MLB Player News

In an attempt to strengthen the middle of his lineup, Buck Showalter has moved Orioles third baseman Manny Machado from the leadoff spot to third in the order for their game Friday night against Tampa Bay.

Jimmy Paredes will bat first instead.

Machado has exhibited the power needed to take over the third spot. He has a career-high 21 home runs with more than one-third of the regular season remaining.

Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe smacked his 13th home run of the season to send the Twins to a 3-0 win over the Angels on Thursday.

Plouffe hit the three-run shot off Garrett Richards in the fourth inning. It was his only hit in four at-bats during the contest.

Prior to Thursday's win, Plouffe was hitting .262 with two home runs and seven RBI in his last 11 games.

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado went 1 for 4 with a solo home run, his 21st of the season, on Thursday against the Yankees.

Machado is hitting .285 with six hits, two doubles, two home runs, six walks and three RBI over his last six games.

Blue Jays left fielder Danny Valencia went 2 for 4 with a walk and a solo home run in his team's loss to the Athletics on Wednesday.

Valencia is hitting .500 with five hits, two home runs and six RBI in his last four games.

Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas only had one hit in four at-bats Wednesday, but he used it to smack a three-run home run to help send the Royals to a 5-1 win over the Pirates.

Moustakas hit the three-run shot in the seventh inning off Charlie Morton. It was his 10th home run of the season.

Prior to Wednesday's game, Moustakas was hitting .333 with two home runs and five RBI in his last six starts.

Twins shortstop Danny Santana isn't in the starting lineup for Tuesday's game. 

Santana has started 60 games at short this season, including five of the last six. He will be replaced in the lineup by Eduardo Escobar. Escobar will be starting his 19th game.

Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas went 2 for 3 with a home run and two RBI in Monday's loss to the Pirates.

Moustakas is hitting .416 with five hits, a double, a home run and four RBI over his last three games.

Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe went 1 for 3 in Sunday's loss to Oakland. Plouffe walked and scored the Twins' only run of the game. 

Plouffe also added his 23rd double of the year, his third extra base hit in the last four games. 

Indians third baseman Giovanny Urshela was held out of the starting lineup Sunday against the Reds, as Mike Aviles started at third base. It was the first time since June 28 that Urshela was not in the starting lineup.

The rookie third baseman has been struggling offensively since hitting his last home run June 30. He is batting .188 with two doubles, no RBI, five runs, two walks and nine strikeouts in his last 14 games. His batting average has declined from .271 to .234 in that span.

Third baseman Manny Machado gave the Orioles all the offense they would need, as they beat the Tigers 3-0 on Saturday. Machado blasted his 20th home run of the season, a solo shot in the third inning off David Price. That was more than enough for starter Chris Tillman, who blanked the Tigers for eight solid innings.

But Machado wasn't done. He chipped in a double in the ninth inning, finishing the game 2 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored.

The 2015 All-Star is batting .303 with four homers and five RBI over his last 10 games. He has also walked 11 times in that span, compared to just four strikeouts.