MLB Player News

Witt went 1-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base in Saturday's 7-1 win over the Guardians.

The steal was Witt's 29th of the season, though he's gone just 3-for-6 on the basepaths since the start of September. He's still just one theft away from a 20-homer, 30-steal rookie season. The shortstop has added a .256/.296/.436 slash line with 80 RBI, 81 runs scored, 31 doubles and six triples while regularly batting second in the Royals' young lineup.

Franco is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Astros, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Franco started the past 12 contests and will head to the bench after he posted an .866 OPS with six doubles, four RBI and seven runs during that span. Taylor Walls will shift to shortstop while Miles Mastrobuoni stars at the keystone Sunday.

Bichette went 4-for-4 in Saturday's 10-0 win over Boston.

Bichette has notched multiple hits in seven of his last 10 games, though he has tallied only four RBI during that span. The shortstop has recorded an incredible .423 average and .699 slugging percentage over 123 at-bats since the start of September.

Bogaerts is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

Bogaerts is 2-for-24 over his past seven games and will take a seat for Sunday's contest. Yu Chang will take over at shortstop and bat seventh for Boston in the series finale.

Baez is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Twins.

Baez started the past 12 games and will receive a day off after he posted a .245/.275/.449 slash line with three home runs and seven RBI during that stretch. Ryan Kreidler will start at shortstop and bat ninth in the series finale.

Soto went 3-for-3 with two doubles, an RBI and a run scored in Saturday's 3-2 win over the Rangers.

Soto was part of the Angels' rally for the lead in the seventh inning, knocking a game-tying RBI double and scoring the go-ahead run on a fielder's choice. This was his sixth multi-hit effort in his last eight games, with five of his 13 hits in that span going for extra bases. The infielder is now batting .381 with a home run, a triple, four doubles, seven RBI, six runs scored and a stolen base through his first 14 major-league contests. Soto's hot hitting should help protect him from losing playing time to David Fletcher, who returned from a hand injury Thursday.

Velazquez is doing well after undergoing knee surgery Sept. 13, and he's expected to have a normal offseason, per MLB.com.

Velazquez tore the meniscus in his right knee during a game Sept. 13 and had surgery four days later. That went well according to Angels head athletic trainer Mike Frostad, and Velazquez should be able to have a normal offseason routine in preparation for spring training. The fifth-year pro impressed with his defense this year but slashed a meager .196/.236/.304 over 349 plate appearances, contributing nine home runs, 28 RBI and 17 stolen bases.

Crawford isn't starting Saturday against the Athletics.

The Mariners are resting several starters Saturday after clinching a postseason berth Friday night, and Crawford will head to the bench after going 1-for-14 with an RBI, two walks and three strikeouts over the last four games. Dylan Moore is starting at shortstop and leading off.

Correa went 2-for-5 with a two-run home run in Friday's victory over the Tigers.

Correa's two-run shot came in the seventh inning and sent Mark Contreras home. It was Correa's 22nd homer of the season, his seventh of the month, and his first since Sept. 15. The shortstop has found his stride at the end of the season, picking up hits in all but five out of 27 games in September and slashing .345/.405/.600. During the span of this month, Correa took his batting average from .269 to where it sits now at .287.

Smith isn't starting Friday's game against the Angels.

The left-handed Smith will take a seat Friday with fellow lefty Reid Detmers starting the game on the mound for Los Angeles. While he sits, Mark Mathias will take his spot in left field and bat sixth.