Major League Baseball (MLB) and other Cuban Players News for the 2023 season. A compendium from several sources
May 9
Jorge Soler clobbered two homers and collected five RBI on Tuesday, powering the Marlins to a 6-2 victory over the Diamondbacks.
Soler went 2-for-4 with two home runs and five RBI in Tuesday's 6-2 win over the Diamondbacks. Soler put the offense on his back, taking Brandon Pfaadt deep for a mammoth three-run blast in the second inning and a two-run shot in the fifth. Over his last six games, Soler has gone 9-for-24 (.375) with four homers and 10 RBI. He's up to nine long balls, 20 RBI, 16 runs scored and nine doubles while slashing .234/.310/.516 through 35 contests this season.
White Sox's Luis Robert: Stays hot in May. Robert went 1-for-4 with a homer in Tuesday's victory over the Royals. Robert produced the White Sox first hit and run with a solo shot in the fourth inning. The outfielder is scoring in hot in May with a .462 batting average. Robert lacked some pop last season, with a .426 slugging percentage, but has bounced back in 2023 with eight homers in 36 games.
No runs were allowed by Yennier Cano after his sixth hold.
After going 1.2 innings with one hit and two strikeouts, Yennier Cano earned his sixth hold of the season in a 4-2 win against the Rays on Tuesday. After 13 outings, 17.2 innings with 21 strikeouts, 2 saves, and a tiny 0.17 WHIP as a middle reliever for the talented Orioles of the AL East, Cano remains one of the most unexpected surprises of the Majors this year.
Miguel Vargas hit a 414-foot homer and walked Tuesday against the Brewers.
Vargas went 1-for-4 with a homer and two RBI in Tuesday's 6-2 victory over the Brewers. Vargas teed off in the sixth inning and pushed the Dodgers' lead to 6-0. The second baseman lacked power in April, as he slugged .325 in the month. But May has been better, where Vargas has two home runs and six extra-base hits in 29 at bats. Even though he's been fairly unlucky, according to Statcast, Vargas has thus far managed an acceptable .220/.344/.413 line. He should keep getting better.
Yoán Moncada (back) went 3-for-3 with a solo homer on Tuesday in a minor league rehab game for Triple-A Charlotte.
Moncada certainly looks like he's ready to return to the White Sox' lineup later this week after going 6-for-6 with two homers in his last two rehab games. The 27-year-old infielder has been out since early April due to lower back soreness but manager Pedro Grifol said yesterday that Moncada will probably return on Friday.
White Sox's Yasmani Grandal: Playing through back spasm. Grandal is still working through a minor back spasm during his regular game time. Fortunately for Grandal, the White Sox have a regular spot available at DH, so the 34-year-old isn't expected to miss out on any starts on account of the back issue. On Tuesday he went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts in a 4-2 win against the Royals.
A source told The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal that the Royals have already been fielding calls about Aroldis Chapman.
Chapman looked outstanding in April, though a little less so lately, and even with his baggage, there are going to be a bunch of contenders interested in him if he keeps throwing like this. The Royals might be better off moving him soon rather than waiting around and seeing if he gets hurt or loses some of the velocity he's regained this season.
