MLB Player News

Espinal (oblique) is doing some light baseball activity and hitting off a tee, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.

Espinal has been on the injured list with a left oblique strain since Thursday, but it's encouraging that he's begun some light work after a few days. The Blue Jays hope that the 27-year-old will be able to return late in the regular season so he can prepare for postseason play, but it's not yet clear whether he'll have enough time to ramp up prior to Oct. 5.

Merrifield will start at second base and bat ninth in Monday's game against the Yankees.

Since coming over in an Aug. 2 deadline deal with the Royals, Merrifield has largely served as a reserve infielder and outfielder, but Santiago Espinal's (oblique) recent move to the injured list has reopened an everyday role for the 33-year-old. Merrifield has made the most of the opportunity thus far, going 6-for-18 with three home runs, two doubles and a walk while scoring four times and driving in six over his last five starts. If he continues to rake as the season winds down, Merrifield could stick around as the Blue Jays' top second baseman even once Espinal is activated.

Arroyo (illness) is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Orioles, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.

Arroyo hasn't played since Sept. 18 while he recovers from a non-COVID-19 illness, but the Red Sox have thus far resisted moving him to the 10-day injured list. With Trevor Story (heel) done for the season, Arroyo could have a fairly clear path to a near-everyday role in the middle infield once he eventually moves past his illness.

Massey went 2-for-4 with a home run, four RBI and two runs during Sunday's 13-12 win over the Royals.

Although the Mariners and Royals combined to score 25 runs during Sunday's matchup, Massey had the only home run of the game with his two-run blast in the bottom of the sixth inning. Although the 24-year-old's performance Sunday was encouraging, he's struggled at the plate recently, going just 1-for-16 with seven strikeouts over his four games leading up to Sunday's win.

Semien went 1-for-3 with two runs scored in Sunday's loss to the Guardians.

The veteran made the most of a single and a walk as he came around to score both times. He now has 18 runs scored in 23 September contests, during which he is batting .337 (32-for-95). On the season, Semien is slashing .254/.312/.438 with 78 RBI and 96 runs scored, which is tied for fifth in the majors.

Arroyo (illness) is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Yankees, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.

Arroyo is dealing with a non-COVID illness and hasn't seen the field since Sept. 18. Yu Chang will start at second base and bat eighth in Sunday's series finale.

Gimenez is not in Sunday's lineup against the Rangers.

Gimenez is red-hot at the dish, hitting .417 with one home run and one steal over his last six games. Tyler Freeman gets the start at second base, hitting seventh.

Altuve went 1-for-3 with a home run, two RBI and three runs scored in Saturday's 11-10 victory over Baltimore.

Altuve launched a two-run homer to center field in the third inning to extend his hitting streak to six games. He also drew two walks in the game and came around to score a run on each occasion. The star second baseman has been quite productive in September, hitting .355 with four home runs, seven RBI and 19 runs scored so far. He's also walked 11 times and stolen six bases over that span.

Arraez is not in Sunday's lineup against the Angels.

Arraez is hitting .286 with 10 runs and three RBI in 22 September games. Jermaine Palacios will start at second base while Gary Sanchez gets the nod at designated hitter.

Merrifield went 2-for-3 with a double, a home run, three RBI and a run scored in Saturday's win over Tampa Bay.

Merrifield blasted a three-run bomb off lefty reliever Brooks Raley with one out in the seventh inning to give the Blue Jays a three-run lead. He's gone 6-for-14 during his last four games with two doubles and three home runs and appears to have cemented himself as the Blue Jays' primary second baseman while Santiago Espinal (oblique) is on the injured list.