MLB Player News

Lopez will start at second base and bat seventh Thursday against the Indians.

Lopez has slotted into the lower third of the order for three straight games after Adalberto Mondesi returned from the 10-day injured list earlier this week and was immediately reinstalled as the team's No. 2 hitter. With the rookie now set to occupy a spot in the bottom half of the lineup for the foreseeable future, his opportunities to both score and produce runs will likely take a hit.

Drury went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run and a double Wednesday against the Red Sox.

Drury took Chris Sale deep in the sixth inning for his seventh home run and also collected his first three-hit effort since April 27. He's drawn five starts in the team's last seven games due to a combination of poor performance and injury placing Teoscar Hernandez (shoulder) on the bench. In that span, Drury is 4-for-15 -- though nearly all that production came Wednesday -- and his line now sits at .214/.262/.368 across 252 plate appearances for the season.

Polanco was added to the lineup for Wednesday's game against Oakland as a replacement for Marwin Gonzalez (toe), Dan Hayes of The Athletic reports.

Polanco was originally scheduled to sit for the first time since June 19 but will end up waiting at least one more day for down time. He'll at least get to rest his legs during Wednesday's game, as he'll serve as the designated hitter while batting third.

Polanco is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the A's.

Ehire Adrianza will get the start at shortstop as Polanco sits for the first time since June 19. Polanco has hit safely in 10 of 11 games since that last absence and is batting .319/.377/.518 for the season. The Twins' first All-Star starter since 2013, his 133 wRC+ ranks 27th among all qualified hitters in baseball.

Lowe (leg) is not in Wednesday's lineup against the Orioles, Steve Carney of Sports Radio 620 WDAE reports.

He was diagnosed with a right lower-leg contusion after fouling a ball off himself in Tuesday's game. Michael Brosseau will start at second base, hitting sixth.

Merrifield went 3-for-5 with a run scored Tuesday in the Royals' 9-5 loss to the Indians.

Merrifield has turned in three straight multi-hit performances and was able to surge ahead of the Yankees' DJ LeMahieu (108 hits) for the major-league lead (111) after adding three more singles to his ledger. The All-Star has supplemented his .307 average with 11 home runs and 11 steals, making him just one of 13 players in the majors to reach double digits in both categories.

Castro will start in right field and bat sixth in the first game of Wednesday's doubleheader with the White Sox.

The versatile Castro will stick in the lineup for a fifth straight contest while Nicholas Castellanos shifts over to designated hitter in place of a resting Miguel Cabrera. Though Castro has benefited from steady work of late, he's the most likely candidate to lose out on an everyday role with top shortstop Jordy Mercer (quadriceps) making his return from the 10-day injured list Wednesday. With Mercer back, Niko Goodrum projects to play second base on a regular basis, leaving no room for Castro at the position he's played most frequently this season.

Forsythe started at third base in place of the injured Asdrubel Cabrera (back) and went 0-for-2 with two walks in a 9-4 loss to the Angels on Tuesday.

This was the second straight game Cabrera missed, and it presumably would have been his third had Monday's game not been postponed. Forsythe, who moves around the infield regularly as a fill-in, should continue to get time at third base while Cabrera is unavailable. He has one hit over his last 17 at-bats.

Altuve went 4-for-5 with a double, an RBI and two runs scored in Tuesday's 9-8 win over the Rockies.

This was Altuve's first four-hit night since returning from the injured list. He's hit safely in nine of the 12 games since being activated, batting .340 (18-for-53) with eight runs scored while primarily batting second in the order.

Andrus went 1-for-3 with a run scored and three stolen bases in Tuesday's 9-4 loss to the Angels.

Andrus had a single to right field during the third inning and subsequently stole second base, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and stole home for the third time this season. The 30-year-old is enjoying a resurgent season with a .309/.347/.456 slash line and is 19-for-23 in stolen-base attempts.