MLB Player News

Valdez was optioned to Triple-A Worcester on Thursday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Valdez made an impact in his major-league debut Wednesday against the Twins, singling twice in four plate appearances. His stay with the big club lasted only one day, though, with Yu Chang (personal) returning from paternity leave Thursday. Valdez's bat would be intriguing for fantasy purposes if he receives the chance at regular playing time with Boston at some point.

Arraez went 1-for-5 with a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's extra-innings loss to the Giants.

He collected his first theft of the season on the back half of a double steal with Jazz Chisholm in the 10th inning, but the duo got stranded when Bryan De La Cruz and Avisail Garcia both struck out, setting the stage for a four-run top of the 11th by San Francisco. Arraez has gone just 4-for-17 since returning to the starting lineup from a minor finger injury, but he still sports a dazzling .438/.493/.578 slash line through 18 games on the season, albeit with a less impressive one homer, seven RBI and seven runs.

Valdez started at second base and went 2-for-4 in Wednesday's 10-4 loss to the Twins.

Valdez was called up amid a flurry of transactions Wednesday. Yu Chang (paternity) and Christian Arroyo (hamstring) were unavailable, enabling Valdez to make his MLB debut. The 24-year-old infielder's stay with Boston is expected to be a short one.

Hernandez went 2-for-3 with a walk, a home run and a second run scored in Wednesday's 10-4 loss to the Twins.

Hernandez popped his third home run of the season in the sixth inning and extended his hitting streak to six games. He slumped to start the season, going 3-for-36 over the first 11 games, but has turned it around since. He's hit safely in seven of the last eight, going 10-for-29 (.345) with four extra-base hits, five RBI and eight runs scored. Hernandez's hot bat moved him up in the order to the five-hole in five of the past six contests.

Julien went 3-for-4 with a two-run home run and an additional run scored in Wednesday's 10-4 victory over the Red Sox.

Julien now has two home runs since making his big-league debut on April 12. The 23-year-old also recorded his first three-hit game in Wednesday's blowout victory. The rookie infielder has received regular playing time since his promotion, but the impending return of Jorge Polanco (knee) -- who is with Triple-A St. Paul on a rehab assignment -- looms large over Julien's season-long outlook.

Frazier went 1-for-2 with a two-run home run in Wednesday's 4-0 win over the Nationals.

The 31-year-old came in for injured teammate Jorge Mateo and promptly pulled a hanging breaking ball to right field for his second homer of the season. Frazier has operated as Baltimore's primary second baseman this year with 13 starts and has a .245/.344/.415 slash line in 61 plate appearances.

Gimenez went 1-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 3-2 win over the Tigers.

Gimenez has logged three steals over his last six games despite going 4-for-20 (.200) with two walks and a hit-by-pitch in that span. The second baseman hasn't show hesitation on the basepths with six thefts through 19 contests, and he's yet to be caught stealing this season. He's also slashing a solid .278/.350/.389 with a home run, five RBI, 18 runs scored and five doubles over 81 plate appearances. The one knock on Gimenez from a fantasy perspective is that he has often been batting in the bottom half of the order, though he hit second Wednesday with Amed Rosario (back) out.

Polanco said Wednesday that his left knee feels "100 percent," Alec Ausmus of Channel 5 Saint Paul reports.

Polanco, who is currently in the midst of a rehab assignment at Triple-A St. Paul, added that he still "might need to strengthen [the knee] a little bit more," but the second baseman looks to be rapidly closing in on a return from the 10-day injured list in any case. Through the first seven games of his rehab assignment that began at Single-A Fort Myers on April 6, Polanco has gone 5-for-22 with a double, four walks, three runs and an RBI.

Donovan (shin) came off the bench to play second base for the final two innings of Wednesday's 14-5 win over the Diamondbacks.

The Cardinals already held a 10-run lead heading into the top of the eighth, so manager Oliver Marmol's decision to use Donovan suggests that the team has no real concern about the utility player requiring a stint on the 10-day injured list. Donovan was out of the starting nine for the second straight game due to an abrasion on his left leg that caused a minor infection and some swelling, but he's responded well to antibiotics and rest over the past couple of days, per John Denton of MLB.com. Following a team off day Thursday, expect Donovan to return to the starting nine for Friday's series opener in Seattle.

Semien went 3-for-5 with two RBI, two runs scored and one steal in Wednesday's 12-3 victory over the Royals.

Semien led off the game with a single and came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Adolis Garcia. He added an RBI single in his next at-bat that extended Texas' lead to 3-0 and proceeded to steal second, but he was stranded after Travis Jankowski struck out. Semien's third and final knock was another RBI single, marking his first three-hit game of the season. The second baseman has hit safely in six straight starts and has four multi-hit games, three home runs and 11 RBI during that stretch.