De La Cruz went 2-for-8 with a home run during a brief three-game rehab stint with Triple-A Louisville over the weekend. The electrifying 24-year-old shortstop will rejoin Cincinnati’s lineup after missing just over three weeks with a low-grade hamstring strain. He was hitting .280/.346/.509 with 40 runs scored, 12 homers, 37 RBI and 10 steals through 58 games prior to the injury. The biggest question mark surrounding his arrival is whether top prospect Edwin Arroyo will remain in the big leagues as part of their second base rotation or wind up being shipped back to Triple-A.

Royals manager Matt Quatraro delivered an encouraging update prior to Monday’s matchup in Tampa Bay, indicating the club is optimistic Witt could be available within the next couple of days after participating in baseball activities, including hitting, fielding and running the bases. The 26-year-old franchise cornerstone was diagnosed with a low-grade MCL sprain in his right knee last Friday. He’s out of the lineup for the third consecutive contest with Maikel Garcia drawing another start at shortstop in his place. It sounds like there’s a strong possibility he manages to avoid the injured list and returns later this week.

Not a bad encore after his three-homer display on Saturday night. Schwarber walked and scored a run in the first inning before hitting an absolute missile in the second. The ball traveled an estimated 418 feet, which really doesn’t do it justice. Similar to Saturday’s homers, it was a majestic blast which found a home in the second deck. Schwarber is up to 29 homers, four more than Yordan Alvarez for tops in MLB. He’s well on his way to another 50-homer season. If Schwarber manages to pull it off, which looks very likely right now, he’ll become the first player in Phillies history with two 50-homer seasons.

Jones was hit on the back of his pitching elbow by a liner and forced from his start Sunday against the Rockies. Assuming there isn’t too much bruising and swelling, he might be spared another IL stint. The Pirates could have Carmen Mlodzinski start next time through if Jones does miss some time.

Pirates general manager Ben Cherington confirmed that Griffin will kick off a rehab assignment in the coming days after sufficiently building up his throwing program. The 20-year-old has been working his way back from a forearm strain that put him on the shelf back in late May. The Pirates aren’t going to rush him back until they’re confident he’s ready to play shortstop on an everyday basis again, but he’s trending towards making it back to Pittsburgh by the end of June.

The saga is finally over. Woodruff will make his long-awaited return to Milwaukee’s rotation following a seven-week absence recovering from shoulder inflammation. The 33-year-old former fantasy ace shouldn’t have any workload restrictions after throwing 82 pitches during his final rehab outing for High-A Wisconsin earlier this week. The omnipresent durability concerns aren’t going away at this stage of Woodruff’s career, but he’s been a viable fantasy starter, when healthy, posting a 3.60 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 25/7 K/BB ratio across 30 innings this season.

Maikel Garcia returns to Kansas City’s lineup at shortstop following a three-game absence due to left hand soreness. There’s optimism Witt will avoid a trip to the injured list after undergoing an MRI on his right knee that revealed a low-grade MCL sprain. Royals manager Matt Quatraro told reporters that Witt is feeling better and will continue receiving treatment before being reevaluated prior to Monday’s series opener against Tampa Bay. There should be a final decision regarding a potential injured list stint prior to that contest.

Ohtani went deep off Orioles reliever Andrew Kittredge on the eve of Father’s Day shortly after the arrival of his second child earlier in the week. The 114.6 mph moonshot was traveled 413 feet and broke up a potential shutout in the ninth inning. The 31-year-old generational talent was back in Los Angeles’ lineup following a one-game absence during Friday’s series opener while on paternity leave. The two-way superstar is scheduled to make his next pitching start against the Twins at Target Field on Wednesday.

Schwarber now leads the league with 28 home runs. He hit two home runs in the third inning, becoming the first player in the Statcast era to have two home runs that each traveled at least 450 feet in the same inning. Then he hit another home run off Tobias Myers in the seventh inning, giving Schwarber the fifth three-homer game of his career. Schwarber is tied with Dave Kingman for most games with at least three home runs and at least six RBI with four. With Bryce Harper hitting for the cycle, it was the second time teammates had hit for the cycle and at least three home runs in the same game (Tony Lazzeri cycle, Lou Gehrig four home runs for the Yankees in 1932).

Add it to the resume that may one day put Harper in Cooperstown. With the easy parts of the cycle out the way, Harper lined a Tobias Myers fastball into the gap in left-center. With the score 11-1, Harper didn’t stop running until he got to third. While there may have been a play on him, the throw from the outfield headed towards home plate. It was ruled a triple, giving Harper the 11th cycle in Phillies franchise history. He’s hitting .259 with an .873 OPS and 43 RBI.