MLB Player News

Angels second baseman Johnny Giavotella has opened July with a four-game hit streak, as he went 2 for 5 with two RBI and two runs Sunday against the Rangers.

Giavotella had a sac fly in the second inning and an RBI single in the third. He also had his 13th double Sunday.

Giavotella is batting .368 (7 for 19) with two doubles, four RBI, two runs and two sac flies through four July games.

The American League starters for the 2015 All-Star Game on July 14 were announced Sunday. The Royals will send four starters to the Summer Classic, with Salvador Perez, Alcides Escobar, Lorenzo Cain and Alex Gordon leading the votes in their respective positions.

Angels outfielder Mike Trout will make his fourth consecutive All-Star appearance. He received the most votes of any outfielder and the second most on the AL roster.

Catcher: Salvador Perez, Royals
First baseman: Miguel Cabrera, Tigers (injured)
Second baseman: Jose Altuve, Astros
Third baseman: Josh Donaldson, Blue Jays (top AL vote-getter)
Shortstop: Alcides Escobar, Royals
Outfield: Mike Trout, Angels
Outfield: Lorenzo Cain, Royals
Outfield: Alex Gordon, Royals
Designated Hitter: Nelson Cruz , Mariners

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve went 3 for 5 in Friday's win over Boston. 

Altuve is 6 for 9 in his last two games. He's hit in 11 straight games. He's hitting .395 with 1.075 OPS over the streak. 

Altuve scored twice and drove in two runs, giving him 35 on the year. 

The Yankees recalled outfielder Ramon Flores from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Friday after placing right fielder Carlos Beltran on the disabled list due to an oblique strain. 

New York also recalled Gregorio Petit from Triple-A and cleared a roster spot by demoting outfielder Taylor Dugas to Triple-A.

Athletics shortstop Marcus Semien hit his seventh home run of the season against the Mariners on Thursday.

Semien hit a solo blast off Mariners starter Roenis Elias in the fifth inning to put his team up 3-0. He finished the game 1 for 3 with a RBI.

The home run was Semien's first in 158 at-bats.

Astros infielder Jose Altuve collected three hits in Wednesday evening's 6-5 win over the Royals. 

Altuve hit three singles and also reached base by getting hit by a pitch. Altuve's hitting streak extended to 10 consecutive games. Altuve also stole two bases, giving him 23 for the season.

Altuve now has a slash line of .298/.342/.421 this season. 

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve smacked his seventh home run of the season Monday to send the Astros to a 6-1 win over the Royals.

Altuve hit the solo shot off Joe Blanton in the third inning. It was his only hit in three at-bats during the contest. He also walked once.

Prior to Monday's contest, Altuve was hitting .250 with one home run and three RBI in his last 12 games.

Shortstop Elvis Andrus had a nice day at the plate, going 3-for-4 with an RBI, but it wasn't enough to keep the Rangers from dropping a series to the Blue Jays. 

Andrus got Texas on the board with his sixth-inning RBI single, and also added a double and stolen base, to continue a nice run in which he's hit in five of his last six games. 

Andrus, who also had a three-hit game earlier in the week, has seen his average rise from .237 to .251 over the past 10 contests. 

The Yankees sent second baseman Gregorio Petit down to the minor leagues Sunday, the team announed.

Petit is hitting .184 with five RBI in 18 games this season. With Petit moving down, the team will promote pitcher Esmil Rogers. Rogers has a 6.27 ERA over 33 innings this season. 

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve broke a 32-game homerless drought with a sixth-inning solo blast on Saturday. His sixth home run of the season tied the game at 6-6, but the Astros would suffer a 9-6 loss to the Yankees.

Altuve is now riding a modest six-game hitting streak, during which he is hitting at a .320 clip. He seems to be showing no ill-effects from the hamstring issue that cost him a few games recently.