MLB Player News

Alvarez went 2-for-3 with a walk, two runs scored, two RBI and his seventh home run of the season in Sunday's 10-9 loss to the Blue Jays.

The Orioles cranked out five homers Sunday and still managed to lose, but you can't fault Alvarez. He's now popped four home runs in 10 June games while hitting .355 (11-for-31) on the month with eight RBI and seven runs.

Machado went 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored in Sunday's 10-9 loss to the Blue Jays.

That's three multi-hit performances in his last four games, pushing Machado's slash line on the season to .308/.376/.600. He'll need to begin serving his four-game suspension soon, but given how dialed in he is at the plate it's easy to see why he'd be reluctant to take a break.

Muncy is out of the lineup Sunday against the Reds.

After trading Chris Coghlan to the Cubs a few days earlier, Muncy looks to be penciled into a platoon with Jake Smolinski in right field. As the left-handed hitter of the two, Muncy figures to garner the larger share of starts for the time being, but with southpaw John Lamb on the mound Sunday for the opposition, Smolinski will enter the lineup.

Machado went 3-for-5 with a double, home run and three runs scored in Saturday's wild 11-6 loss to the Blue Jays.

The 23-year-old slugger, currently appealing his four-game suspension for his part in a brawl with Yordano Ventura, brought out his big bat Saturday, tallying his second multi-hit outing over the last three games. Machado also went deep for the third time in June, reaching half of his May homer total in 11 games during the new month. Saturday's production brings his season line to a stellar .306/.376/.600, and with 16 round-trippers on the season already, he's on pace to surpass the career-high 35 homers he blasted in 2015.

Valencia is in the lineup Friday against Cincinnati, playing third base and batting fourth.

Valencia missed the last two games with a flu-like symptoms but is now good to go for Friday's series opener. Before going down with the virus, the 31-year-old was on a roll, recording five multi-hit games in his last eight along with three homers, 10 runs, and five RBI.

Alvarez is not in the lineup for Friday's dual with Toronto.

Alvarez will get the night off with the Orioles starting Chris Davis at first base and placing Mark Trumbo at DH. After a slow start to the season, the 29-year-old is picking it up as he's hit .333 over his last eight games to go along with three homers and six RBI. He'll likely return to the Orioles' lineup Saturday and will look to distance his average further above the Mendoza Line.

Muncy was recalled from Triple-A Nashville on Friday.

With Muncy returning to the show, Jesse Hahn will be optioned to Triple-A Nashville. Danny Valencia (illness) is temporarily out, so Muncy could spend some time at third base, but he's also played first base and filled the designated hitter spot. He's only made six plate appearances with the Athletics in 2016, going 2-for-5 and drawing a walk.

Alvarez went 2-for-4 with a solo homer and a pair of strikeouts Thursday in a 6-5 win over Toronto.

He's doubled his season homer total since the calendar turned to June, hitting three long balls in eight games after socking just three in his first 35 contests. That said, Alvarez remains a major batting-average drain, and with his power contributions inconsistent, it's hard to roll him out in shallower mixed leagues.

Ramirez (ankle) is back in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Mariners.

An ankle contusion kept Ramirez out of the lineup Wednesday, but he'll be back in the fold for the Indians' series finale against Seattle on Thursday. He's set to take over at third base and bat fifth in the order against Seattle righty Nate Karns.

Machado was issued a four-game suspension and a fine Thursday for his role in Tuesday's brawl, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports.

Machado is expected to appeal the suspension after being ejected from Tuesday's game, and is in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Blue Jays. During the incident, he charged the mound immediately after being hit by a Yordano Ventura fastball in the fifth inning and proceeded to land a punch on Ventura. Machado was in the lineup Wednesday for the series finale against the Royals and went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.