MLB Player News

Espinosa is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Twins.

Espinosa is stuck in a slump currently, getting four hits in his last 17 at-bats. Stephen Drew will take over at shortstop with Espinosa getting his second day off of the year. With neither option performing particularly well with the bat to date, one has to imagine that it's only a matter of time before Washington fans see heralded prospect Trea Turner in the big leagues.

Drury is in the lineup and batting second for Friday's game against the Pirates.

Drury will start for Jake Lamb with left-hander Jon Niese on the mound. The 23-year-old hit .304 with two home runs and five RBI against left-handed pitching in 2015, making this an above-average matchup for the third baseman.

Rodgers, 19, is slashing .298/.377/.574 with four home runs and nine RBI through 12 games for Low-A Asheville.

Rodgers has already shown a penchant for hitting the long ball, something which should only improve his stock considering he will eventually play his home games in the thin air at Colorado. He is still at least a few years away from making the big leagues, and perhaps the Rockies are fine with that, considering the start to the season for fellow shortstop Trevor Story.

Betancourt is 9-for-29 (.310) with five RBI and a run scored through 10 games with Double-A Biloxi.

Betancourt, who was acquired by the Brewers in exchange for Francisco Rodriguez, is off to a good start with his new organization. He is seeing Double-A action for the first time and will turn just 21 in May, so there's a good chance that he spends the entire season with Biloxi.

Green went 0-for-4 in Sunday's loss to Triple-A Salt Lake.

Having spent 2015 splitting time between the Angels and Salt Lake, Green has been off to a fairly underwhelming start with his new club. Thus far, he has hit .263 in 10 games and has accrued an on-base percentage of .282. It's expected that the Giants will be patient with his development in Triple-A Sacramento before bringing him up, as he's coming off a subpar 21 game MLB campaign in which he hit below .200. Not to mention that the Giants have 2015 All-Star Joe Panik starting at second base.

Beckham (hamstring) was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday.

Beckham was still dealing with soreness Monday after injuring his hamstring Saturday, which led the Braves to ultimately send him to the DL. This doesn't shake things up too much, as Beckham mostly acted as a reserve for Atlanta, although Daniel Castro could become the primary infield reserve with Beckham out of the picture for a while. In a corresponding move, right-handed pitcher Ryan Weber was recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett.

Adames is batting seventh and starting at second base Monday versus the Reds, Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Adames is filling in for the second time in three days for D.J. LeMahieu, who has had some troubles with groin soreness over the weekend. The switch-hitter will have to hit against right-hander Dan Straily, and that could be a tough matchup, considering Adames' .515 OPS against righties in 32 at-bats against them last season.

Hernandez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Giants, Eric Stephen of True Blue LA reports.

So ends a three-start run for Hernandez, who went an impressive 6-for-12 during that stretch with two homers and seven RBI. The Dodgers will use Howie Kendrick in left field Sunday to effectively fill Hernandez's spot, but the utility man should find his way into the lineup again in the near future due to his strong hitting to date along with his excellent positional versatility.

Beckham is still feeling soreness after being forced from Saturday's game with a hamstring injury, Kevin McAlpin of 680 The Fan reports.

Beckham will not be in the lineup for Sunday's game, and he will get another day to rest Monday without a game on the schedule for the Braves. The team is hoping a couple days off will help him avoid a stint on the disabled list, but that decision will ultimately be made at a later date.

Espinosa is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Phillies, according to Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post.

Espinosa is mired in a deep 2-for-24 slump, so manager Dusty Baker decided to give him his first day off the season Sunday, in hopes that a mental break will help him turn things around. Stephen Drew will start at shortstop for the Nationals on Sunday afternoon.