MLB Player News

Escobar (hamstring) is set to begin a rehab assignment this weekend and could be activated from the DL on Monday, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

Escobar should return as Minnesota's starting shortstop, but Eduardo Nunez may continue to get some starts at shortstop and there's a risk Escobar may not remain an everyday player.

Valencia went 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs in Wednesday's win over the Rangers.

The third baseman continued his hot streak Tuesday, raising his average to .357 through 84 at-bats. Over the last seven days, Valencia is hitting .455 with a ridiculous 1.471 OPS (which includes all six of his homers for the year). He seems to be experiencing no issues with the hamstring that landed him on the DL in April.

Suarez went just 1-for-5 against Cleveland on Wednesday, but the one hit was a three-run homer -- his third in the last four games.

He's been a bit of a whiff machine, having struck out six times in that span and 13 times in his last seven games, but Suarez has officially found the ol' power stroke again. His current .253 average reflects what we should expect on that front, but the Venezuelan's combination of shortstop eligibility and power makes him a pretty decent poor man's Trevor Story.

Rendon went 2-for-3 with two walks, two RBI, a steal and a run against the Mets on Wednesday.

Rendon's a scary player for fantasy purposes because it's hard to count on him staying healthy and harder still to evaluate to what degree his injuries have eroded his skills. That said, he's been showing some positive signs recently -- Rendon has churned out 10 hits in his last 28 at-bats (.357) and owns a strong 7:8 BB:K in that span. Of course, the power's still absent -- he's stuck on two homers and his RBI total is still in the single digits.

Donaldson is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against Tampa Bay.

According to the Toronto Star's Brendan Kennedy, Donaldson is simply receiving a rest day Wednesday against the Rays after having played in each of the team's first 41 games. Recent acquisition Jimmy Paredes will fill in for Donaldson at the hot corner Wednesday, but Donaldson should be expected to return to the lineup in the very near future.

McMahon, 21, is batting .233/.331/.325 over 144 plate appearances at Double-A Hartford this season.

Power has been McMahon's calling card through his previous three stops in the minors, but he's shown precious little in that regard since moving to Double-A this season. He has yet to hit a home run, and his slugging percentage is down 150 points compared to what he posted at High-A Modesto in 2015. McMahon has at least gone a perfect 7-for-7 on stolen-base attempts, but he'll need to start cranking out extra-base hits in order for the Rockies to feel more positive about his development.

Valencia went 2-for-5 on Tuesday night against the the Rangers and smashed his sixth homer of the season.

Valencia stayed hot on Tuesday and now has six homers in his last five games. Since returning from the DL on May 7, Valencia is hitting .414 over eight games with an absurd 1.468 OPS.

Moustakas (thumb) is beginning a rehab assignment with Double-A Northwest Arkansas on Wednesday.

He is in the lineup for the Naturals on Wednesday, and remains on track to join the Royals this weekend if everything goes well during his rehab assignment. Cheslor Cuthbert will continue to see starts at the hot corner over the coming days, but his time as a regular appears to be winding down.

Duffy (hamstring) is back in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Padres.

It seems the decision to hold Duffy out Sunday was largely precautionary, as he's set to return Tuesday after missing just the one start. Duffy was used as a defensive replacement in Sunday's game. He will man third base and bat third against right-hander Colin Rea.

Reynolds is in the starting lineup for Tuesday's matchup with the Nationals.

After David Wright (back) was scratched from the lineup, Reynolds got the green light to enter the lineup and make his major league debut. He'll fill in at third base and bat ninth, although he faces a tough test in Max Scherzer, who struck out 20 batters in his previous start, which could spoil the 25-year-old's debut.