MLB Player News

Alonso is batting leadoff Friday against the Rays, Rich Dubroff of BaltimoreBaseball.com reports.

Alonso will be playing in his 1,130th career regular-season game Friday, and it will be the first time he's ever hit leadoff. The star first baseman has been one of the few bright spots for Baltimore this season, slashing .259/.353/.480 with 26 home runs, 77 RBI, 74 runs scored, five stolen bases and a 61:127 BB:K across 524 trips to the plate. Gunnar Henderson has moved down to the fifth spot in the lineup.

Burger is not in the starting lineup Thursday night against the Angels, Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Burger will get a night off after he went 1-for-13 with three strikeouts and two RBI over the first three games of the series against Los Angeles. Joc Pederson will slot in at first base and bat leadoff in the series finale.

Pasquantino (wrist) went 1-for-5 at the plate Wednesday in his first rehab game with Triple-A Omaha.

After Omaha's game was rained out Tuedsday, Pasquantino began his rehab assignment a day later and played the full game at first base as he works his way back from right wrist soreness. Per MLB.com, the Royals hope to have the 28-year-old play in five games this week, which would put him on track to return from the 10-day injured list as soon as Monday. Pasquantino is slashing .232/.318/.345 with six home runs, four stolen bases, 33 RBI and 34 runs across 336 plate appearances this season.

Murakami is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Reds.

The left-handed-hitting slugger will get a day off as the Reds send southpaw Andrew Abbott to the bump. Miguel Vargas will slide over to first base, Colson Montgomery will handle third base, and Luisangel Acuna will enter the lineup at shortstop.

Velazquez went 3-for-5 with two home runs, five RBI and an additional run scored for Triple-A Columbus on Wednesday.

Velazquez extended a hit streak to six games, during which he's 10-for-26 (.385) with six home runs and 12 RBI. The Guardians addressed a need at first base at the deadline by adding Nathaniel Lowe, but Velazquez could get a look in September for a team starving for offense.

Contreras went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 6-4 loss to the Blue Jays.

Contreras tied the game with a 408-foot blast off Jose Soriano in the fifth inning before walking and scoring a run in the ninth. It was the 34-year-old's first homer in eight August contests, as he entered Wednesday just 4-for-24 without an extra-base hit in the month. On the season, he's slashing .280/.390/.529 with 24 long balls, 71 RBI, 60 runs scored and three steals across 451 plate appearances.

Lowe is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Tigers.

The left-handed-hitting Lowe will retreat to the bench while southpaw Framber Valdez toes the rubber for the Tigers. Rhys Hoskins will replace Lowe at first base and will bat sixth.

Naylor (wrist) will start at first base and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Yankees.

The Mariners kept Naylor on the bench during Tuesday's 4-1 loss due to a sore right wrist, but the 29-year-old looks like he's made enough improvement overnight to rejoin the lineup for the second game of the series in New York. While Naylor has remained active on the basepaths in 2026 with 23 steals in 28 attempts, he's seen his power production taper off dramatically. His ISO has dropped nearly 60 points, going from .168 in 2025 to .109 this season.

Walker is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Giants.

Walker appears to be getting a planned day off after he had started in each of the Astros' last 14 games. LaMonte Wade will fill in at first base for Walker, who went hitless in 10 at-bats over his most recent three starts to bring his average down to .236 for the season.

Alonso went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run and a walk in Tuesday's 5-2 win over the Twins.

Alonso opened the scoring with a 418-foot blast off Bailey Ober in the first inning. The first baseman has now tallied eight hits over his past four games, going deep three times and driving in six runs during that stretch. For the year, he's slashing .256/.350/.479 with 26 homers, 77 RBI, 73 runs scored and five steals across 520 plate appearances.