MLB Player News

Giavotella is out of the lineup Sunday against the Athletics, Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Giavotella had been a pest for the Athletics in the first three games of the series, going 6-for-14 with a run and an RBI. It's likely the Angels are just giving Giavotella the day off for rest following a long stretch of starts on consecutive days.

Espinosa is out of the lineup Sunday against the Brewers, Dan Kolko of MASN Sports reports.

This will be just the second day off since May 15 for Espinosa, as the veteran has been able to display durability in addition to bursts of offense in 2016. While he sits for a regular maintenance day, Stephen Drew will draw the start at shortstop in his stead.

Altuve went 4-for-5 with two doubles, a three-run homer and three runs Saturday at the Royals.

Altuve's 13th homer of the year was part of a seven-run second inning that helped the Astros to a big road victory. He's now homered four of his last six games to raise his slash line to .348/.427/.567.

Solarte went 3-for-5 with a double and two runs in Friday's 13-4 victory over the Reds.

The 28-year-old tallied his fifth multi-hit effort of June, contributing to a 15-hit barrage by the Padres. Solarte has actually seen his average drop considerably due to an atrocious 1-for-28 slump in the middle of the month, but has managed to hit safely in five of the six contests since then.

The Astros optioned Kemp to Triple-A Fresno following Friday's game.

Kemp posted a respectable .753 OPS in limited action this month, but he was taken off the big league roster to open up a roster spot for A.J. Reed, who will be promoted to the majors Saturday. With Kemp holding his own in his first go-around at the top level, there is a good chance he rejoins the Astros at some point later this summer.

Tomlinson (thumb) took grounders Friday and could begin a rehab assignment next week, Alex Pavlovic of CSN Bay Area reports.

Tomlinson landed on the DL June 10 with a left thumb sprain and it now appears he's making visible progress towards a return. The 26-year-old is likely to continue working on fielding drills and batting training over the next week and then begin a rehab assignment with one of the Giants' minor league affiliates. If he doesn't encounter any setbacks throughout the end of his DL stint, the second baseman could return to San Francisco's lineup before July.

Rodgers, 19, is batting .385 with two home runs over his last 10 games for Low-A Asheville.

This recent surge brings Rodgers' slash line up to .300/.360/.502. He has 10 home runs and 38 RBI in 55 games. A promotion to High-A could be in short order, though Rodgers likely won't see the big leagues before 2018 at the earliest.

Frazier was called up by the Pirates on Friday, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Frazier had been hitting .333/.401/.425 with 17 stolen bases for Triple-A Indianapolis this season while moving around defensively, earning time in the outfield and the infield. At the time of his promotion, Frazier was leading the league in batting average and hits (87) along with 22 RBI this year. The 24-year-old has yet to play in a major league game, and will make his debut in the near future.

The Diamondbacks recalled Drury from Triple-A Reno on Friday, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Drury was optioned to Reno last weekend in an effort to get him more playing time, but the Diamondbacks decided to bring him back just a few days later with Socrates Brito (foot) landing on the disabled list. Drury owns a respectable .769 OPS at the big-league level this year, but he will likely remain in a part-time role with Jake Lamb playing every day at third base and Peter O'Brien and Yasmany Tomas regularly filling the corner outfield spots.

Frazier could be called up by the Pirates on Friday, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

The Pirates have not provided any word regarding a potential promotion, but several of Frazier's teammates indicated via social media that he would be getting the call Friday. Frazier has posted a .333/.401/.425 slash line with no homers and 17 stolen bases for Triple-A Indianapolis this season and has seen action both in the infield and outfield, so he figures to serve as a super-utility player if he does indeed join the big club.