MLB Player News

Solarte (personal) rejoined the team Saturday, but is not in the lineup for the game against the Giants, the San Diego Union-Tribune's Dennis Lin reports.

His wife tragically passed away earlier this month, so he was away from the team for several days. Adam Rosales will start at the keystone Saturday, but Solarte should be back in the mix in the coming days.

Albies (elbow) is expected to be fully recovered in time for spring training, the Atlanta Journal Constitution's David O'Brien reports.

He underwent successful elbow surgery earlier this month, and should be set to compete for a spot on the 25-man roster at the outset of spring training. Albies is the Braves' clear second baseman of the future, and should spend the bulk of 2017 at the keystone for the big club, regardless of whether he makes the roster out of camp.

Franklin (hamstring) will serve as the designated hitter and bat sixth Saturday against the Red Sox, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

As of Tuesday, Franklin was said to be eyeing a return during the final weekend of the regular season, but evidently he's progressed quicker than expected. Franklin has hit .295/.363/.508 against right-handed pitching this season and was playing regularly between shortstop, second base, left field and first base before going down with the hamstring injury.

Espinosa went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer and a walk in Friday's 6-5 extra-inning loss to the Pirates.

His 423-foot shot in the second drove in Ryan Zimmerman, making it a 3-0 Nationals lead at the time. Espinosa has driven in six runs over his last four games, but is only slashing .131/.206/.295 overall in September. However, his power numbers have seen a resurgence in a season in which he's played his highest number of games since 2012, with his 23 round-trippers and 69 RBI both serving as career highs.

Frazier was a late addition to the starting lineup Thursday against the Brewers.

Jordy Mercer (forearm) was scratched from the lineup due to right forearm discomfort, leaving a vacancy on the Pirates infield. Frazier will get another chance to start, slotting in at second base while Sean Rodriguez moves over to shortstop to cover for Mercer's absence.

Frazier is out of the lineup Thursday against the Brewers.

Frazier garnered a good number of starts down the stretch with Starling Marte out, but now that the All-Star is back in the lineup, Frazier will get a day off. It's unclear how Marte's return will affect Frazier's playing time for the remainder of the season, but that should become clearer as the last week unfolds.

Frazier went 3-for-5 with a double and a pair of runs scored against Milwaukee on Tuesday.

Once again he played left field in place of the injured Starling Marte (back) and produced at the plate. He's only played 12 complete games in the 55 games he's appeared in, but is batting .390 (25-for-64) in those tilts. With Marte out, Frazier makes for a high average replacement option.

Forsythe went 2-for-4 with a triple and two runs in Tuesday's 5-3 loss to the Yankees.

After tallying only a single in his previous nine at-bats, Forsythe bounced back with his seventh multi-hit effort of September. The veteran is closing out the season in fine fashion, with a .313/.403/.463 line in 67 at-bats this month.

Marte is out of the lineup Tuesday against the Blue Jays, the Tacoma News Tribune's Bob Dutton reports.

Marte is 3-for-19 over his last six games and 0-for-9 over his last three games. Shawn O'Malley will start at shortstop and bat ninth Tuesday.

Franklin (hamstring) hopes to return for the final weekend of the season, Roger Mooney of the Tamp Bay Times reports.

He has a moderate hamstring strain that could keep him out for the remainder of the season, but he's hoping to get back out for the final series in Texas to end on a healthy note. Franklin hit .280/.343/.465 with six home runs and six steals in 174 plate appearances this year, marking easily his most productive season to date at the plate. However, he grades out as a below-average defender and started games at left field (17), first base (nine), second base (eight), right field (six), shortstop (four) and DH (two), so it's possible he may enter 2017 as nothing more than a part-time utility player.