recorded 15 hits in his first 47 at-bats overall. To go along with the early power production, Arozarena also has chipped in 15 RBI, 10 runs scored and two stolen bases. Reds' Jose Barrero: Gaining traction in everyday role. Barrero started at shortstop and batted seventh in Wednesday's 5-4 loss versus Atlanta. After going 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and an additional RBI in Tuesday's 7-6 loss, Barrero went 0-for-4 on Wednesday with two strikeouts. At least for the time being, Barrero appears to have wrested the primary shortstop job away from Kevin Newman. It is possible, however, that his inconsistent bat will cause him problems in the near future. Marlins' Yuli Gurriel: Made his fourth straight start. Gurriel started at first base and batted fifth Wednesday against the Phillies. He made his fourth straight start, with the lineup spot opening up by Garrett Cooper (upper leg) sitting out and Avisail García (hamstring) missing his third consecutive game. Gurriel went 1-for-5 in the game. Gurriel has recorded at least one hit in all seven games he's played this season and is sitting on a .870 OPS while is slashing .346/.370/.500. Yandy Díaz stayed in Wednesday's game against the Red Sox after being hit by a pitch. Díaz was hit by a pitch from Red Sox reliever Zack Kelly in the fifth inning. The 31-year-old on-base machine, who has also been dealing with a shoulder issue recently, was able to remain in the contest.