MLB Player News

Chang was activated from the 60-day injured list Friday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

Chang will make his return from hamate surgery after being sidelined since late April. He is expected to take over as the Red Sox' primary shortstop, at least until Trevor Story (elbow) is ready. Even with regular playing time, Chang isn't a very enticing fantasy option.

The Red Sox optioned Hamilton to Triple-A Worcester on Friday, Mac Cerullo of the Boston Herald reports.

With Yu Chang (wrist) returning from the 60-day injured list Friday, Hamilton will serve as the Red Sox's roster casualty in order to free up a spot in Boston's crowded infield. Hamilton slashed just .138/.265/.207 over 13 games during his stint in the majors, though he could return later this season if he puts up numbers consistent with his .838 OPS in Triple-A.

Witt went 1-for-4 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Thursday's 6-1 loss to the Guardians.

Witt has collected three steals while batting .324 with a 2:11 BB:K over his last nine games. The shortstop was able to cross the plate in a productive first inning, but the Royals' offense couldn't scrape together any more runs after that. Witt is slashing .251/.294/.423 through 87 games this season, a nearly identical line to his 2022 numbers. He's added 13 home runs, 26 steals, 45 RBI, 47 runs scored, 13 doubles and four triples while batting second most often in recent weeks.

Boston manager Alex Cora said Thursday that Chang (wrist) will be activated "this weekend," MLB.com reports.

There had been speculation that Chang would be activated Thursday, but that didn't happen, When he is activated, the 27-year-old is expected to serve as the team's primary shortstop.

Seager went 3-for-5 with a solo home run in a loss to the Red Sox on Thursday.

Seager's long ball came with Texas down five runs in the ninth inning, but that doesn't lessen its impact in fantasy box scores. The All-Star shortstop recorded his second straight three-hit effort and extended his hitting streak to nine games, a stretch during which he's slashing .444/.488/.667. However, Seager hadn't homered during the streak until Thursday -- in fact, his long ball against Boston was his first since June 17, a span of 18 contests. Even so, Seager has been productive during the 18-game stretch, driving in 14 runs and knocking 10 doubles.

Bichette went 5-for-10 with two runs and an RBI over both games of a doubleheader against the White Sox on Thursday.

All five of Bichette's hits went for a single, and he also struck out four times across the pair of wins. However, the shortstop made his contact count and extended his modest hitting streak to five games while scoring twice and knocking in one run Thursday. Bichette increased his season average to .320 with the five-hit day, though he has just one homer and no steals over his past 24 contests.

Crawford went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Thursday's 5-1 win over the Astros.

Crawford's third-inning blast extended his hitting streak to seven games, a span in which he's gone 11-for-26 (.423) with two homers, four doubles and six RBI. The shortstop has also drawn a walk in 17 of his last 25 contests. He's up to a .254/.365/.403 slash line with eight homers -- one shy of his career high -- 32 RBI, 46 runs scored, a stolen base and 18 doubles through 80 games this season.

Baez went 3-for-3 with a walk, a double, two RBI and two runs scored in Thursday's 9-0 win over the Athletics.

Baez came into the contest just 2-for-20 over his last five games but was able to snap out of the funk. The shortstop has been hot and cold throughout his career, but he's been more on the cold side during his time in Detroit. He currently has a .596 OPS in 2023, which would be his lowest mark since recording a .551 OPS across 52 games as a 21-year-old rookie back in 2014.

Volpe went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and an additional run in a loss to Baltimore on Wednesday.

Volpe brought New York to within a run with his solo shot to right field in the eighth inning. It was the rookie shortstop's second homer in his past three contests following a 23-game stretch during which he went deep just once. Volpe was batting below the Mendoza Line at .193 as recently as June 24, but he's bumped his season average up to a more digestible .223 on the strength of a 10-game stretch during which he's slashing .432/.447/.703.

Hamilton is expected to be sent down to Triple-A Worcester when the Red Sox activate Yu Chang (wrist) from the injured list Thursday or Friday, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

The Red Sox are getting healthier in the middle infield with Chang coming off the IL with Pablo Reyes (abdominal) also likely to be activated in the coming days. Hamilton has filled in the last two weeks with a just a .503 OPS in 12 games, and his time in the majors should end soon.