MLB Player News

Kemp will sit Tuesday against Colorado.

The Athletics' playing-time split at second base reminds difficult to parse. Chad Pinder started the first two games, once against a righty and once against a lefty. Kemp then started against a pair of righties, but he's back on the bench in favor of Pinder with another righty (Antonio Senzatela) starting for the Rockies.

Merrifield went 3-for-5 with a homer, a double, three RBI and three runs scored in Monday's 14-6 win over the Tigers.

Merrifield stuffed the stat sheet Monday, clocking a two-run homer in the third innings and an RBI double in the fourth. After earning his first All-Star nod in 2019, the 31-year-old utilityman is off to a hot start with a hit in each of his first four games to start the season.

Lowe went 2-for-3 with a walk, a double, a triple, two runs scored and two RBI in Monday's 14-5 rout of Atlanta.

That's now three straight multi-hit performances for Lowe, with five of his seven hits over that stretch going for extra bases (three doubles and two triples). The Rays' deep bench means any player is at risk of getting a rest on any given day, but as long as Lowe is locked in at the plate, he should remain in the lineup.

Altuve went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, two RBI and two runs scored in Monday's 8-5 win over the Mariners.

Altuve led off the fifth inning with a solo shot that just cleared the fence in left field, his first long ball of the year. The second baseman has gone 4-for-14 (.286) with seven runs scored and three RBI in four games to start the season. The 30-year-old will likely continue to generate offense batting in the top half of the Astros' order.

Rengifo (hamstring) is close to being game ready, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

He has not played yet this season due to a hamstring issue but it sounds like we could see him debut sometime this week. Andrelton Simmons is dealing with an ankle injury, so if he is still ailing when Rengifo returns, there could be starts available at shortstop.

Lopez isn't in the lineup for Monday's game against the Tigers.

Lopez will play a bench role once again Monday after going 1-for-6 with two walks and a strikeout over appearances in the first three games. Whit Merrifield will shift to second base with Brett Phillips starting in center field.

Kemp will bat ninth and play second base Monday against the Angels.

Kemp entered the season as part of a presumed platoon with Franklin Barreto at second base, though it was Chad Pinder who started at the position against both a lefty and a righty in the first two games of the year. Kemp has now gotten the nod against two straight righties, so it's possible he's in for a significant role this season after all. It will likely take a few more games before the true playing-time split at the position becomes clear.

Lowe went 3-for-5 with an RBI single and two doubles in an extra-inning win over the Blue Jays on Sunday.

A day after lacing a two-run triple, Lowe was back to putting good wood on the ball throughout Sunday's game. His only non extra-base hit of the day, a seventh-inning single to shallow right, accounted for his one RBI and knotted the game at 4-4. After an 0-for-2 tally on Opening Night, Lowe went 5-for-9 over the last two games of the series against Toronto.

Semien went 2-for-4 with a run in a win over the Angels on Sunday.

The veteran shortstop has reached safely in each of the first three games of the season, and he's hit in two straight. Semien has also parlayed his four instances on the base paths into three runs thanks to some timely hitting behind him, leading to a relatively productive fantasy start in 2020.

Chavis started at first base and went 0-for-3 in Sunday's 7-4 loss to the Orioles.

Chavis got the nod at first base for the second time in three games due to the O's starting left-handers; Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke is sitting Mitch Moreland against southpaws. Against right-handers, Chavis and Jose Peraza are expected to share second base, although it was Peraza who started Saturday against a righty.