MLB Player News

Donaldson went 2-for-2 with two walks and a two-run homer in Tuesday's victory over Baltimore.

Donaldson's first-inning smash was his 37th of the season. Unlike last year's MVP campaign, Donaldson has struggled down the stretch, hitting just .200 over 70 at-bats in September. On the bright side, the third baseman appears to making positive strides as the season comes to a close. Donaldson has notched a hit and scored a run in six of the last seven games, while also crushing three home runs during that span.

Escobar went 2-for-4 with a walk, solo homer and scored twice in Tuesday's game against the Royals.

Escobar's fourth-inning blast was his sixth of the season, and his first in the team's last 51 games. Tuesday also marked the switch-hitting infielder's first RBI and run since Sept. 15, as Escobar has had a brutal final month of the 2016 campaign. Entering the contest, he was hitting a pathetic .089/.150/.089 through 56 September at-bats, light years beyond his worst numbers for any month this year.

Ramirez is out of Tuesday's lineup against the Tigers.

The Indians clinched the division Monday, so most of the regulars are getting the day off Tuesday. It speaks to how far Ramirez has come as a player that he is one of the guys who gets to sit after a clincher. Chris Gimenez will start at third base and hit seventh in his stead.

Segura was a major part of the Diamondbacks' blowout victory against the Nationals on Monday, going 3-for-5 with two home runs and three RBI.

Segura has been a rare bright spot for the Diamondbacks all season, batting .317 with 19 home runs and 30 stolen bases for the season. The 26-year-old has set career highs in runs scored, home runs, RBI and batting average in his first season in the desert.

Bregman (hamstring) will take groundballs Monday, Jake Kaplan of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Bregman had previously been limited to running and taking BP, so this is a good sign. Still, with only a week remaining in the regular season, it remains to be seen whether Bregman will be able to return and help fantasy owners in the remaining games.

Valencia is not in the lineup Sunday against the Rangers, John Hickey of the Bay Area News Group reports.

Valencia had started every game since Sept. 9, but he will sit out of Sunday's contest. Matt Olson will head out to right field in Valencia's place when Oakland faces Colby Lewis and the Rangers.

LeMahieu is out of the lineup Saturday against the Dodgers, Eric Stephen of SB Nation reports.

It's not often one sees a healthy .349 hitter sit when they would have the platoon advantage, but LeMahieu hasn't had a day off in more than a month. Further, his 13-game hitting streak ended Friday and he's just 9-for-37 against Saturday's starter Clayton Kershaw. Patrick Valaika will get the nod at second base in LeMahieu's absence.

Alvarez went 1-for-5 with a solo homer in Friday's 3-2 extra-inning victory over Arizona.

The veteran slugger broke the ice on a dismal offensive performance up to that point by taking reliever Enrique Burgos deep with a 407-foot shot to right in the eighth, kickstarting the Orioles' comeback. Despite the homer Friday and some modest success making hard contact during the month, Alvarez is struggling overall in September, as evidenced by his .195 average over 41 at-bats.

Donaldson went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer, a walk and two runs in Friday's 9-0 victory over the Yankees.

The slugging third baseman went deep in the eighth inning off reliever Ben Heller, his second homer in the last three days. Donaldson now has hits in three straight, a sign he may be emerging from what had been a two-week-plus slump. Despite his modest stretch of success, he's enduring the worst month of the season, hitting .183 with the aforementioned pair of round-trippers and three RBI.

Moncada remains in the running for starting time at third base late in the season, and John Farrell referred to the position as "a spot that can further be grabbed," Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal reports.

Despite the fact that Moncada hasn't started a game since Sept. 6 and has logged just two at-bats since, Red Sox manager John Farrell is keeping him in mind. " ... that's why Moncada came here," Farrell said. "We're looking for production at third base to continue to climb." Needless to say, Farrell has not been wowed by the inconsistent bunch that includes Travis Shaw, Aaron Hill, and Brock Holt.