MLB Player News
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Michael Chavis 2B | CIN
Pirates' Michael Chavis: Starting against righty pitcher
Chavis will start at first base and bat fifth in Wednesday's game against the Dodgers.
With a 173 wRC+ against left-handed pitching this season, the righty-hitting Chavis is locked in as a lineup regular versus southpaws, but he'll pick up a start Wednesday against a right-hander (Ryan Pepiot) in the series finale with Los Angeles. Yoshi Tsutsugo takes a seat to clear a spot at first base for Chavis, who has gone 3-for-4 with a double, triple, two runs and an RBI through the first two games of the series.
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Jonathan India 2B | KC
Reds' Jonathan India: Likely requires rehab assignment
India (hamstring) will likely require a rehab assignment before rejoining the Reds, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
India participated in agility drills Tuesday, and he's taking part in glove work and tee work a day later. Manager David Bell said Wednesday that a rehab assignment hasn't yet been planned, but it could begin near the end of next week. If that happens, the Reds are hopeful that India will be back in action sometime around May 23, when the team's next homestand begins.
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Luis Urias 2B | ATH
Brewers' Luis Urias: Pops second homer
Urias went 1-for-3 with two walks and a solo home run in Tuesday's 5-4 win over the Reds.
His fourth-inning blast off Hunter Greene got the Brewers on the board. Urias has quickly made up for lost time after missing almost the entire first month of the season, batting .333 (8-for-24) through seven games with two homers, three RBI, seven runs and an impressive 6:6 BB:K.
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Miguel Vargas 2B | CHW
Dodgers' Miguel Vargas: Heating up at plate
Vargas is slashing .367/.486/.600 with a home run, two doubles, a triple, 12 runs, seven RBI and 7:4 BB:K through eight games with Triple-A Oklahoma City in May.
Vargas batted a modest .259 in April but has picked things up significantly this month to lift his average to .287 on the season. The 22-year-old turned heads with .319/.380/.526 slash line, 23 homers and 11 stolen bases between two minor-league levels in 2021 and hit .308 with a .500 on-base-percentage in nine Cactus League games with the Dodgers this spring. He has impressed at every level of the minors and has even improved his already steady plate discipline this season, walking almost as many times (21) as he has struck out (22). He figures to be a big part of the Dodgers' future plans and could get his first call-up at some point during the current campaign.
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Brendan Donovan 2B | SEA
Cardinals' Brendan Donovan: Homers in loss
Donovan went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Tuesday's loss to the Orioles.
After Paul DeJong was demoted to Triple-A Memphis on Tuesday, Donovan was given the first opportunity to replace him in the lineup at shortstop. The 25-year-old launched a solo homer off Dillon Tate to open the bottom of the ninth inning, narrowing the deficit to the eventual 5-3 final score. The long ball was Donovan's first of the season and he has posted a .188 batting average with two RBI in 16 at-bats this year. He will compete with Edmundo Sosa (illness) for playing time at shortstop with DeJong now out of the picture.
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Brendan Rodgers 2B | BOS
Rockies' Brendan Rodgers: Day off Tuesday
Rodgers is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game at San Francisco, Patrick Lyons of TheDNVR.com reports.
Rodgers started the past eight games and came alive offensively during that stretch, going 10-for-32 with a home run, two doubles, eight RBI and six runs. Garrett Hampson will start at the keystone Tuesday.
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Jonathan India 2B | KC
Reds' Jonathan India: Gets in agility work
India (hamstring) took part in agility drills on the field prior to Tuesday's game against the Brewers, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
Back on the 10-day injured list for the second time this season after aggravating his lingering right hamstring issue, India is likely to remain on the shelf for at least another week. The fact that he's taking part in on-field work bodes well for his chances of returning before the end of May, but India still has several more hurdles to clear in the recovery process before the Reds pinpoint a target date for his activation from the IL.
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Brendan Donovan 2B | SEA
Cardinals' Brendan Donovan: Gets look as starting shortstop
Donovan will start at shortstop and bat ninth in Tuesday's game against the Orioles, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
Following the demotion of the struggling Paul DeJong to Triple-A Memphis earlier Tuesday, Donovan will get the first chance to replace him in the starting nine. Donovan turned in a .789 OPS at Memphis prior to earning his first call-up to the majors April 25, but he's seen limited action with the Cardinals thus far, slashing .154/.214/.154 across 14 plate appearances. He likely won't have much time to try and establish himself as the Cards' starting shortstop, as Donovan is expected to face competition for the role as soon as Thursday, when Edmundo Sosa (illness) could be cleared to return from the COVID-19 injured list.
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Ketel Marte 2B | ARI
Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte: Stays hot, swats HR
Marte went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Monday's 4-3 win over the Marlins.
Marte's sixth-inning blast was the game-deciding hit, as he continued to put a season-opening slump in the past. He's hit safely in nine straight game (13-for-32, .406), including an extra-base hit in eight of those contests. The improved bat may also have calmed him in the field, where he ranks lower half among second baseman in Outs Above Average and success rate, per MLB's Baseball Savant. Marte made a game-ending double play on a ball hit sharply to his left -- the kind of play he hadn't made on multiple occasions over the past month.
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Thairo Estrada 2B | BAL
Giants' Thairo Estrada: Swipes fourth bag
Estrada went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a stolen base in an 8-5 win over Miami on Monday.
Estrada singled in the sixth inning and subsequently stole second base, and he knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth. The infielder came into the campaign having notched just one theft in each of his previous two seasons, but he has already stolen four bases on four attempts in 2022. Estrada has above-average speed but last reached double-digit stolen bases in the minors in 2016, so his success in that department thus far comes as a bit of a surprise.