MLB Player News

Orioles designated hitter Danny Valencia may have earned himself more playing time with his recent play, according to the Baltimore Sun.

Valencia has performed well lately, picking up 23 hits in 42 at-bats since August 4. His .548 batting average over that period leads the majors. Valencia's strong play could earn him more at-bats against right-handers. "Danny's in a good place right now and I'll continue to match him up, but the way he's handling himself, that's how you get dictated more opportunities," said manager Buck Showalter. Valencia is hitting just .194 against righties.

Valencia is hitting .330/.359/.652 in 112 at-bats. 

Orioles designated hitter Danny Valencia had himself a night Wednesday at home against the Yankees. Valencia recorded four hits in the game as he got the start with Andy Pettitte on the mound.

Valencia went 4 for 4 with a double and a run scored. He's batting .330 on the year for the Orioles. Valencia has gone 9 for 14 over his last four games. He has nine multi-hit games over his last 11 contests for the Orioles.

Athletics third baseman Josh Donaldson returned to action Tuesday in Minnesota following a quad injury. After looking good in batting practice, Donaldson went 1 for 4 with a run scored in the loss to the Twins. 

Donaldson singled and scored in the game, but also struck out twice for the A's. He is batting .297 on the season. 

Athletics third baseman Josh Donaldson's injured quad may no longer be an issue, the San Francisco Chronicle reports Tuesday. Donaldson was seen launching homers in batting practice before Tuesday's game in Minnesota. 

The corner infielder was able to make his return to the lineup Tuesday against the Twins after sitting out Sunday's game. 

Athletics third baseman Josh Donaldson sat out Sunday's game versus the Astros, as he aggravated a strained right quad during Saturday's contest. He was replaced in the lineup by Alberto Callaspo.

Oakland manager Bob Melvin intimated that he rested Donaldson so that he could return to the lineup for Tuesday's series opener against the Twins. He explained the decision to MLB.com, saying "with the off-day [Monday], it is definitely the prudent thing to do."

The Twins recalled seven players from Triple-A Rochester Sunday, including shortstop Eduardo Escobar, outfielders Eric Fryer and Chris Parmelee, and pitchers Scott Diamond, Michael Tonkin, Cole De Vries and Shairon Martis.

All seven players have previous major-league experience and will serve as depth for the Twins in the final weeks of the season.

Orioles designated hitter Danny Valencia remained red hot on Saturday in a 4-3 walk-off win over the White Sox from Baltimore. The right-handed hitter has been a savior for Baltimore against left-handed starters.

Valencia went 3 for 4 in the game with two doubles. He's batting .314 on the season after 102 at-bats for the Orioles with seven homers and 15 runs batted in.

Valencia has recorded hits in eight of his last nine games and all eight of those games have been multi-hit performances. In fact, Valencia has gone 18 for 32 (.563) over his last nine games with six doubles, three homers and seven RBI for Baltimore.

Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe had four hits, including a homer, in Tuesday's extra-inning game at Houston. Plouffe went deep in the third inning for his 14th of the year.

Plouffe went 4 for 6 in the game with the two-run homer. He drove in two runs and is batting .245 on the year. The 27-year-old has hit in 10 of his last 11 games and has homered in back-to-back contests for Minnesota.

Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe homered and recorded three hits Monday during a 10-6 win at Houston. Plouffe went deep for the 13th time in the second inning for a solo shot. 

Plouffe finished the game 3 for 3 with a walk and the one RBI. He was caught stealing for the first time on the year and is batting .239 for the Twins. 

The 27-year-old Plouffe has gone 9 for 23 (.391) over a seven-game hitting streak. He has two doubles, a homer and the one RBI over that stretch. 

The Indians made five promotions to the roster as part of September callups Sunday, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Added to the roster for the stretch run were right-handed pitchers Preston Guilmet and Blake Wood and lefty Nick Hagadone. The Tribe also purchased the contracts of catcher Kelly Shoppach and infielder Jose Ramirez from Columbus and Double-A Akron, respectively.

The 20-year-old Ramirez hit .272 over 113 games for Akron this season with 38 stolen bases. All of the relievers spent some time up in the majors this season, except for Wood, who last pitched in the big leagues in 2011 with the Royals.