MLB Player News

Scott White posted Friday that he is not a believer in  Brandon Crawford's apparent breakout so far this season for the Giants.

Crawford has been one of the five best shortstops in all of Fantasy through the first three weeks of the season, thanks to a .328 batting average, three home runs and 12 runs scored.

Are there any signs that point to him sustaining this success?

Crawford has shown an improved eye at the plate, walking in 9.1 percent of his plate appearances and striking out in 16.7 percent. Both of which are better than his career norms and have helped him to a .328 batting average and .409 on-base percentage.

Unfortunately, he is also fueled by a .364 batting average on balls in play that he almost certainly will not be able to sustain. However, he does have a solid 21.3 percent line drive rate that indicates he is making good contact.

If Crawford can sustain his refined approach at the plate, he may be able to keep a solid batting average, but the biggest place he is likely to fall off is in the power department.

After entering the season with just seven home runs in 631 at bats at the major-league level, he already has three in 58 at bats. Usually, an increase in home runs can be explained by a batter making a more concerted effort to put the ball in the air, but that has not been the case thus far for Crawford. He has hit a career-low 27.7 percent of his batted balls in the air, a sure sign that this power spike is not sustainable.

White's skepticism regarding Crawford seems justified, so Fantasy owners who are rushing out to grab him (added in 42 percent of leagues over the last week) should know that this is likely as good as it gets for the 26-year-old. 

Mets shortstop Ruben Tejada missed his first game of the season Saturday against Washington because of a foot/ankle injury he suffered the previous night, ESPN.com reports. Tejada, who has played in all 15 games this season to produce a .232 batting average, said he was held out as a precaution and was available to serve as a pinch hitter.

Brandon Crawford's third home run Thursday put him one off his career high and made him the No. 3 shortstop in standard Head-to-Head leagues so far this season, behind only Jed Lowrie and Troy Tulowitzki. Yet as much as I'd like to believe it's at least halfway legitimate, I don't see any evidence of it.

I've scoured the Internet looking for explanations but can't find anything concrete. Some sources point to his improvement in the second half last year, but he still produced only a .697 OPS then, which would relegate him to the bench for just about any other team. Apart from the heavy-hitting California League, where his numbers were as silly as everyone else's, his OPS was right around .700 throughout his minor-league career as well. I'm thinking that's who he is.

For now, I'm dismissing his early-season production as an aberration, but I'd love to hear any theories suggesting otherwise.

Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford responded positively to being moved up to fifth in the batting order Thursday against the Brewers. Crawford led the offensive charge in a 7-2 loss, going 3 for 4 with a solo home run, a double and two runs.

Crawford is batting .354 (11 for 31) with three home runs and seven RBI in nine career games at Miller Park. Crawford extended his hitting streak to 11 games Thursday. He's batting .432 (16 for 37) with three doubles, three home runs and seven RBI during the streak.

Red Sox infielder Pedro Ciriaco is in the starting lineup Thursday.

Ciriaco will play third and bat ninth. He's giving the struggling Will Middlebrooks a breather. Ciriaco will go against Indians pitcher Zach McAllister. 

Mets manager Terry Collins said he gave no thought to benching shortstop Ruben Tejada, who has committed six errors through 13 games. Tejada made a 14th-straight start Thursday at Colorado.

"He's got to play," Collins said to ESPN. "I wish we could always say we could have perfect conditions, but he's going to play."

With catcher Buster Posey out of the lineup Thursday at Milwaukee, Giants manager Bruce Bochy moved shortstop Brandon Crawford from eighth to fifth in the batting order. Crawford carried a 10-game hitting streak into Thursday.

He's batting .394 (13 for 33) with two doubles, two home runs, five walks, six RBI and nine runs during his hitting streak. Bochy hinted Thursday he might continue to hit Crawford higher in the lineup.

"He shortens up really well now," Bochy said, per CSN Bay Area. "He’s shorter to the ball, his swing is more compact and he’s using the whole field."

Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford extended his hitting streak to 10 games on Wednesday against the Brewers. He went 2 for 4 with a run scored in a 4-3 loss.

Crawford is batting .394 (13 for 33) during his streak with two homers and six RBI.

With Aaron Hill going on the disabled list and Didi Gregorius being activated on Tuesday, Cliff Pennington will see some playing time at second base for the Diamondbacks going forward, MLB.com reports.

Pennington will slide over to second when Gregorius starts at shortstop. He played second down the stretch for the A's last season.

The 28-year-old is batting .267 (12 for 45) through 12 games with three RBI.

Dodgers manager Don Mattingly told the Los Angeles Times Tuesday that the club has not considered recalling Dee Gordon. Mattingly added that he has been satisfied with Justin Sellers at shortstop with Hanley Ramirez sidelined.

Gordon is batting .319 (15 for 47) through 11 games at Triple-A Albuquerque with seven RBI and eight stolen bases.