MLB Player News

LeMahieu went 2-for-4 in Sunday's loss to Philadelphia for his fourth multi-hit game over his past five contests.

One of the most surprising early season developments for the Yankees has been LeMahieu's struggles at the plate. Through his first 56 contests, he was batting a meager .253 after posting a career-best and AL-leading .364 average in 2020. The veteran has begun to turn things around of late, however, raising his average eight points since June 8 and collecting exactly two hits in four of his five games during that span. LeMahieu's decline this season has some substance behind it -- his 16.7 percent strikeout rate is on pace for his worst mark since 2015, and his .082 ISO pales in comparison to the .226 mark he posted last season -- but there is still plenty of time for him to turn things around. Fantasy managers who used substantial draft capital to add LeMahieu to their 2021 squad may be best served to hope his recent offensive surge builds rather than to cast him off after his slow start.

Chapman went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 6-3 win over the Royals.

Chapman slammed a first inning home run off Kris Bubic to get the Athletics on the board early Sunday. The 28-year-old has homered in back-to-back games. He is slashing .221/.321/.374 with seven homers, 29 RBI and 28 runs in 265 plate appearances.

Walls went 3-for-4 with two RBI, a stolen base and a run scored in Sunday's 7-1 win over Baltimore.

All three of the shortstop's hits were singles. Walls also stole second and scored on a Yandy Diaz single in the third inning, then followed up with a two-RBI single in the fourth. Through 71 plate appearances, Walls is slashing .250/.366/.367 with a home run, seven RBI, eight runs scored and three steals. The rookie is known more for speed than power, but his fantasy impact is limited since he frequently hits in the bottom half of the order.

Astudillo remains out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Astros.

Though he offers multi-positional versatility for a Twins squad that remains without several key position players due to injury, Astudillo looks like he'll stick in a bench role for the foreseeable future. The 29-year-old hasn't proven deserving of a regular spot in the lineup after slashing a meager .252/.263/.391 through 118 plate appearances this season.

Devers is not in the starting lineup Sunday against Toronto, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.

Devers will get a well-deserved breather for at least the beginning portion of the series finale. Bobby Dalbec will shift to the hot corner with Danny Santana set to man first base Sunday.

LeMahieu went 2-for-5 with a three-run homer and double in Saturday's 8-7 loss to the Phillies.

LeMahieu pulled the Yankees into a 7-7 tie with a three-run homer off Hector Neris in the ninth inning. The clutch long ball broke a 29-game drought without a homer for the infielder, which dated back to May 7. He'll look to build off his big day at the plate as he seeks to improve on a .257/.332/.340 slash line going forward.

Rendon went 2-for-3 with a home run, a walk and four RBI on Saturday in an 8-7 win against Arizona.

Rendon put the Angels on the board in the fourth inning, slugging a solo homer to left field. He plated another two runs with a double in the following frame and tied the game with a sacrifice fly in the ninth. The third baseman snapped a 27-game, 102-at-bat stretch without a home run, the second-longest power drought of his career. He is slashing .241/.317/.370 with four homers and 30 RBI on the season.

Devers went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's loss to the Blue Jays. He was also caught stealing a base.

Devers was directly involved in the team's two runs. The third baseman now has 49 RBI on the season but was caught off guard on the basepaths a couple times, getting caught while stealing once and getting picked off once as well. The fifth-year third baseman currently ranks second in the American League in RBI, only behind Vladimir Guerrero, who has 52.

Chapman went 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, three total RBI and three runs scored in Saturday's win over the Royals.

Chapman was a key offensive piece for the Athletics on Saturday, blasting his sixth homer of the season in the sixth inning and also ripping his ninth double of the campaign. The star third baseman has hit safely in four of Oakland's last six games and has posted back-to-back multi-hit games. He's hitting .305 across 36 at-bats this month.

Candelario was transferred from the bereavement list to the COVID-19 injured list Saturday as he goes through intake testing before he can return to the roster.

Candelario has been away from the team since hitting the bereavement list Tuesday. He'll wait at least one more day before being activated, though his absence shouldn't be a long one unless the tests come back with unexpected results.