MLB Player News

De La Cruz went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 7-2 loss to Milwaukee.

De La Cruz's fifth-inning homer was his third in three games. He's reached base safely in all 12 games thus far, going 14-for-44 (.318) with three walks and a hit-by-pitch. It's a nice start to the season for De La Cruz, who has dazzling advanced metrics: 93.1 mph average exit velocity (89th percentile), 51.9 hard-hit percentage (85th) and 14.8 barrel percentage (87th). Unfortunately, his .458 BABIP suggests a correction is due; De La Cruz's expected batting average is .244.

Kim went 2-for-4 with a triple, two runs scored and a stolen base in Wednesday's win over Chicago.

Kim came around to score San Diego's second run of the game on a fielder's choice play after reaching on an infield single and later stealing third. The shortstop then added a triple in the fourth before coming around to score a second time as the Padres jumped back out to a two-run lead. Kim is still batting just .182 in April following the two-hit performance, though he's now hit safely in three of his last four contests. It also marked his second triple in his last three games.

Holliday went 0-for-4 with an RBI during Wednesday's 7-5 win over the Red Sox.

Holliday looked like a rookie Thursday, going hitless in four at-bats while also failing to reel in a flyball while tracking back into right field. However, he didn't come away completely empty-handed Wednesday, collecting his first RBI on a ground out to second. At 20 years old, Holliday is one of the youngest players in MLB and will almost certainly endure growing pains, but his talent and upside should bear plenty of fruit for fantasy managers willing to be patient.

Gonzalez started at shortstop and went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Wednesday's 7-5 loss to Baltimore.

Gonzalez made his first start as part of planned platoon at shortstop. He was in the lineup against Orioles left-hander Cole Irvin, and the lefty-hitting David Hamilton will fill the strong side of the platoon. Hamilton is expected to start Thursday against righty Grayson Rodriguez.

Alexander went 2-for-2 with a walk and solo home run in Wednesday's 5-3 win over the Rockies.

Alexander bopped his second home run of the season in the second inning and has hit safely in four consecutive games. He's been the primary fill-in at shortstop since Geraldo Perdomo injured his knee. In the six games since the injury, the righty-hitting Alexander has started five, four against lefties and one against a righty. The lefty-hitting Jace Peterson, who started the one game Alexander didn't, is around and could see action against right-handers. Kevin Newman could also see action in short, but that would counter the organization's desire expressed during spring training to give its prospects consistent at-bats.

Hamilton is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles.

Hamilton will take a seat on the bench along with fellow left-handed hitters Reese McGuire, Enmanuel Valdez and Wilyer Abreu as the Red Sox stock up on some extra right-handed bats against Orioles southpaw Cole Irvin. With Trevor Story (shoulder) lost for the season, Hamilton is expected to get an extended look in a strong-side platoon role at shortstop.

Shewmake will start at second base and bat eighth in Wednesday's game against the Guardians.

Shewmake will remain in the middle infield for the third time in four games and might have at least temporarily moved ahead of Paul DeJong on the depth chart. Though Shewmake's .597 OPS in 18 plate appearances lags behind DeJong's .625 OPS in 24 plate appearances, Shewmake at least theoretically has upside working in his favor. The White Sox head into Wednesday's game sitting on a 2-9 record and could be inclined to pull the plug on unproductive veterans like DeJong.

DeJong is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Guardians.

On the bench for the third time in four games, DeJong seems to have fallen into a part-time or backup role in the wake of his slow start to the season. Through 24 plate appearances, DeJong is slashing .167/.167/.458 with 13 strikeouts. Braden Shewmake will get another turn in the middle infield while DeJong is out of the lineup.

Volpe will start at shortstop and bat leadoff in Wednesday's game against the Marlins.

It's the first start this season at leadoff for Volpe, who has spent most of his time in the sixth or seventh spot. The 22-year-old earned a move up in the batting order by slashing .375/.444/.600 with two home runs, three stolen bases and a 5:9 BB:K over his first 11 contests. Gleyber Torres -- who has been the Yankees' leadoff hitter this season -- is batting sixth Wednesday.

Henderson went 2-for-5 with a double, a stolen base and two runs scored in Tuesday's 7-1 win over the Red Sox.

Henderson's hits have come in bunches lately -- he has a pair of two-hit game and four hitless contests over his last six. The shortstop remains atop the Orioles' lineup amid the inconsistency at the plate. He's batting .231 with two home runs, six RBI, eight runs scored, three steals, a double and a triple through 10 contests this season.