MLB Player News

Semien went 1-for-3 with a two-run single, a stolen base and a run in a win over the Mariners on Sunday.

Semien led off as customary with a righty in Felix Hernandez on the mound and provided plenty from the top of the order. The shortstop has now hit safely in five straight, and he's driven in five runs over the last three contests overall. Semien has been a much more prominent presence on the base paths in the second half of the season, as evidenced by a post-All-Star-break OBP of .365 that represents a 58-improvement over his first-half figure.

Altuve is not in the lineup Monday against the Twins.

Altuve started 12 games in a row after returning from a knee injury, hitting just .250 over that stretch. Marwin Gonzalez will fill in at second base, with Tony Kemp playing left field.

Altuve went 0-for-3 in Sunday's win over the Angels, extending his hitless streak to 13 at-bats.

This is not Altuve's longest hitless streak of the season -- he went 16 at-bats without one back in May -- but any run of futility for one of the game's best hitters is remarkable. He and Alex Bregman switched spots in the order Saturday, Altuve to the two hole with Bregman hitting behind him, which serves multiple purposes. It moves Houston's RBI leader to the three hole -- in theory, a spot where there is more RBI opportunities -- and could break Altuve's slump by giving him better pitches to hit. "For so long, we've talked about how having Altuve behind Bregman is probably giving him so many pitches to hit, maybe Bregman can return the favor now by switching them and trying something different," manager A.J. Hinch told Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle.

Torres went 1-for-4 with two RBI and a walk in Sunday's 11-7 loss to the Tigers.

Torres delivered a two-run single to center field in the ninth inning to cut the deficit to four, but the Yankees would fall short in the series finale. Following Sunday's contest, he's put together a seven-game hitting streak, clubbing two home runs and driving in 10 over that span. Torres owns a .282 average with 22 homers and 66 RBI through 99 games in his first big-league season.

Lowe went 3-for-5 with a home run, two doubles and three RBI in Sunday's 6-4 win over Cleveland.

Lowe has gone 5-for-9 with four extra-base hits and four RBI over his last two games after hitting just .208 in his first 48 career at-bats. With numbers like this, the 24-year-old rookie should continue seeing regular playing time down the stretch.

Semien will start at shortstop and lead off Sunday against the Mariners, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

Semien has regularly been serving as the Athletics' table setter against left-handed pitching, but the leadoff assignment in the series finale is more notable with right-hander Felix Hernandez on the mound for Seattle. Nick Martini has been the Athletics' primary option atop the order of late versus righties, but since he was optioned to Triple-A Nashville a few days ago, it looks like those duties could now fall to Semien. Though he's fared better versus southpaws this season with a 112 wRC+, Semien has at least hit a palatable .263 in his matchups against right-handed pitching.

Lowe went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs in a win over the Indians on Saturday.

Lowe has now left the yard in two of his last three games, his first pair of major-league round trippers. The rookie continues to coax his offensive numbers upward, with Saturday's production bringing his line up to a season-best .231/.365/.365. While those numbers have been generated over a small sample, Lowe's minor-league body of work and recent hot stretch support the notion that he's capable of maintaining his recent success.

Rodriguez will start at shortstop and bat seventh Sunday against the Yankees.

Rodriguez has stepped in as the Tigers' everyday shortstop following Jose Iglesias' (abdomen) placement on the 10-day disabled list Thursday. The Tigers are optimistic that Iglesias won't need more than two weeks to recover from the setback, so Rodriguez likely won't be locked into a full-time role for the rest of the season. Since being promoted from Triple-A Toledo on July 4, Rodriguez is hitting .233 with three home runs and 13 RBI across 103 at-bats.

Merrifield went 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBI in the Royals' 5-4 win over the Orioles on Saturday.

Merrifield took Orioles closer Mychal Givens deep in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Royals the walkoff win. The second baseman has recorded exactly two hits in five of his last six starts, boosting his season average to .311, which ranks fifth among all qualified hitters in the American League. Merrifield has supplemented the excellent average with 29 steals, placing him in a tie for fourth place in the majors.

Semien went 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI on Saturday against the Mariners.

Semien made things interesting by lacing a two-RBI double off Edwin Diaz in the eighth inning to trim the Mariners lead to one run. He now has a modest four-game hitting streak and is hitting nearly .280 in 154 post-All-Star-break at-bats. He's already set career-best marks in stolen bases and runs scored, so Semien will look to continue to build on his strong campaign in the final month of the season.