MLB 2023 | Arozarena regaining power, Vargas ends slump with homer, Yandy multi-hit effort,

Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources

Miguel Vargas (Photo: MLB)

Jun 21

Randy Arozarena went 3-for-3 with a homer, a double, two RBI and a walk against the Orioles on Wednesday.

Arozarena went 3-for-3 with a walk, a double and a solo home run Wednesday against the Orioles. Arozarena took Tyler Wells deep in the second inning to tally his 14th homer of the season. He has experienced a power outage of late, as across his last 30 games prior to Wednesday's contest he had slugged just .333 with six extra-base hits. Even with that slow stretch, Arozarena has shown significant growth this season by dropping his strikeout rate to 23.6 percent while drawing free passes at a 13.3 percent clip across 313 plate appearances. Arozarena is currently third in AL All-Star balloting and deservedly so, given his excellent .292/.409/.498 line in 73 games. He's 11th in the majors with his .907 OPS and tied for 12th with 50 RBI.

Yandy Díaz: Multi-hit performance. Díaz went 2-for-4 with a walk, a run scored and an RBI on Wednesday against the Orioles. Díaz has three multi-hit performances in his last nine games, during which he's also tallied six runs scored and four RBI. Despite that positive stretch, he's experienced a dip in power of late, as he entered Wednesday's contest slugging only .333 across 63 at-bats in June. Even so, Díaz has maintained a .212 ISO and .515 slugging percentage on the season, both of which are nearly 100 points above his previous career highs.

Miguel Vargas went 1-for-4 with a solo homer on Wednesday against the Angels.

Vargas went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 2-0 win over the Angels.

Vargas had gone 0-for-20 over his last six games and came up empty in his first three at-bats Wednesday before knocking a ninth-inning solo shot. It snapped an 11-game homer drought for the infielder. He continues to see regular playing time, but he's slashing just .207/.309/.388 with seven homers, 30 RBI, 32 runs scored and three stolen bases over 69 contests. Vargas also struck out three times Wednesday, but he's displayed a decent eye at the plate with a 19.9 percent strikeout rate and a 12.4 percent walk rate on the year.

Braves' Raisel Iglesias: Hangs on for 10th save. Iglesias picked up the save in Tuesday's 4-2 win over the Phillies. He allowed a run on two hits while logging a strikeout in the ninth inning. Iglesias has now allowed five runs over his last four innings, though he managed to close out the Phillies on Tuesday while improving to 10-for-12 in save chances this season. The 33-year-old Iglesias now has a 4.34 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 23:6 K:BB across 18.2 innings in his first full season as Atlanta's closer.

Yasmani Grandal was scratched from Wednesday's lineup against the Rangers due to right knee soreness.

Grandal was scratched from Wednesday's lineup due to right knee soreness. Grandal is out of Wednesday's contest but is officially listed as day-to-day, suggesting the injury may not be too severe. The White Sox have an off day Thursday, so Grandal will benefit from an extra day of rest before potentially returning Friday against Boston.

Dairon Blanco and Andy Ibáñez each had one hit on Wednesday. For Wednesday's game, Blanco was the starting center fielder and number 9 hitter. In a 9-4 loss to the Tigers, he went 1-for-4 with a RBI and three strikeouts. In the same game, for Detroit, Andy Ibáñez went 1-for-3 with a run scored.

Astros' José Abreu: Got rest day. Abreu was out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Mets. Mauricio Dubón played at first base while Abreu took a seat for the first time since June 4, breaking a streak of 15 consecutive starts. The 2020 American League MVP remains in the midst of a career-worst season, but he's at least shown some signs of life in June, turning in a .734 OPS through 18 games this month.

Athletics' Aledmys Díaz: On bench Wednesday. Díaz was out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Guardians. Díaz had started at shortstop for three of the past four games, but Tyler Wade played the position on Wednesday. With Nick Allen having been optioned to the minors and with Kevin Smith (back) now on the injured list, Díaz looks like he could receive another look in a near-everyday role in the Oakland middle infield.

Diamondbacks' Lourdes Gurriel: Received breather Wednesday. Gurriel was out of the lineup Wednesday versus the Brewers. Gurriel got a breather after he started the first two games of the series, going 1-for-9 with two RBI and two strikeouts.

J.P. Martínez went 4-for-4 with a homer, two doubles and two walks for Triple-A Round Rock on Tuesday.

Martínez is far removed from his days as a top prospect, but he's crushing it age 27 this year, hitting .350/.481/.553 with 21 steals in 22 attempts in 34 games for Triple-A Round Rock. It might take a Leody Taveras injury to get him an opportunity in Texas, but he's definitely put himself in position to make his major league debut.

Padres recalled LHP Adrian Morejón from Triple-A El Paso.

Morejón made 26 relief appearances last year for the Padres and has been out all season recovering from a a left elbow sprain that he suffered back in spring training.

Jun 20

Pirates' Johan Oviedo: Logs quality start in loss. Oviedo (3-7) took the loss Tuesday, allowing two runs on five hits over six innings against the Cubs. He struck out three. Oviedo pitched well Tuesday, but the Pirates couldn't muster any run support in a 4-0 loss. Still, it was another strong effort from Oviedo, who's allowed two runs or fewer in six of his last eight starts. The 25-year-old right-hander has a 4.30 ERA with a 1.42 WHIP and 74:35 K:BB through 15 starts (81.2 innings) this season. Ovideo currently lines up for a road matchup with the Marlins in his next outing.