MLB Player News

Smith walked and drove in a run after he replaced an injured Josh Jung (wrist) at third base in Monday's 9-3 win over the Rays.

Smith finished out an at-bat for Jung, who was hit on the wrist by a pitch in the ninth inning. Smith's free pass came with the bases loaded and forced in a run, and he finished out the game in the bottom half of the frame. The Rangers will discuss how they want to handle Jung's absence on the field and the roster Tuesday. A likely scenario involves both Smith and Ezequiel Duran holding down the hot corner, while potential utility-infield replacements at Triple-A Reno include Matt Duffy, Justin Foscue and Jonathan Ornelas.

De La Cruz went 1-for-5 with a stolen base in Monday's 6-3 extra-inning win over Philadelphia.

De La Cruz has one hit in all four games to start the season and has also stolen two bases (caught once) thus far. He also struck out four times Monday and has been punched out nine times in 17 plate appearances.

Merrill went 1-for-3 with a solo home run Monday in a loss to the Cardinals.

San Diego was down 4-0 when Merrill took Kyle Gibson deep to left field for the first home run of his major-league career. The 20-year-old has gone 3-for-7 with two RBI over his past two games, so he may be settling in after starting the campaign with just two hits over his first 14 at-bats. Merrill has started all but one of San Diego's seven games so far, so the team appears to be giving him plenty of space to get accustomed to major-league pitching.

Vople went 4-for-4 with two runs scored and a run batted in against the Diamondbacks on Monday.

Volpe generated his second straight multi-hit game and provided his third and fourth extra-base hit of his last three appearances. The second-year shortstop has been making his case to rise up the Yankees lineup having reached safely in 14 of his 18 plate appearances through four games while pacing the team in runs scored (5).

Witt went 2-for-5 with a solo homer and one steal in Monday's loss to the Orioles.

Witt flashed all the skills that made him a top fantasy pick against Baltimore on Monday. The dynamic shortstop opened the game's scoring by tattooing a 440-foot to center field off Dean Kremer in the third inning. Witt appears poised for a monster superstar season as he has now collected an extra base hit in each of his first four games and six in total (three doubles, one triple and two home runs).

Volpe (illness) is starting at shortstop and batting sixth in Monday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Volpe missed the Yankees' series finale against the Astros on Sunday due to an illness. Over the first three games against Houston, he went 4-for-10 with one home run, two RBI and three runs. With Volpe back in the lineup, Oswaldo Cabrera will shift back to third base for Monday's game.

Bichette (neck) is out of the lineup for Monday's game in Houston.

Bichette will be on the bench for a second straight game after he was scratched ahead of Sunday's 9-2 win over the Rays. The Blue Jays haven't indicated that Bichette's neck issue is anything more than a day-to-day concern, but Ernie Clement will spell him at shortstop Monday.

Wendle will start at second base and bat ninth in Monday's game versus the Tigers, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

Wendle didn't make an appearance in the lineup or off the bench in the weekend series against the Brewers, but he will start the first game of a three-game set versus the Tigers. Jeff McNeil is receiving a day off.

Adames went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two walks in Sunday's victory over the Mets.

Adames went 0-for-4 in Milwaukee's season opener, but he recorded two hits in their second game and reached base four times a day later. He should have ample opportunities to knock in runs, as he hit fifth against the lone southpaw the Brewers have faced and cleanup against the two right-handers.

Shewmake went 1-for-4 with a stolen base Sunday against the Tigers.

Shewmake started his second consecutive game, the first coming at shortstop and the latter at second base. He was productive with the opportunity, combining to go 3-for-8 with a home run and stolen base -- both of which were the first of his career. Shewmake's fit in the White Sox's infield is unclear as he's an unnatural platoon partner with Nicky Lopez at second base. That could make his primary path to playing time displacing Paul DeJong at shortstop, though it's unclear whether the team is willing to consider that move early in the season.