MLB Player News

Carter is slotted in the third spot as the designated hitter for Saturday's matinee against the Cardinals, Brandon Kuty of The Star-Ledger reports.

Carter receives the spot start in place of an ailing Matt Holliday (back). The 30-year-old slugger is hitting .176/.250/.294 to begin the season, stats he will need to improve upon if he wants to see more playing time.

Gurriel is out of the lineup Friday against the A's.

Marwin Gonzalez will get an opportunity at first base against right-hander Kendall Graveman. Gurriel got off to a bit of a rocky start this season, going 2-for-21 in his first six games, but he's picked it up with six hits in his last three games (five singles). He remains the primary first baseman for Houston.

Cron is not in the lineup Friday against the Royals, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports.

Cron has become part of a platoon with Jeffry Marte in the early going, so the former will head to the bench with southpaw Danny Duffy toeing the rubber for Kansas City. Look for Cron to resume his normal role in the lineup Saturday when right-hander Nathan Karns takes the hill.

Cron came off the bench Thursday, going 0-for-1 in his only plate appearance against the Rangers.

It appeared that a strict platoon was developing at first base with Cron and Jeffry Marte. However, manager Mike Scioscia benched the lefty against the right-handed Yu Darvish on Thursday. The 27-year-old Cron is batting .304 (7-for-23) in seven games this season, so the benching is a bit puzzling. He was still worth rostering for his power on the strong side of a first base platoon, but after Thursday's lineup construction, it is unclear what Scioscia has in mind regarding playing time, making it hard to roster either first baseman for the time being.

Abreu went 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI during Thursday's win over the Indians.

It's been a pedestrian start for the first baseman, as Abreu has just two runs, four RBI and one extra-base hit. He's still looking for his first home run of the season and sports a .250/.294/.281 slash line. It's too early to count him out, but it's also worth noting that the 30-year-old slugger has seen his home run total, slugging percentage and wOBA drop in consecutive years since his impressive rookie campaign in 2014.

Cron is out of the lineup Tuesday against the Rangers.

Cron has been solid at the plate after playing in five games and has gone 6-for-19 (.316) over said outings. However, he'll head to the bench Tuesday while Jefry Marte starts at first base.

Gurriel batted ninth in the order and went 1-for-3 with a double in Monday's 6-0 loss to the Mariners.

The double was Gurriel's third hit (and first extra-base hit) in 24 at-bats to open the year. That explains why the first baseman is hitting up the rear of the order. He's handled the transition to first base in the field well, but his bat is lagging. They'll give him some leash, but the Astros have a couple promising first basemen at Triple-A Fresno, Tyler White and A.J. Reed, both of whom have some MLB experience. There are options if manager A.J. Hinch wants to make a change at first.

Gurriel is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Royals.

With Gurriel off to a 2-for-18 start at the plate to open 2017, manager A.J. Hinch will give the Cuban import a day off to clear his mind. Utility man Marwin Gonzalez will replace him at first base and bat eighth in the lineup. All but one of Gurriel's five starts on the season have come against left-handed pitching, so if he fails to turn it around in the near future, it's not of the question for him to fall into a stricter platoon at first base with the switch-hitting Gonzalez.

Cron is out of the lineup Saturday against the Mariners.

With this off day, Cron will have started four of the Angels' first six games of the season. He has gone 4-for-15 over that span with zero extra-base hits. Jefry Marte will start at first base and hit seventh against righty Felix Hernandez.

Carter figures to be in line for at least another start at first base Sunday as Greg Bird (foot/ankle) won't be able to return until Monday at the earliest, MLB.com's Bryan Hoch reports.

Bird is day-to-day, and while the Yankees hope to have him back for Monday's series opener in Baltimore, it is far from a lock. This means Carter's playing time will see a short-term spike, although he remains pretty volatile in weekly leagues, given the timing of Bird's injury.