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Michael Massey 2B | KC
Royals' Michael Massey: Idle against southpaw
Massey is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tigers.
After starting the Royals' previous six games, the left-handed hitter will retreat to the bench Sunday while southpaw Framber Valdez toes the rubber for the Tigers. Andrew Velazquez will check in for Massey at second base and bat ninth, with Tyler Tolbert manning shortstop.
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Anthony Seigler 2B | BOS
Red Sox's Anthony Seigler: On bench for series finale
Seigler is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.
Romy Gonzalez will draw the start at second base in place of Seigler, but both could be headed for bench roles after the Red Sox acquired Curtis Mead from the Nationals earlier Sunday. Though Mead had primarily been used at third base and first base with Washington, Boston interim manager Chad Tracy said that the infielder will see most of his initial opportunities at the keystone. With a .774 OPS in 29 games with the big club this season, Seigler has performed well enough to maintain at least a semi-regular role, so it's possible that he and/or Mead end up cutting into Masataka Yoshida's playing time at designated hitter.
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Zach McKinstry 2B | DET
Tigers' Zach McKinstry: Not in Sunday's lineup
McKinstry is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Royals, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
The utility man started the previous four games at three different positions but will hit the bench Sunday after going 5-for-14 with a double and an RBI during that span. Kerry Carpenter is manning right field while Gleyber Torres serves as the designated hitter in the series finale versus Kansas City.
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Ben Williamson 2B | TB
Rays' Ben Williamson: Drawing fourth straight start
Williamson will start at shortstop and bat sixth in Sunday's game against the Guardians.
Williamson will stick in the starting nine for a fourth straight game while Taylor Walls (fingers) is on the bench for another contest. If Walls' hyperextended fingers don't force him to the injured list, he will eventually settle back in as the Rays' everyday shortstop and push Williamson back into the short side of a platoon at second base with Richie Palacios.
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Red Sox's Marcelo Mayer: Hitting off tee
Mayer (forearm) has progressed from dry swings to hitting off a tee, MLB.com reports.
Mayer has been sidelined since late June and is still without a firm timeline to return. He'll need to advance to facing live pitching and a rehab assignment before rejoining Boston's active roster.
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Josh H. Smith 3B | TOR
Rangers' Josh Smith: Starts Saturday
Smith started at third base and went 0-for-4 in Saturday's 7-1 win over the Mariners.
Smith was called up after Texas placed third baseman Josh Jung (calf) on the 10-day injured list Saturday. With both Jung and shortstop Corey Seager (back) on the shelf, there could be opportunities for the versatile Smith, who can also play the outfield. He shifted to left field Saturday when Wyatt Langford (ankle) was removed from the game.
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Matt McLain 2B | CIN
Reds' Matt McLain: Gets four ABs in rehab game
McLain (calf) served as the designated hitter and went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in a rehab game for Triple-A Louisville on Saturday.
McLain made his second rehab appearance with Louisville, after he started at shortstop and played six innings Friday. He can be activated from the 10-day injured list at any point and could be a candidate to rejoin the Reds prior to the start of a three-game set against the Guardians on Monday.
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Ketel Marte 2B | ARI
Diamondbacks' Ketel Marte: Dropped to cleanup spot
Marte batted fourth and went 0-for-4 in Saturday's 5-3 loss to Washington.
Arizona manager Torey Lovullo shuffled the top four spots in the order, which included moving Marte from leadoff to cleanup. The Diamondbacks entered Saturday having scored the most runs in baseball since July 9, but it was largely due to the lower half of the order. Other than Gabriel Moreno, the top half has struggled. Marte entered Saturday batting .191 (9-for-47) with a 28.0 strikeout percentage during that stretch.
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Pedro Ramirez 2B | CHC
Cubs' Pedro Ramirez: Swipes bag in rout
Ramirez went 2-for-4 with a double, a walk, one RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base in Saturday's 11-0 win over the Pirates.
Ramirez reached base in his final three plate appearances, swiping a base in the seventh inning and adding an RBI double in the eighth. The 22-year-old has hit safely in six straight games to open the second half, tallying three multi-hit efforts, four doubles and five RBI during that span. While there are plenty of mouths to feed in the Cubs' lineup, Ramirez has slashed .295/.341/.449 with nine extra-base hits, 12 RBI, 12 runs scored and three steals across his first 86 major-league plate appearances to keep himself in the mix for regular playing time.
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Ernie Clement 2B | TOR
Blue Jays' Ernie Clement: Three hits, stolen base in win
Clement went 3-for-4 with a double, one RBI and a stolen base in Saturday's 6-0 win over the Red Sox.
Clement was a tough out all game, highlighted by an RBI double in the third inning. The 30-year-old has posted four multi-hit efforts in nine contests to open the second half, though this was just his first RBI during that stretch. For the year, he's slashing .298/.323/.425 with eight homers, 33 RBI, 46 runs scored and four steals across 412 plate appearances.