MLB Player News

Lowe went 3-for-5 with a home run, two doubles and three RBI in Sunday's 6-4 win over Cleveland.

Lowe has gone 5-for-9 with four extra-base hits and four RBI over his last two games after hitting just .208 in his first 48 career at-bats. With numbers like this, the 24-year-old rookie should continue seeing regular playing time down the stretch.

Semien will start at shortstop and lead off Sunday against the Mariners, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.

Semien has regularly been serving as the Athletics' table setter against left-handed pitching, but the leadoff assignment in the series finale is more notable with right-hander Felix Hernandez on the mound for Seattle. Nick Martini has been the Athletics' primary option atop the order of late versus righties, but since he was optioned to Triple-A Nashville a few days ago, it looks like those duties could now fall to Semien. Though he's fared better versus southpaws this season with a 112 wRC+, Semien has at least hit a palatable .263 in his matchups against right-handed pitching.

Lowe went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and two runs in a win over the Indians on Saturday.

Lowe has now left the yard in two of his last three games, his first pair of major-league round trippers. The rookie continues to coax his offensive numbers upward, with Saturday's production bringing his line up to a season-best .231/.365/.365. While those numbers have been generated over a small sample, Lowe's minor-league body of work and recent hot stretch support the notion that he's capable of maintaining his recent success.

Rodriguez will start at shortstop and bat seventh Sunday against the Yankees.

Rodriguez has stepped in as the Tigers' everyday shortstop following Jose Iglesias' (abdomen) placement on the 10-day disabled list Thursday. The Tigers are optimistic that Iglesias won't need more than two weeks to recover from the setback, so Rodriguez likely won't be locked into a full-time role for the rest of the season. Since being promoted from Triple-A Toledo on July 4, Rodriguez is hitting .233 with three home runs and 13 RBI across 103 at-bats.

Merrifield went 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBI in the Royals' 5-4 win over the Orioles on Saturday.

Merrifield took Orioles closer Mychal Givens deep in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Royals the walkoff win. The second baseman has recorded exactly two hits in five of his last six starts, boosting his season average to .311, which ranks fifth among all qualified hitters in the American League. Merrifield has supplemented the excellent average with 29 steals, placing him in a tie for fourth place in the majors.

Semien went 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI on Saturday against the Mariners.

Semien made things interesting by lacing a two-RBI double off Edwin Diaz in the eighth inning to trim the Mariners lead to one run. He now has a modest four-game hitting streak and is hitting nearly .280 in 154 post-All-Star-break at-bats. He's already set career-best marks in stolen bases and runs scored, so Semien will look to continue to build on his strong campaign in the final month of the season.

Forsythe went 3-for-4 with an RBI on Saturday against the Rangers.

Forsythe snapped out of a four-game hitless streak and collected his first extra-base hit since Aug. 16. While his lack of power does limit his appeal, he continues to get regular at-bats and managed a .308 average with nine RBI and 10 runs scored across 91 August at-bats.

Torres went 1-for-3 with a two-run homer in Saturday's 2-1 win over the Tigers.

With a runner on base in the bottom of the fifth, the candidate for AL Rookie of the Year pulled a hanging Daniel Norris breaking ball into the left-field bleachers. That would be the only run support Masahiro Tanaka would need in the victory, and it was one of only two hits by the Yankees on Saturday. Torres, who's homered four times and plated nine runs in his last nine contests, boasts a .282/.351/.515 slash line with 22 homers, 64 RBI and 46 runs scored over 386 plate appearances.

Barreto was recalled from Triple-A Nashville on Saturday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Barreto showcased some power during his stint with the Athletics earlier this season, hitting four home runs in 61 at-bats, but he also struck out 25 times. The 22-year-old showed similar issues at Nashville, striking out 106 times in 282 at-bats. Barreto will serve as a depth infielder for the Athletics during the playoff push.

Polanco (hamstring) will start at shortstop and bat second against the Rangers on Friday, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Polanco returns to the starting nine for the first time since cramping up during Sunday's contest. Across 49 games this year, he's hit .276/.338/.405 with three home runs and 26 RBI.