MLB Player News

Semien went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Saturday's 6-2 win over the Twins.

Semien socked yet another homer Saturday, taking Bailey Ober deep to get the Blue Jays on the board in the fourth. With this latest bomb, Semien became only the fifth second baseman in MLB history to hit 40 home runs in a season. He is now just three round-trippers behind Davey Johnson for the all-time mark of 43, which was set in 1973.

Kemp is not in the lineup Saturday against the Angels.

Kemp started the past five games and will take a seat after going 3-for-13 with six walks, an RBI, five runs and a stolen base. Josh Harrison starts at second base while Chad Pinder starts in the outfield against Angels southpaw Jose Suarez.

Andrus (foot) is starting at shortstop and batting ninth Saturday against the Angels.

Andrus sat out Friday's contest after being hit by a pitch in the lower leg Thursday, but he'll rejoin the lineup after missing only a single game. The 33-year-old has a .357/.413/.452 slash line with four doubles, six RBI and nine runs through 13 games in September.

Espinal (hip) began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Buffalo on Saturday, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Espinal has been out with a hip flexor since late August. He shouldn't need too long of a rehab assignment given that he's only missed three weeks, though his expected return date is not yet clear.

Hernandez will sit Saturday against the White Sox.

Hernandez sits for the first time in a week. He hasn't done much at the plate in his 32 big-league games thus far, hitting .250/.354/.278, though he has helped fantasy teams out with nine steals. Brock Holt will be the Rangers' third baseman Saturday.

Arraez will sit Saturday against Toronto, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Arraez has been poor at the plate since late August, hitting .169/.231/.225 over his last 21 games. Josh Donaldson starts at third base Saturday, with Jorge Polanco at second.

Altuve went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run and a walk against the Diamondbacks in a 4-3 win Friday.

For 5.2 frames Friday, Arizona starter Madison Bumgarner held Houston without a hit. Altuve ended the no-hit bid and gave Houston its first lead with a two-run shot to left field. The long ball extended Altuve's personal hitting streak to six games, during which he has gone 9-for-21 while scoring nine runs.

Gonzalez went 3-for-4 with two doubles, two runs scored, one RBI and a walk in Friday's 8-0 win over Texas.

Gonzalez doubled in a run in the second inning and scored a run in both the fourth and seventh frames. It was the first multi-hit game in his young career and he's now 7-for-24 (.292) with three doubles through his first eight games. The University of Miami product registered a .275/.357/.525 slash line with 23 homers and 22 steals across 87 games with Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte this season.

Polanco went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run in Friday's 7-3 win over Toronto.

The 28-year-old had the first long ball in a back-to-back-to-back sequence for Minnesota in the third inning, as Josh Donaldson and Miguel Sano followed up with solo shots. Polanco is up to 31 homers this year, seven of which have come in 16 games this month. For the year, the infielder is slashing .279/.332/.522 with 90 RBI, 90 runs scored and 10 stolen bases in what's been a career-best year in the power department.

Andrus was not in Friday's lineup against the Angels after being hit by a pitch in foot/shin area Thursday, Matt Kawahara of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Manager Bob Melvin described Andrus as "hobbling around a little bit." That said, the issue doesn't sound like a serious injury, though it remains unclear whether the shortstop will require a stint on the injured list. His absence set off a series of moves in the Athletics' lineup, as Josh Harrison took over at short, Tony Kemp shifted to second base and Chad Pinder entered the lineup as the right fielder.