MLB Player News

The Astros announced Sunday that Bannon has been shut down at Triple-A Sugar Land due to a right index finger fracture, Danielle Lerner of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Bannon likely suffered the injury during his most recent appearance for Sugar Land on Friday. Since being optioned to Triple-A on May 8, the utility player was slashing .304/.365/.630 with four home runs and 13 RBI in 13 games.

Miller was removed ahead of the sixth inning of Sunday's game against the Giants with a bruised right forearm, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports. He went 2-for-2 with two runs and two RBI prior to departing.

The Brewers are describing Miller's removal as precautionary after he was able to take his base upon being hit by a pitch in the bottom of the fourth inning, then proceeded to play an inning in the field before exiting the contest. After submitting another two-hit effort prior to being lifted from the contest, Miller is now slashing an impressive .330/.371/.513 on the season. With the Brewers off Monday, Miller will get an extra day to recover before the team returns to action Tuesday in Toronto.

Trejo is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mets, Patrick Lyons of TheDNVR.com reports.

Trejo started at second base in each of the last three games and went 5-for-10 with three doubles, a walk, two RBI, a run and a stolen base, but he still looks as though he'll be limited to a utility infield role. Harold Castro is back at his normal spot at the keystone Sunday after previously starting in the outfield during the past two contests.

Mets manager Buck Showalter said McNeil is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rockies due to groin tightness, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

McNeil picked up the injury at some point during the Mets' 10-7 loss Saturday, when he went 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs while playing all eight innings in the field. Eduardo Escobar will step in at second base Sunday in place of McNeil, who will get at least two full days of rest before the Mets return to action Tuesday versus the Phillies following Monday's team off day.

Massey went 2-for-4 with a stolen base in Saturday's 4-2 loss to the Nationals.

Massey appears to be in a strong-side platoon role now, losing starts against left-handed pitchers to Matt Duffy at the keystone. Saturday was Massey's fourth multi-hit effort in May, and he's hitting .295 for the month. It's a solid turnaround for the second baseman, but he still has an uninspiring .223/.275/.317 slash line with three home runs, three steals, 14 RBI and 14 runs scored through 153 plate appearances. In addition to Duffy, Nicky Lopez could also see starts at second base, which could lead to Massey serving as the designated hitter more often now that Hunter Dozier has been released.

Julien went 3-for-5 with a home run, two doubles, two RBI and an additional run scored in Saturday's 9-7 win over the Blue Jays.

While making his sixth consecutive start, Julien turned in the best game of his young career, as he hadn't produced more than one extra-base hit in any of his prior 14 contests with the Twins. Julien -- who will start at second base and bat second in Sunday's series finale -- should be locked into a full-time role with Minnesota so long as Jorge Polanco (hamstring) is stuck on the 10-day injured list.

McNeil is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rockies.

McNeil will get his first game off of the 2023 season after appearing in the first 53 contests. Eduardo Escobar will give McNeil a day of rest while playing second base and hitting ninth against Austin Gomber and Colorado.

Wisely will start at second base and bat ninth in Sunday's game against the Brewers, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

For the sixth time in seven games, Wisely will be manning second base, and he looks like he'll have some leash as the Giants' main option at the position after Thairo Estrada (wrist) was moved to the injured list Saturday. The lefty-hitting Wisely could find himself on the bench against select southpaws, though he appears poised to remain at least a strong-side platoon player while Estrada is on the shelf.

Lopez remains out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Nationals.

He'll be on the bench for the fourth time in five games and looks to have moved into a utility infielder role. Maikel Garcia will pick up another start at third base Sunday and appears to have eclipsed Lopez on the depth chart after going 8-for-16 with three doubles and a pair of stolen bases over his past four games.

Kemp, whose .464 OPS ranks last in MLB among hitters with at least 150 plate appearances, is confident he can snap out of his season-long funk, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports. "Maybe I'm just a start-slow guy," Kemp said. "I've never been like that in the Minor Leagues. But maybe in the big leagues I just start slow...You always come to the field hopeful each day that good things can happen. It's going to turn. I've got to believe it will."

Kemp is also hitting a meager .077 (3-for-39) with no extra-base hits and just one RBI over his last 16 games, although he's struck out at just a 15.6 percent clip in that span while also being saddled with an absurdly low .094 BABIP. However, that latter figure can't completely be chalked up to bad luck; Kemp has played a role in his undoing by producing just a 9.7 percent line-drive rate and 11.8 percent hard-contact rate in that span, as well as a tiny 1.7 percent barrel rate for the season that places him in the lower fourth percentile of qualified hitters. Kemp also had a forgettable first half a season ago before hitting .278 with five home runs and 32 RBI in 62 post-All-Star-break games, and for the time being, he's hanging on to a regular role at second base against right-handed pitching.