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Jose Altuve 2B | HOU
Astros' Jose Altuve: Plays through knee injury
Altuve injured his right knee but remained in Saturday's game against the Indians, Matt Young of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Altuve stumbled out of the batter's box on a grounder and beat out an errant throw. He limped noticeably, prompting a visit from manager A.J. Hinch and a trainer, but Altuve said the pain was already subsiding. That all said, it's worth noting that issues with the right knee cut into Altuve's production for a good chunk of the season.
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Franklin Barreto LF | BAL
Athletics' Franklin Barreto: Launches two-run jack in regular-season finale
Barreto went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run in a loss to the Angels on Sunday.
Manager Bob Melvin pulled multiple regulars early in anticipation of Wednesday's wild-card game against the Yankees, and Barreto was one of the beneficiaries of such a strategy. The 22-year-old saw sparse action during his September stay with the Athletics, and the home run was his first at the big-league level since Aug. 1. While Barreto's .233 average this season was nothing to write home about, he enjoyed more success against major-league arms than his initial cup of coffee in 2017 (.197/.250/.352).
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Whit Merrifield 2B | ATL
Royals' Whit Merrifield: Swipes 45th base
Merrifield went 1-for-4 with a stolen base Sunday against the Indians.
Merrifield wasn't particularly productive at the plate in the regular-season finale, but he managed to record his 45th stolen base. He was extremely aggressive on the basepaths to close the season, stealing 10 bags in his last 10 starts. Though he's not much of a power producer, he hit for a good average (.304) and scored plenty of runs (88), while supporting his 2017 breakout and making his case to be considered a top-50 fantasy player, at least in rotisserie leagues, entering 2019.
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Yangervis Solarte 2B | SD
Blue Jays' Yangervis Solarte: Sitting again Sunday
Solarte is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays, Mike Wilner of Sportsnet 590 The Fan reports.
Solarte will hit the bench for the second straight game and third time in the last four games as he is 5-for-35 in September. The Blue Jays continue to prioritize giving starts to their younger assets, with Aledmys Diaz at third base and Richard Urena at shortstop. Solarte has a .226/.277/.378 slash line and 17 home runs in a disappointing 2018 season.
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Jorge Polanco DH | NYM
Twins' Jorge Polanco: Another multi-hit effort in win
Polanco went 3-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI in Saturday's 8-3 win over the White Sox.
He's been on fire to close out the campaign, collecting multiple hits in four of the last six games to boost his September slash line to .318/.364/.473. Polanco now has a career-high .778 OPS in 76 games this season, and the 25-year-old will head into the spring locked in as the Twins' starting shortstop.
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Gleyber Torres 2B | DET
Yankees' Gleyber Torres: Smashes two-run homer
Torres went 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in an 8-5 win over the Red Sox on Saturday.
Torres' fourth-inning shot off Eduardo Rodriguez not only lifted the Yankees to a three-run lead, it broke the single-season home-run record of 264 previously held by the 1997 Seattle Mariners. Torres is hitting .274 with 24 home runs and 77 RBI this season.
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Yangervis Solarte 2B | SD
Blue Jays' Yangervis Solarte: Out of Saturday's lineup
Solarte is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rays, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.
Solarte heads to the bench after going 0-for-5 with a strikeout in Friday's win over Tampa Bay. Aledmys Diaz will start at third base for the Blue Jays, with Richard Urena at shortstop and Jon Berti at second base.
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Jose Altuve 2B | HOU
Astros' Jose Altuve: On bench for first game Saturday
Altuve will sit for the first game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Orioles.
The Astros will avoid overworking their stars in the twin bill, with the team already locked into the second seed in the American League. Marwin Gonzalez will play second base for the first game, while Altuve will likely lead off and play second base in the nightcap.
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Elvis Andrus 2B | ARI
Rangers' Elvis Andrus: Reaches base four times in loss
Andrus went 3-for-4 with a walk, a double, a stolen base and two runs scored in Friday's 12-6 loss to the Mariners.
Andrus is closing out a tough season on a high note, going 7-for-16 with three doubles over the last five games. That tough year was the result of an early season elbow injury that sapped his power. He had a .500 slugging percentage and .926 OPS prior to the injury, followed by a .351/.643 since. Unrelated to his power, Andrus' steal Friday was just his fifth after averaging 30 over his previous nine seasons.