MLB Player News

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve went 1 for 4 with one walk, one run, one RBI and his 18th double of the season in his team's 5-4 loss to the Rangers Saturday. After the loss, manager Bo Porter said that Altuve's left quad is not 100 percent but that the second baseman is "gutting it out," the Houston Chronicle reports.

Altuve has picked up hits in 10 of his last 11 games while missing three games during that stretch. He owns a .282/.321/.261 line with four home runs, 40 RBI and 29 stolen bases in 432 at-bats.

White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham clubbed his third home run Wednesday against the Yankees.

In the bottom of the fifth, Beckham took a CC Sabathia slider out to left for a solo shot. Beckham later doubled, finishing the game 2 for 4. He drove in and scored two runs. 

Beckham is hitting .310/.348/.429 in 210 at-bats. 

The Rangers took advantage of the Angels on the basepaths Wednesday, as Elvis Andrus combined with Leonys Martin for six stolen bases.

Andrus went 3 for 4 with a walk in the game, while stealing three bases in three attempts in a 10-3 win. He also stole two bases in the previous game, pushing his total for the season to 30, while being caught just three times.

Andrus has hit safely in six of seven games in the month of August, wile raising his batting average from .252 to .261.

Mariners infielder Nick Franklin ended an 0-for-27 stretch emphatically Wednesday, as he tripled and drove in a run in his first at-bat. He ended the game 1 for 4 with a walk, an RBI and two runs scored, in a 9-7 win. 

"It wasn’t really relief, but it was just nice to get started in the first inning, get going and get on top," Franklin told the Seattle Times. "I think more than anything, it was only the first inning, so I had three at-bats or more to worry about and adjust."

Franklin had received a pair of days off Sunday and Monday designed to clear his head, and he said those days did help him find his swing. 

"Honestly, the two days just made me itch to get back at it, more than anything," he said. "Those two days, I got to do some work and figure some things out"

Franklin is hitting .247 on the season with a .760 OPS in 227 at-bats. 

Mariners rookie second baseman Nick Franklin returned to the starting lineup Tuesday against the Blue Jays after sitting two games. Unfortunately, the days off didn't help snap Franklin's hitting woes.

Franklin went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and is now hitless in his last five games (24 at-bats).

"You hope he comes right out of it, but you stick with him," Mariners acting manager Robby Thompson said, per The Seattle Times. "That’s part of the growing pains of a young player coming up is learning how to deal with the failure of it. You go into slumps, and you’ve got to fight your way out of it. This is where he’s got to maintain and keep grinding it out and stay positive.

"He’ll get it back soon. Until then, if he’s not getting hits, he should be out there taking hits away, or try to, anyway. You can’t just throw in the towel, which he’s not. But you still have to play the game. He’ll fight his way out of it."

Mariners second baseman Nick Franklin is slumping and getting a night off Monday against Toronto, the Seattle Times reports. That afforded Dustin Ackley his first start at second since his recall from the minors in June. 

Franklin has gone just 9 for 49 (.184) over his last 11 games with three homers, eight RBI and 17 strikeouts over that stretch. 

Padres general manager Josh Byrnes said Monday infielders Logan Forsythe and Alexi Amarista will "certainly" get the chance to fill in at shortstop for the suspended Everth Cabrera, who will immediately begin serving a 50-game suspension for his involvment in the Biogenesis investigation. Ronny Cedeno, who signed a minor-league deal Saturday, will also be in the mix, according to U-T San Diego.

Mariners rookie second baseman Nick Franklin has gone into a cold spell since homering twice July 28 against the Twins. Franklin has managed one hit in his last five games (25 at-bats) and has struck out 11 times in that span.

Franklin's average has plummeted from .277 to .250 during his recent five-game slide.

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve doubled for his only hit in five at-bats in his return to the lineup Saturday. It was his first action in August due to a quad injury.

Altuve, who also struck out three times in his team's 6-4 loss to the Twins, has hit .283/.321/.362 with four home runs, 35 RBI and 26 stolen bases in 406 at-bats.

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve (quad) returned to action, as expected, Saturday at Minnesota.

Altuve, who last played July 31 at Baltimore, has gone 6 for 14 over a four-game hitting streak entering Saturday's game.