MLB Player News

Indians shortstop Jose Ramirez went 2 for 3 with two walks, two runs scored, one RBI and two stolen bases in his team's 4-3 win over the White Sox on Wednesday.

Ramirez hasn't been a force at the plate for much of the season but turned things on against the White Sox, going 5 for 10 with three walks and three stolen bases in the last three games. He broke a 1-1 tie with an RBI single in the seventh inning and his team didn't relinquish the lead over the remainder of the game.

"He looks like he's starting to play with some confidence," manager Terry Francona said, per Northeast Ohio Media Group. "His energy rounding the bag at first ... he looks like the Jose we became really fond of last year. That's very welcome.

"His batting average (.198) is going to be low for a while, but if he starts playing like that it will give us a huge lift."

Ramirez has hit .198/.260/.261 with one home run, seven RBI and eight stolen bases in 111 at-bats.

Nationals Manager Matt Williams said infielder Anthony Rendon was able to field some grounders and take some swings in the batting cage on Wednesday, according to The Washington Post's Chelsea Janes. 

Though he was able to get some work in, Williams said he's not ready to resume rehab games just yet. 

Rendon had a setback in early May when an oblique injury occurred while rehabbing his knee. 

"His legs are in decent shape, it's not like you're not playing all winter, but nonetheless there's some start-over feel there because you have to get going again," Williams said. "There's nothing like playing games. There's nothing like getting out there in competition, so that process is underway, and we'll get him to the point where he can go out and start playing some games and see where he's at."

Rendon's absence was felt early on in the season. However, the Nationals have become scorching hot of late, winning 10 of their last 12 games. They're now in first place of the NL East.

This recent surge should allow the Nationals to exercise caution with Rendon's injuries. 

Making his third consecutive start at first base for the Athletics, Max Muncy launched a solo home run in Tuesday's loss to the Astros. The sixth-inning bomb was his second of the season and in the last three games.

Over the three game stretch, Muncy has brought his season average up from .227 to its current .286 clip. He will likely continue to get regular playing time for now with Ike Davis on the disabled list.

Pirates first baseman Pedro Alvarez hit a solo home run in the fourth inning of Tuesday's loss to Minnesota. 

Alvarez went 2 for 5, improving his average to .227. He homered for the seventh time and drove in his 17th run. 

Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe hit a two-run home run in the second inning of Tuesday's win over Pittsburgh. 

Plouffe went 2 for 4 and went deep for his sixth homer of the year. He also hit his sixth double of the season and now has 20 RBI. 

Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson went 1 for 3 at the plate in Toronto's 3-2 loss to the Angels on Tuesday. 

Donaldson led things off in the first with a solo home run off of Hector Santiago, his ninth of the season. He later brought home another run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth.

Donaldson is now hitting .316 with 28 RBI in 158 at-bats this season.

Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon is making progress in his return from knee and oblique injuries that have landed him on the disabled list. 

Manager Matt Williams said that Rendon is throwing and doing baseball activities, per the Washington Post. He's not ready to hit live pitching yet, however.  

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado has hit just .217/.269/.304 in 23 at-bats against left-handers this season.

Machado struggled against southpaws in 2014 as well, posting a .642 OPS against lefties and a .802 OPS against righties, but the split has been more pronouced this season, as the third baseman has powered to a .288/.366/.519 line while hitting all six of his home runs against righties.

Machado is set to face Mariners righty Taijuan Walker on Tuesday but then has a pair of matchups against left-handers on Wednesday and Thursday.

Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu is down nearly 100 points on his batting average in the month of May after starting red hot with a .406 average.

Manager Walt Weiss said it's just the cycle of the season and LeMahieu thinks he'll break out soon, according to MLB.com.

"It's the same every year," LeMahieu said. "You go into every spring training like, 'I'm not going to get frustrated this year. I'm going to keep going with it. Then you get to that point and you can't help but get frustrated, especially when the team's not going well, it compounds it.

"But I still feel good at the plate. I think I've got a hot streak coming and our team has a hot streak coming."

Rays third baseman Evan Longoria went 2 for 6 with three RBI in his team's 11-3 win over the Twins on Sunday.

It's just the second time this season Longoria has racked up three RBI in a game, as he had managed just a total of four RBI through the end of April. He's played third base for the entirety of eight straight games but is just 6 for 33 with one double during that stretch. Longoria and the Rays are off Monday before opening a two-game series in Atlanta on Tuesday.