MLB Player News

Albies will start at second base and bat sixth Sunday against the Tigers, David O'Brien of The Athletic reports.

Albies will benefit from Nick Markakis receiving a day off and move up in the order after occupying either the Nos. 7 or 8 spots in the lineup in each of the previous seven games. After a prolonged cold spell, Albies is finally beginning to heat up again with an 11-for-30 showing at the dish over his past eight starts. Unfortunately for fantasy managers, Albies has delivered no home runs or steals during that stretch.

Marte went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 5-4 loss to the Mets.

The switch hitter was red hot to close the books on May, slashing .378/.396/.756 with four homers, eight RBI and 10 runs over his last 10 games. Marte now has 13 home runs on the year -- one shy of the career high he established in 2018 -- and his .863 OPS is nearly 100 points better than last season's career-best mark as well.

Hernandez went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's 6-3 win over the Phillies.

Hernandez has started to pick things up over his last five games, going 5-for-16 with two homers and six RBI in that span. For the year, the utilityman is hitting a disappointing .223/.302/.413 with nine homers over 53 games.

Rodgers remains on the bench Friday against Toronto.

Rodgers sits for the second game in a row and the third time in four games. The 22-year-old's .303/.361/.364 slash line translates to just an 82 wRC+ when factoring in the Coors Field effect. Ryan McMahon and his .260/.356/.449 line (99 wRC+) will remain in the lineup at second base.

Elmore cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday.

Elmore went 1-for-20 during his brief stay in Pittsburgh. He'll remain as organizational depth but does not appear to be close to a return to the big leagues.

Frazier is starting at second base and hitting eighth Thursday against the Brewers.

Frazier has primarily hit leadoff this season, but a slow start at the plate (.250 average and .655 OPS through 48 games) has prompted the Pirates to give 25-year-old Kevin Newman -- who is hitting .347 through 28 games this season -- a turn atop the order.

Rodgers is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Diamondbacks, Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post reports.

The rookie will head to the bench for the second time in the series and for the third time in six games. Though he appears to rank ahead of Ryan McMahon in the pecking order at second base, the Rockies' reluctance to commit to Rodgers in a full-time role is undoubtedly annoying for fantasy managers who scooped him up off the waiver wire. It's especially frustrating given that Rodgers has gotten off to a 10-for-32 (.313 average) start to his MLB career.

Rosario went 1-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Wednesday's loss at Dodger Stadium.

Rosario launched a leadoff homer off Julio Urias in the seventh inning to put the Mets ahead 7-3, but a ninth-inning rally surged the Dodgers ahead for good. The 23-year-old has had somewhat of a quiet season, batting .262/.309/.432 with six home runs, 29 RBI and 21 runs scored.

McNeil (hamstring) is running at 70 percent and participating in baseball activities, Mike Puma of the New York Post reports.

McNeil landed on the injured list last week with the left hamstring strain, so his relatively quick return to baseball activities is good news regarding the severity of the injury. It's not fully clear what activities he's been participating in, so it's difficult to pinpoint where he's currently at in his progression.

Hernandez is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Mets, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Hernandez is hitting just .162/.241/.257 with a pair of homers and a 26.5 percent strikeout rate through 21 games this month, so he'll take a seat for the third time in five games. Max Muncy is starting at second base in this one, with Matt Beaty covering first base.