MLB Player News

Neto (oblique) said he's planning to resume baseball activities Friday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.

Neto will be limited to light throwing at first before he then begins to incorporate a range of other drills. The young shortstop has been brought along slowly in his recovery from a left oblique strain, which sent him to the injured list June 15. There is no exact timetable yet for his return to the Angels' active major-league roster.

Franco went 0-for-3 with a walk and a steal in Sunday's 3-1 win over the Royals.

Franco was still able to provide a positive fantasy performance despite going hitless on the afternoon. He stole his 25th bag of the year, and his activity on the bases has been an added element to his game after he combined for just 10 steals over his first two major league seasons. Franco is putting together a productive year at the plate thus far, but has struggled over the course of June, slashing just .229/.295/.357 with two homers, seven RBI, five runs and a 7:11 BB:K since June 5.

Witt went 1-for-4 with a steal and a run scored in Sunday's loss to the Rays.

Witt singled to lead off the fourth and wound up stealing second before crossing home for the Royals' only run of the afternoon. The 23-year-old is now up to 23 steals on the year and is well on his way of surpassing the 30 steals he had in 150 games as a rookie last season. Witt has displayed some inconsistencies at the plate thus far, but has four hits over his last three games and is now slashing .247/.290/.426 with 12 homers, 38 RBI, 43 runs and a 19:67 BB:K over 334 plate appearances.

Mateo went 1-for-2 with a double, a walk, a stolen base and two runs scored in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Mariners.

Mateo went just 2-for-20 over his previous seven contests since his last steal. His struggles to get on base have minimized his best trait for fantasy managers, which is his ability to run rampant on the basepaths. The shortstop's multi-hit effort lifted his batting average on the year to .224 with 21 thefts, six home runs, 27 RBI and 36 runs scored over 68 contests. Mateo's playing time has already started to slip as the Orioles also try to balance at-bats for Gunnar Henderson and Ramon Urias on the left side of the infield, and that juggling act is set to get trickier with Jordan Westburg coming to the majors Monday.

Velazquez notched a stolen base in Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Rockies.

Velazquez ran for David Fletcher and swiped a bag in the eighth inning. With Zach Neto (oblique) on the injured list, Velazquez had a chance to pick up regular playing time at shortstop, but it hasn't come to pass, as Fletcher has started the last two games there. Velazquez remains a solid speed threat with five steals this season, but he's batting just .227 (5-for-22) across nine contests, so he'll have to get his bat going to solidify his place in the lineup.

Velazquez is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rockies, Erica Weston of Bally Sports West reports.

The 28-year-old made seven consecutive starts at shortstop after Zach Neto (oblique) landed on the injured list June 15, but David Fletcher is making his second straight start Sunday after having his contract selected from Triple-A Albuquerque. Fletcher went 4-for-6 with a home run and five RBI in his first big-league game since April on Saturday and might have the upper hand on Velazquez for playing time.

Hamilton is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the White Sox.

Hamilton started the past three games after being promoted Wednesday and has gone 1-for-9 with a walk, two stolen bases and two runs. Enrique Hernandez will take over at shortstop Sunday.

Crawford (shoulder) went 2-for-5 with a solo home run in an extra-inning loss to the Orioles on Saturday.

The veteran shortstop was back in the lineup and leading off after missing three games with a bruised shoulder, and he slugged the second of four Mariners homers on the afternoon in the third inning. Crawford has now left the yard twice in his last four games after going 16 straight games without a round tripper immediately prior to that streak. He's been a constant presence on the bases throughout his last 10 games, however, generating a .391 OBP thanks in large part to a 15.2 percent walk rate in that span.

Anderson is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox.

The 30-year-old started the past two days at second base after missing five games with a shoulder injury, and he's back out of the starting nine Sunday. There's been no report that Anderson aggravated the injury, so it may just be an extra maintenance day amid a 2-for-30 slump. Elvis Andrus will receive another start at shortstop while Zach Remillard mans the keystone.

Franco went 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBI on Saturday against the Royals.

Franco returned to the lineup after sitting out the team's prior two games for disciplinary purposes. He quickly made amends by going deep in his first at-bat to tally his ninth homer of the season and only second long ball since May 10. Despite that downturn in production, Franco has maintained an impressive .352 wOBA and 131 wRC+ across 322 plate appearances on the campaign.