MLB Player News

Kemp will start in left field and bat ninth Sunday against the Rangers.

Kemp seemed likely to shift to a reserve role following Josh Reddick's (lower leg) reinstatement from the disabled list Wednesday, but the side injury to shortstop Carlos Correa has unexpectedly allowed Kemp to stick in the lineup for the fifth consecutive game. It still appears Kemp's days as an everyday player may be numbered, though. According to Hunter Atkins of the Houston Chronicle, manager A.J. Hinch said Correa is expected to play Tuesday in Oakland, which will presumably result in Marwin Gonzalez shifting back to left field and bumping Kemp to the bench.

Frazier was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Sunday.

Frazier has appeared in 56 of the Pirates' 64 contests this season but holds an uninspiring .237/.318/.356 slash line over 152 plate appearances. He'll be sent to the minors to allow the Pirates to bring up some catching reinforcement in the form of Jacob Stallings, who will provide backstop depth following Francisco Cervelli's removal from Saturday's contest with a jaw injury. It wouldn't be surprising to see Frazier back in the majors in the not-too-distant future.

Arroyo will start at second base and bat sixth Sunday against the Mariners.

Arroyo has been included in the lineup three times in the four-game series, but it shouldn't be taken as an indication that he has captured a full-time role. Two of the starting assignments have come with lefties on the hill for the Mariners, while the other start came Saturday when C.J. Cron was receiving a routine rest day. At this point, Arroyo looks to be little more than a short-side platoon mate with Joey Wendle at the keystone.

Marte was held out of the Diamondbacks lineup during Saturday's 12-7 win over the Rockies due in part to a tender right shoulder, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports. "Maybe created some tenderness in his right shoulder," Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said of Marte, who initially got banged up after sliding awkwardly into third base June 3 against the Marlins. "He could play. He's available off the bench. I just want to get him ahead of it instead of playing even. We're trying to nurse him through this situation right now."

As Lovullo suggested, Marte was available off the bench and ended up entering the contest as a pinch hitter, going 0-for-2 on the evening. Marte's exit from the lineup opened up a spot in the middle infield for the struggling Nick Ahmed, who came through with one of his best games of the season (3-for-5, one home run, two doubles, three RBI). Ahmed's performance Saturday as well as the recent hot hitting of Daniel Descalso could result in the Diamondbacks deploying a rotation in the middle infield, though Marte should see plenty of playing time thanks to his own strong form at the dish of late. Each of Marte's last nine hits have gone for extra bases, with the 24-year-old submitting a 1.226 OPS in his last 10 games heading into Saturday.

Andrus (elbow) took batting practice for a second consecutive day Saturday, Adam Grosbard of the Dallas Morning News reports.

Andrus is all set to begin a rehabilitation assignment at Double-A Frisco on Monday. He's expected to stay out on rehab for at least a week.

Torres went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Saturday against the Mets.

Torres got the Yankees on the board in the third inning by crushing a Steven Matz offering to left field for his 11th home run of the season. He continues to flash impressive and somewhat surprising power early in his major-league career, though this was his first extra-base hit since his last home run, which came on June 4.

Solarte went 2-for-5 with a double, a run scored and an RBI in Saturday's win over the Orioles.

Solarte had been in a slump of late with a .149/.212/.234 line over his last 52 plate appearances prior to Saturday, though he struck out only seven times and had an unsustainably-low BABIP of .150 in that span. The 30-year-old has a .249 average and .762 OPS with 12 home runs through 60 games this season.

Andrus (elbow) is scheduled to begin a minor-league stint at Double-A Frisco on Monday, John Blake of the Texas Rangers reports.

If all goes well during his rehabilitation assignment, Andrus could return as soon as June 18 against Kansas City. He's been on the shelf for the last two months recovering from a fractured right elbow.

Semien, who went 3-for-4 with a triple and two runs in a win over the Royals on Friday, is 5-for-8 over his last two games.

The shortstop had started June off going just 1-for-19 over his first five games, but he's busted out of that malaise in impressive fashion over the first two installments of the four-game set against the Royals. Semien's power game is a bit behind its usual pace thus far this season (five home runs over 287 plate appearances), but he's actually making hard contact at a career-high 31.2 percent clip.

Marte is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Rockies.

Marte will head to the bench Saturday as Daniel Descalso earns the starting nod at second base. The 24-year-old Marte struggled with a .207 average and .576 OPS in May, but has responded through the first seven games of June, going 8-for-22 with eight extra-base hits, seven runs and six RBI.