MLB Player News

Abrams went 1-for-3 with two walks, a two-run home run, a second run scored and a stolen base in Monday's 7-2 win over the Marlins.

The 23-year-old shortstop was once again the engine of the Nationals' offense from the leadoff spot, as Abrams took Trevor Rogers deep in the third inning then teamed up with Jacob Young for a double steal in the fifth. Abrams has reached base safely in 15 straight games, and on the season he's slashing .297/.377/.634 with seven homers, six stolen bases, 17 RBI and 21 runs in 25 contests.

Anderson suffered a mild left thumb sprain during Monday's game against the Nationals, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Anderson will be considered day-to-day moving forward. Vidal Brujan would be in line for more playing time at shortstop if Anderson needs a few days off to recover.

Anderson was removed from Monday's game against the Nationals with an apparent left hand injury, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports.

Anderson appeared to suffer the injury while playing the field, though the team has yet to provide an official update on his status. Dane Myers will fill Anderson's spot in the order and man right field, while Vidal Brujan enters the game for Jesus Sanchez and slots in at shortstop.

Cruz went 1-for-4 with a stolen base Sunday against the Giants.

Cruz was held out of Saturday's lineup after tweaking his ankle in the series opener against the Giants. He notably moved up the order to hit third in his return Sunday and seemed to put the injury issue behind him as he swiped his third base of the season. Cruz is off to a slow start to the campaign, but he's shown some improvement of late by going 8-for-22 with a 25 percent strikeout rate across his last seven games.

Fitzgerald went 3-for-3 with a double and one run scored in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Pirates.

Fitzgerald has recorded three multi-hit games this season, and he's batting .313 with a .915 OPS over 34 plate appearances. He remains in a utility role, but he's done well when in the lineup, posting one home run, three RBI, six runs scored, two doubles, a triple and four stolen bases. Fitzgerald's lack of an everyday role limits his fantasy viability, and his best chance at playing time is at shortstop, though Nick Ahmed has held his own there by batting .262 over 27 contests. Fitzgerald has also played in center field occasionally versus southpaws when Jung Hoo Lee is out of the lineup, though that has not been a strict platoon situation.

Lindor went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and two stolen bases during Sunday's 4-2 win over the Cardinals.

Lindor notched his fourth homer over the last nine games, tagging Lance Lynn for a solo shot in the sixth frame. The shortstop also notched the 14th multi-steal game of his career, marking his second and third pilfers of the campaign. During his last nine appearances, Lindor is batting .306 with nine RBI and six runs scored.

Ahmed is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Ahmed started the previous 12 games but will take a seat Sunday after he posted a .616 OPS during that stretch. Tyler Fitzgerald will receive a start at shortstop and bat ninth.

Alexander is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mariners.

Alexander has gone 9-for-24 with five doubles, a homer, nine RBI and four runs over his past seven games, but he'll head to the bench Sunday. Kevin Newman will start at shortstop in the series finale at Seattle.

Cruz (ankle) is starting at shortstop and batting third Sunday against the Giants, Andrew Destin of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Cruz was held out of the lineup Saturday after he tweaked his ankle in Friday's series opener, but he's back in the starting nine Sunday. The 25-year-old is without a home run since April 13 and has a .205/.286/.250 slash line and 38.8 percent strikeout rate during that 13-game stretch.

Alexander went 1-for-2 with a walk, double and run scored in Saturday's 3-1 loss to Seattle.

Alexander walked with two outs in the eighth inning and came around to score Arizona's lone run on Jake McCarthy's triple. The rookie shortstop has hit safely in six of the last seven contests, going 9-for-24 with six extra-base hits, nine RBI and four runs over that stretch. Alexander's bat has played well, but defense could cost him opportunities. He ranks last among shortstops with minus-7 outs above average and minus-5 runs prevented.