MLB Player News

Espinosa was released by the Angels on Thursday.

The Angels ended the Espinosa experiment last weekend, designating him for assignment, and the 30-year-old is now free to explore other opportunities. Espinosa was a net positive at second base, but his struggles at the plate during his time with Anaheim (.162/.237/.276) far overshadowed his contributions in the field. Look for him to latch on with another club on a minor-league deal.

Solarte (oblique) could be cleared Thursday to take batting practice from both sides of the plate, Dennis Lin of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

The oblique issue that has sidelined Solarte for the past month apparently isn't as problematic when he swings the bat, but the injury continues to hamper him in the field. Until Solarte is able to perform full baseball activities for a few days in a row, a rehab assignment shouldn't be considered forthcoming. Solarte's extended absence has allowed rookie Carlos Asuaje to see regular starts at second base.

Drury is not in the Diamondbacks' lineup Thursday, Jody Jackson of Fox Sports Arizona reports.

Drury rarely plays a full week's worth of games, despite his versatility in the field, as the Diamondbacks continue to mix and match second base and shortstop between Drury, Chris Owings and Ketel Marte. The latter two are starting up the middle Thursday, in fact. Drury's deep-league fantasy owners must continue monitoring his lineup status.

Hernandez went 2-for-4 with two solo home runs in Wednesday's 9-1 win over the White Sox.

Both shots came off Carlos Rodon, as Hernandez continues to be a lefty killer this season. Nine of his 10 homers on the year have come against southpaws despite the fact that he's seen fewer plate appearances against them, and his 1.033 OPS versus lefties is close to double his .587 figure against righties.

Franklin will get the day off for Wednesday's series finale against the Nationals, Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register reports.

Franklin receives a breather after starting six of the past seven games, going 1-for-13 at the plate during that span. In his place, Cliff Pennington will man the keystone while batting eighth in the order.

Andrus went 0-for-4 at the dish in Monday's 3-1 loss to the Orioles.

After delivering a two-hit performance in his return from the paternity list prior to the All-Star break, Andrus hasn't been able to get much going at the plate over his last five contests, along with most other hitters in the Rangers lineup. He's recorded just two hits in his last 21 at-bats, resulting in a 13-point drop in his season batting average. Andrus has only struck out three times during that span, however, suggesting that he's at least seeing the ball well and could rebound once he enjoys some better luck on balls in play.

Polanco is out of the lineup Monday against the Yankees, Brandon Warne of ZoneCoverage.com reports.

Polanco is batting just .165 since the beginning of June and could be on the outs for an everyday role at shortstop. He'll cede duties at the position to Ehire Adrianza for the second straight contest, though Eduardo Escobar could also factor into the playing-time picture if Polanco settles into a reserve role on a more permanent basis.

Frazier is not in the lineup Monday against the Brewers.

Although Frazier has six hits in 12 at-bats since the All-Star break, he'll hit the bench for a night off Monday against left-hander Brent Suter, allowing Jose Osuna to man left field. Frazier's playing time is expected to dwindle a bit moving forward with Starling Marte (suspension) expected to return Tuesday, although the former's positional versatility should help him carve out a semi-regular role if he continues to swing a hot bat.

Frazier went 2-for-4 with a walkoff single against the Cardinals on Sunday.

Following a month-long scuffle, Frazier has six hits in 12 at-bats since the All-Star break. He'll lose most of his playing time in left field when Starling Marte (suspension) returns Tuesday, but Frazier could move back and forth between second base and third -- especially with Josh Harrison currently struggling -- now that it looks like he's once again found his hitting stroke.

Hernandez went 0-for-2 with a pair of walks in Sunday's win over the Marlins.

The super-utility man has fallen back into his usual platoon role after seeing a stretch of regular playing time filling in for injured starters in June. Hernandez owns a pedestrian .211/.309/.442 line this season, but his splits against southpaws (.244/.343/.593) make him an intriguing option in daily formats when a lefty starter is scheduled to take on the Dodgers.