MLB Player News

Valdez will start at second base and bat ninth in Sunday's game against the Guardians, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Valdez will make a fourth consecutive start at the keystone after going 3-for-12 with a pair of doubles and two runs since returning to the big leagues April 25. His uptick in playing time has come with Christian Arroyo sitting out games Wednesday and Friday with a hamstring injury, while Enrique Hernandez has been on the bench Saturday and Sunday with what's believed to be an undisclosed physical issue. Unless Hernandez requires a stint on the injured list, Valdez could move into a reserve role before long.

Lopez is out of the starting lineup for Sunday's game against the Twins.

Lopez has been swinging the bat better as of late with hits in three of his last four appearances, but he's one of several regulars for the Royals who are getting Sunday off. Hunter Dozier is getting the start at third base with Matt Duffy lined up at second.

Arroyo will start at shortstop and bat sixth in Sunday's game against the Guardians, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

After going 3-for-4 with a walk, two runs and two RBI in his return from a hamstring injury in Saturday's 8-7 win, Arroyo will get another start at shortstop for the series finale. Though Enrique Hernandez is eventually expected to reclaim a regular role at shortstop, Arroyo may still have a path to regular playing time at second base while all of Trevor Story (elbow), Adalberto Mondesi (knee) and Yu Chang (wrist) are several weeks away from returning from the injured list.

Massey is not in the starting lineup Sunday against the Twins.

Massey has just one hit over his last four games while going 1-for-14 in the process. The infielder will take a seat with Matt Duffy getting the start at second base Sunday.

The Pirates acquired Capra from the Blue Jays on Sunday in exchange for catcher Tyler Heineman.

Capra came up short in his bid for an Opening Day roster spot with the Blue Jays and had struggled to a .167/.357/.222 slash line with Triple-A Buffalo to begin the 2023 campaign. He'll offer the Pirates some organizational depth with the ability to play all over the infield and also the corner outfield.

Kim went 0-for-4 with a walk and a run in a 16-11 win against the Giants on Saturday.

In the first-ever MLB regular-season game played in Mexico City, both clubs put up plenty of offense. As such, it's disappointing for Kim's fantasy managers that he was the only Padres batter not to collect a hit in the affair, though the infielder did come through with a walk, a stolen base and a run in the eighth inning. Kim has been running a lot lately, swiping four bags over his past three games. He's reached base six times in 13 plate appearances over that span, collecting three singles and three walks.

Hernandez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Hernandez is out of the starting lineup for the second straight game, and there's been no report of an injury at this time. Christian Arroyo will handle shortstop duties while Enmanuel Valdez plays second base with Jarren Duran lined up in center field.

The Orioles optioned Ortiz to Triple-A Norfolk on Sunday.

After receiving his first MLB call-up Thursday, Ortiz proceeded to make three consecutive starts at second base and went a collective 2-for-8 with a run scored and four RBI. The right-handed-hitting infielder appears to have just been up with the Orioles while the team faced a stretch of three straight left-handed pitchers, so he'll head back to Triple-A with Baltimore bringing up an extra left-handed bat (Kyle Stowers) from Norfolk in a corresponding move.

Short went 3-for-4 with a solo home run in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Orioles.

Called up Saturday morning to be the 27th man on the roster for the twin bill, Short got the start at his namesake position and batted ninth in the matinee. The 27-year-old rose to the occasion, taking DL Hall deep in the eighth inning for his first big-league homer since August of 2021, and after Short came off the bench in the nightcap to draw a walk and score a run, Detroit rewarded him by keeping him in the majors and sending Tyler Nevin back to Triple-A Toledo in his place. Short isn't going to unseat Javier Baez, but he could carve out a utility role -- in 21 games for Toledo prior to his promotion, he saw action at second base, center field and left field in addition to his natural position at shortstop.

Estrada went 4-for-5 with two doubles and three RBI in Saturday's 16-11 loss against San Diego.

The most improbable stat from Saturday's slugfest is Estrada not scoring a run despite reaching base four times, twice via a double. The middle infielder tallied multiple RBI in a game for the first time this season. Estrada has been phenomenal to start the campaign with a .938 OPS, four home runs and eight stolen bases.