MLB Player News

Castro is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Padres.

The 29-year-old has filled the strong side of a platoon at second base for most of the season, but he'll likely transition into a utility role after Brendan Rodgers made his return from the 60-day injured list Monday. The lefty-hitting Castro is on the bench for a second straight day, even with the Padres bringing a right-hander (Nick Martinez) to the hill.

Garcia is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Brewers, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

The Nationals are facing a lefty (Wade Miley) and playing a day game after a night game, so manager Dave Martinez likely viewed it as an opportune time to give the lefty-hitting Garcia a day off following a stretch of seven consecutive starts. Michael Chavis will replace Garcia at second base and bat ninth.

The Brewers optioned Miller to Triple-A Nashville on Wednesday.

Miller's demotion comes after he was on the bench for each of the past six games after losing hold of an everyday role following the Brewers' acquisition of Carlos Santana. The 26-year-old had been one of Milwaukee's better hitters over the first two months of the season, but he struggled mightily in July, slashing .178/.212/.247 on the month. He'll look to get back on track while playing regularly in Nashville and could end up settling into a short-side platoon role for the Brewers if he's brought back later in the season.

Gonzales will start at second base and bat seventh in Wednesday's game against the Tigers, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Gonzales is back in the lineup after he had been on the bench for two of the Pirates' previous three games. Both of his absences came against right-handed pitchers, with Liover Peguero drawing starts at the keystone over Gonzales on both occasions. Since receiving a call-up from Triple-A Indianapolis in late June, Gonzales is slashing .222/.275/.364 with a 27.5 percent strikeout rate over 109 plate appearances. He could be on the odd man out of the Pittsburgh infield when Ji Hwan Bae (ankle) returns from the 10-day injured list.

Peguero is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Tigers, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Though he appears to have ceded primary duties at shortstop to Alika Williams, Peguero has manned second base on both of the past two occasions the Pirates faced right-handed starting pitchers. Peguero may have the edge on playing time at the keystone over Nick Gonzales, though the former will give way to the latter in the series finale. Both Peguero and Gonzales could see their opportunities at second base take a hit in the near future with Ji Hwan Bae (ankle) closing in on a return from the 10-day injured list.

Alu went 1-for-3 with a run scored, an RBI and a stolen base in Tuesday's loss to the Brewers.

Getting the start at third base and batting eighth, Alu scored his first career run and picked up his first career RBI in his sixth big-league game. With Jeimer Candelario now a Cub, the door is open for Alu to get a long look at the hot corner, but if the 26-year-old isn't consistently productive, the Nats could turn to another option such as Carter Kieboom (oblique) or even top prospect Brady House, who has a .302/.364/.496 slash line across three levels of the minors this season.

Peguero went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run Tuesday against the Tigers.

Peguero has started seven of Pittsburgh's last nine games, five of which have come at shortstop. Of late, he's started primarily at second base, however, with Alika Williams getting a look at shortstop. Peguero had an inconsistent production profile while rising through the minors, but he's taken advantage of his opportunities in Pittsburgh to this point by slugging three homers, driving in eight and scoring four runs across 24 plate appearances.

Marte went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 4-3 loss to the Giants.

Marte has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games, going 18-for-47 (.383) with seven extra-base hits in that span. The second baseman had one of three homers for Arizona in this contest. Marte is now at a solid .294/.372/.517 slash line with 18 long balls, 57 RBI, 73 runs scored and six stolen bases through 101 contests.

Turang went 2-for-4 with a stolen base, two RBI and two runs in Tuesday's 6-4 win against the Nationals.

Turang still has just one extra-base hit in his past eight games, but he delivered plenty of value on his two singles. It's just the fifth occasion this season the 23-year-old has collected multiple RBI in a game and just the fourth time he's scored multiple runs. Turang has come alive at the plate over the past week, having gone 7-for-19 with a double, two walks and two runs in addition to Tuesday's run production.

Hoerner went 3-for-6 with a solo home run and three runs scored in Tuesday's 20-9 win over the Reds. He also stole a base.

Hoerner did a little bit of everything in the blowout win, popping his eighth home run of the season and also recording his 26th stolen base. The infielder is closing in on his career high of 10 home runs but has already set a new career high in steals, and that's the category that should continue to fuel his fantasy value the rest of the year.