MLB Player News

Drury is absent from the lineup for Thursday's contest in Toronto.

It's the second day in a row that Drury's name has been absent from the Angels' lineup card after he had started each of the previous four tilts. Michael Stefanic will occupy second base in this one.

Ibanez will start in left field and bat second in Thursday's game against the Cubs.

With a southpaw (Justin Steele) on the hill for the Cubs, the Tigers are giving three of their lefty-hitting regulars (Riley Greene, Parker Meadows and Trey Sweeney) the afternoon off while opening up a prominent spot in the lineup for Ibanez. The 31-year-old utility man should remain a fixture in the lineup versus lefties for the rest of the season, as he's produced a. 958 OPS in those matchups so far in 2024.

Gelof went 1-for-4 with a stolen base in Wednesday's loss to the Rays.

Gelof singled in the bottom of the seventh before going on to steal his 16th bag of the campaign and his fourth this month. The second baseman is slashing just .232/.317/.393 in August with two homers, four RBI and seven runs scored. However, he's picked it up a bit as of late, batting .276 (13-for-47) over his last 13 games with four multi-hit performances in that span.

Horwitz went 2-for-3 with two walks, a double, a two-run home run and a second run scored in Wednesday's 11-7 loss to the Reds.

The 26-year-old slugged a two-run homer off Nick Martinez in the first inning, giving Horwitz his second long ball in as many games and his eighth of the year in 63 big-league contests. The multi-hit performance was his first since Aug. 9 though, and he's had trouble providing consistency to the Toronto lineup. Through 18 games in August, Horwitz is slashing .238/.338/.476 with three doubles, four home runs, nine RBI and 13 runs.

Julien went 4-for-5 with a double and three runs in Wednesday's 11-4 victory against the Padres.

Julien entered Wednesday having collected just two hits over 10 at-bats since returning from the minors Aug. 15. He doubled that hit total in the rout over the Padres, notching his first four-hit game since August of last year. He's gaining some traction in the Twins' lineup, starting four of the team's past six games with Brooks Lee on the injured list due to a shoulder injury.

Frazier will start in right field and bat seventh in Wednesday's game against the Angels.

Dating back to Aug. 10, Frazier is hitting .421 over a stretch of eight games, and he's now picked up six consecutive starts against right-handed pitchers. Four of those six starts have come in right field, where he could be displacing Hunter Renfroe as the Royals' preferred option. The Royals will make room in the lineup Wednesday for both Frazier and Renfroe, however, with the latter player filling in at designated hitter for a resting Freddy Fermin.

Drury isn't in the Angels' lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals, Erica Weston of Bally Sports West reports.

After going 3-for-18 with two runs scored over his last five games, Drury will get a breather Wednesday while Jack Lopez starts at the keystone and bats ninth.

Wagner is not in the lineup for Wednesday's contest versus the Reds.

Right-hander Nick Martinez is drawing the start for the Reds, marking the first time Wagner has not been in the lineup against a righty since he was promoted from Triple-A Buffalo on Aug. 12. Leo Jimenez will cover second base in place of Wagner, who is batting .435 through his first seven big-league games.

Horwitz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's win over the Reds.

The Blue Jays launched five homers off Carson Spiers in the first five innings Tuesday, with Horwitz's blast being his seventh of the season. The 26-year-old has maintained an everyday role for Toronto while bouncing between first base, DH and occasionally second base, but Horwitz is slashing just .217/.304/.400 through 17 games in August with three homers, seven RBI and 11 runs.

Altuve is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Red Sox, Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Altuve is getting a rare day off after starting in every game since July 7. Alex Bregman (elbow) will return from a five-game absence and will be elevated to the leadoff spot normally reserved for Altuve, while Mauricio Dubon will handle second base.