Arizona: 1B Paul Goldschmidt went into Wednesday needing one more double to become the fourth player in the 15-year history of the franchise to have 40 doubles in a season. LF Luis Gonzalez had four seasons of at least 40 doubles and set the franchise record with 52 in 2006. SS Stephen Drew had 44 in 2008 and 3B Chad Tracy had 41 in 2006. … 2B Aaron Hill, who earlier this year tied a major league record with two cycles in the same season, had the first five-hit game of his career Tuesday and finished a triple short of the cycle.
Atlanta: 2B Dan Uggla was back in the lineup after not starting three consecutive games. Manager Fredi Gonzalez thinks three games is as much as Uggla, mired in a long slump, should sit at any one time. “We’ve got to get him going,” Gonzalez said. … C Brian McCann (right shoulder) was back in the lineup after finally getting over the effects of a cortisone shot administered Saturday. He had missed the three previous games.
Chicago: The Cubs have used 52 players this season, a franchise record. The previous mark of 51 was set in 2000. The Cubs have used 20 rookies for the first time since the 1974 team used 20. The seven rookie pitchers used Tuesday also represented a franchise record. … LF Alfonso Soriano entered Wednesday’s game with 26 home runs and 88 RBI, matching his season totals from last year in both categories. The 88 RBI in each of the last two seasons represent his best in six years with the Cubs.
Cincinnati: After missing 48 games because of left knee surgery, 1B Joey Votto lined a single off Phillies RHP Roy Halladay in his first at-bat and went 2-for-3 with a walk. “It went better than I expected,” Votto said. … SS Zack Cozart (back) was out of the lineup for the second straight day. … RF Jay Bruce homered in the fourth straight game, tying a career high (32) set last year. Bruce is hitting .476 with five home runs and 12 RBI over his last five games.
Colorado: When CF Dexter Fowler struck out in the third inning Tuesday, it ended his string of having a hit in 10 consecutive at-bats with a runner on base, a franchise record. Elias Sports Bureau said it matched the longest such streak for any player over the last 13 seasons, by Philadelphia’s Pedro Feliz in 2008. … 1B Jordan Pacheco’s 13-game hitting streak through Tuesday was the second longest by a rookie this year, according to Elias. Milwaukee’s Norichika Aoki had a 15-game hitting streak.
Houston: OF Jimmy Paredes was back in right field after making his first start in left field Tuesday. “We were afraid at home about the big wall in Houston,” manager Tony DeFrancesco said. “He probably has more ground to cover (in Pittsburgh), but it’s not a wall that you’re going to be afraid of.” … The Astros need to have a winning record the remainder of the season to avoid setting a franchise record for losses in a season. They lost a team-record 106 games last year.
Los Angeles: RHP Chad Billingsley (elbow) was transferred to the 60-day disabled list, effectively ending his season. Billingsley had hoped that a second injection of platelet-rich plasma would allow him to come back before the season is over. … LHP Ted Lilly (shoulder, back) pitched a simulated game, throwing approximately 25 pitches. The club still hopes that Lilly can join the bullpen later this month. … LHP Steven Rodriguez was promoted to the Dodgers, becoming the first 2012 draft pick to make the major leagues.
Miami: RF Giancarlo Stanton is the fifth player in baseball history with two consecutive seasons of at least 30 homers before the age of 23. The others are Miguel Cabrera in 2004-05, Albert Pujols in 2001-02, Eddie Mathews in 1953-54 and Jimmie Foxx in 1929-30. … OF Gorkys Hernandez hit his first major league home run Tuesday. “When I hit the ball I said, ‘Maybe it’s gone,’ but when I saw after that it was gone I couldn’t believe it. That was awesome,” he said.
Milwaukee: 1B Mat Gamel, on the disabled list since tearing his right ACL and undergoing surgery in early May, might play in the Arizona Fall League if his doctor and MLB officials approve, GM Doug Melvin told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. The move needs MLB’s blessing, Melvin said, because the AFL generally is for prospects, not players coming off the DL who can more easily get hurt. … SS Alex Gonzalez, who tore his right ACL right after Gamel, has been working out with the Brewers, but Melvin told the newspaper he doesn’t think Gonzalez will be able to play again this season.
New York: RHP R.A. Dickey’s 18 victories are the most by a Mets pitcher since Frank Viola won 20 and Dwight Gooden won 19 in 1990. … 3B David Wright was given a day off on the day game after the night game. Manager Terry Collins said it was a regularly scheduled off day. … 1B Ike Davis, who struggled at the plate through most of the first half of the season, has set career highs with his 26 homers and 77 RBI. He had 19 homers and 71 RBI as a rookie in 2010.
Philadelphia: RHP Roy Halladay, who missed two months in the middle of the season because of a right lat injury, is 5-1 with a 3.00 ERA in his last seven starts. “When you talk to him, he just isn’t quite there yet,” manager Charlie Manuel said. “But he’s definitely getting there.” … RF Domonic Brown snapped an 0-for-19 skid with a run-scoring, opposite field single in the second inning. The start was Brown’s third in a row after being out of the lineup for five straight games because of left knee soreness.
Pittsburgh: 2B Neil Walker might not return Friday, as the Pirates had hoped. Walker fielded groundballs Wednesday but was not cleared to take batting practice on the field. The Pirates still hope Walker will be able to play sometime during the weekend but want him to go through a live batting practice session first. … RF Travis Snider was out of the lineup one night after leaving in the first inning because of a strained right hamstring. He hopes to return Friday.
St. Louis: LF Matt Holliday left Tuesday’s game in the seventh inning when his back tightened and was not in the lineup Wednesday, but he said he had already been told before getting injured he would not play Wednesday. David Freese, Allen Craig and Yadier Molina also had the day off against Mets RHP R.A. Dickey. … RF Carlos Beltran (left knee) was back in the lineup after missing two games.
San Diego: RH closer Huston Street (left calf) threw a bullpen session Tuesday, but when he will return remains uncertain. “His arm feels good. His delivery is fine. The mound work is in place. He has to get comfortable fielding his position, covering first, fielding the bunt,” manager Bud Black said. … C Yasmani Grandal picked a runner off third Tuesday, then hit a game-tying two-run homer. “Yas is fearless. He’s not scared off. There’s no learning curve,” Black said.
San Francisco: Once among the ERA leaders in the NL, RHP Ryan Vogelsong’s ERA has risen from 2.24 to 3.29 in five starts. He has given up at least four runs in three of his last five starts after giving up four or more just twice in his first 21 starts. … The Giants tied a major league record when they used 11 pitchers in Tuesday’s 11-inning loss to Arizona. They also tied a team record by using 25 players.
Washington: RHP Chien-Ming Wang, reinstated from the disabled list Tuesday after recovering from a hip injury, threw a bullpen session and is scheduled for another one Friday. Manager Davey Johnson said Wang might get some starts in the final weeks of the season. The Nationals will need a starter presuming RHP Stephen Strasburg is shut down after two more starts. … The Nationals’ six home runs Tuesday were the most in a home game by a D.C.-based team in the city’s baseball history.