MLB Player News

Arraez went 1-for-4 with a walk in Sunday's 7-5 loss to the Indians.

Arraez's 1-for-7 showing at the plate over the final two games of the series qualifies as a slump for the rookie, who has showcased elite bat-to-ball skills since arriving in the big leagues in mid-May. The 22-year-old has turned what was expected to be a brief stay in the majors into a full-time role in the infield, unseating Jonathan Schoop for regular work at second base in the process. Arraez has recorded more walks (six) than strikeouts (five) in September and is batting .400 so far this month, lifting his season-long average to a robust .344 across 319 plate appearances.

Lowe (quadriceps) is slated to see live at-bats during the coming week in the form of a simulated game Monday against Yonny Chirinos (finger) and in Instructional League games the rest of the week, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Rays and Lowe continue to keep hope alive with respect to a return before the end of the regular season, and this coming week's planned activities should prove a strong litmus test for how realistic activation during the final week of the campaign might be. Lowe experienced some leg fatigue during a sim game last Thursday, but that wasn't overly concerning given that the 25-year-old had been running for a string of days prior.

Castro went 3-for-5 with a run scored in Sunday's 8-2 loss to the Orioles.

It's been a tough season for the 44-104 Tigers, but Castro has been a bright spot. The 25-year-old is now batting .305 and has shown good defensive versatility, having appeared at every position except for pitcher and catcher, which should keep him in Detroit's plans moving forward.

Altuve will sit Sunday against the Royals, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Altuve hits the bench for just the third time since late July. He's been in typical elite form over his last 10 games, hitting .325/.386/.650 with three homers. Aledmys Diaz will start at second base.

Polanco is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Indians.

Polanco went 4-for-9 with a double, a home run and three RBI during Saturday's doubleheader and will head to the bench for the series finale. Ronald Torreyes will start at shortstop and bat ninth in his absence.

Torres went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer in Saturday's win over Toronto.

Torres drove a ball over the left field wall in the sixth inning for his 37th long ball of the season, tying him for third place in the American League. Since the start of August, 17 of his 41 hits have left the yard. The 22-year-old is slashing .286/.347/.549 in 572 plate appearances this season.

Rodriguez remains on the bench Sunday against the Orioles, Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports reports.

Rodriguez sits for the third straight game. It's hard to say his loss of playing time is undeserved, as he owns an awful .097/.152/.097 slash line in nine games in the month of September and just a .683 OPS on the season. Jordy Mercer will start at second base.

Castro went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, two walks and an additional run Saturday in the Tigers' 8-4 win over the Orioles in 12 innings.

Castro has now turned in multi-hit efforts in four straight games and in seven of his last eight starts, lifting his season-long batting average from .276 to .300 during the heat wave. The 25-year-old has slotted in first or second in the Tigers' batting order in each of his starts dating back to Aug. 31 and should continue to occupy a prominent spot over the final two weeks of the season.

Polanco went 3-for-5 with an RBI and three runs scored in Saturday night's win over Cleveland.

Polanco singled and scored in the first inning, did the same in the sixth and scored again following an RBI double in the seventh. Factoring in his performance from the first game of the doubleheader, he finished the day 4-for-9 with four runs and three RBI.

Mayfield was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock on Saturday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

With expanded rosters, Mayfield is at best the third option on the depth chart at the middle-infield positions. He is a decent defender, but his bat is a little light, especially by Houston's standards. Look for him to play sparingly down the stretch.