AROUND THE HORN
■ Padres: 1B Eric Hosmer could be out two to six weeks after breaking his left index finger while attempting to bunt against the Rockies on Monday, Padres manager Jayce Tingler announced Tuesday. “This one hurts,” Tingler said. “But at the same time, we’re going to have some guys step up. We’re going to hold ground, and we’re going to get him back. When he gets back, we’re going to be in a good position.” Hosmer is hitting .291 with eight HRs and 32 RBIs, and he was part of the Padres’ “Slam Diego” outburst in mid-August, when they became the first team in MLB history to hit four grand slams in four straight games. The Padres have options at first base. Rookie Jake Cronenworth played well at first when Hosmer missed several games early in the season because of a stomach ailment, and the Padres acquired Mitch Moreland before last week’s deadline.
■ Brewers: The Brewers released 1B Justin Smoak after designating him for assignment last week. Smoak hit .186 with five HRs and 15 RBIs in 33 games for the Brewers, who claimed 1B Daniel Vogelbach off waivers last week. Smoak’s struggles came after he hit 85 HRs over the last three seasons with the Blue Jays — although his HR totals and batting average slipped over that span.
■ Red Sox: OF Andrew Benintendi will not return this season, Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke announced. Benintendi, who was placed on the 10-day injured list Aug. 12 because of a strained right rib cage, was transferred to the 45day IL. He hit just a .103 with no HRs and one RBI in 52 plate appearances. A career .273 hitter, Benintendi finished second in AL rookie of the year voting in 2017.
■ Twins: Josh Donaldson, Nelson Cruz and Miguel Sano all homered, leading the Twins to a 7-3 victory over the host Cardinals in the first game of a doubleheader. Jose Berrios (4-3) pitched into the sixth before being lifted to earn the win. He gave up three runs on four hits and struck out eight. Donaldson hit a three-run drive into the left field bullpen to give the Twins a 3-0 lead in the third. He snapped an 0for-8 rut with his third HR this season. Carlos Martinez (0-2), who had missed more than a month while dealing with the coronavirus, was chased in the fourth. It was just the second start of the season, both coming against the Twins, for Martinez. He hadn’t pitched since July 28 when the Twins roughed him up for seven hits and six runs in 31⁄
3 innings. The Twins made it 5-0 when Cruz led off the fifth a HR, his 14th this season. Cruz was in the lineup for the opener after sitting out a second straight day Monday with hip soreness. The two-game series between the Twins and Cardinals was condensed to one day so the Cardinals could have one more day off before the end of the season, with a backlog of makeup games this month. ... Behind second base at Busch Stadium, a large No. 20 was placed touching the grass to honor Hall of Famer Lou Brock, who died Sunday at the age of 81.