MLB Player News

Hensley was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land on Thursday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

Hensley managed just a .403 OPS in 26 games earlier this season with the Astros and wasn't great at Sugar Land, either, with a .700 OPS. However, Houston needs some infield protection with Jose Altuve (oblique) going down, which Hensley will provide.

The Astros placed Altuve on the 10-day injured list Thursday with left oblique discomfort.

After tweaking his oblique during batting practice Tuesday, Altuve will officially be sidelined through the All-Star break. The move is retroactive to July 4, so Altuve will be eligible to return as soon as the break is over. Mauricio Dubon will presumably handle second base while Altuve is out, and David Hensley was recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land to fill Altuve's roster spot.

Frazier isn't in the Orioles' lineup Thursday against the Yankees.

Frazier is 2-for-9 with a homer and three RBI during Baltimore's current series against New York, and he'll get a breather for Thursday's finale. Jordan Westburg will slide to second base in Frazier's absence, allowing Ramon Urias to start at third and bat ninth.

Merrifield isn't in the Blue Jays' lineup for Game 1 of Thursday's doubleheader against the White Sox.

Merrifield broke out of his slump at the plate Tuesday -- going 2-for-4 with two RBI -- and he'll get a breather during Toronto's first game Thursday. Cavan Biggio will fill in at the keystone and bat seventh.

Arroyo isn't in the Red Sox's lineup Thursday against the Rangers, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.

Arroyo is 4-for-11 with two runs scored across his last three games, but he'll take a seat for Thursday's series finale. Enrique Hernandez will fill in at second base and bat seventh.

Short will start at second base and bat eighth in Thursday's game against the Athletics.

Short will pick up his third consecutive start at second base after reaching base twice in seven plate appearances in the first two games of the series with Oakland. Though his playing time has been trending up of late, Short will likely find himself as one of the odd men out of the lineup by the weekend, when Detroit is expected to get two regulars back from the injured list in Akil Baddoo (quadriceps) and Riley Greene (fibula).

Kemp went 2-for-4 with a two-run single, a stolen base and a run in a win over the Tigers on Wednesday.

Kemp extended the Athletics' lead to 7-0 with his sixth-inning single, which brought home JJ Bleday and Shea Langeliers. The veteran added his eighth stolen base of the campaign, with half of those coming in the last six contests. Kemp is also finally on the precipice of getting his season average over the Mendoza Line -- his fourth multi-hit effort in the last five games pushed that figure to .199, which represents a 53-point improvement since June 11.

Lowe went 2-for-3 with two doubles, two RBI and a walk Wednesday against the Phillies.

Lowe started his second consecutive game since returning from the injured list. In those two contests, he's shown both the good and bad in his profile, as he's gone 3-for-7 with two extra-base knocks along with three strikeouts. For the season, Lowe has a .197 ISO, but a 31.6 percent punchout rate has limited him to a .213 average across 209 plate appearances.

Julien went 1-for-2 with a walk and a solo home run in Wednesday's 5-0 win over the Royals.

Getting the start at second base and batting second, the 24-year-old rookie took Alec Marsh deep in the first inning to give Pablo Lopez all the run support he would need. Julien has gone yard in consecutive games to give him six homers on the season, and since rejoining the big-league lineup June 10 he's slashing .290/.375/.484, albeit with a less impressive three RBI and nine runs in 21 contests.

Diaz went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and two additional runs scored in Wednesday's 12-3 victory over the Tigers.

Diaz is now 5-for-14 in three games since he was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas. Overall, the 22-year-old Diaz is slashing .241/.276/.434 with five homers, 10 RBI and 12 runs scored across 87 MLB plate appearances this season. The rookie infielder has flashed some power early in his career, though it's unclear how big of a role Diaz will have in his second stint with the A's.