MLB Player News

Semien went 3-for-5 with a solo home run in Sunday's victory over Seattle.

Semien led off the game with a single and came around to score on Matt Olson's home run, then swatted a long ball of his own to begin the second inning. With the productive day at the plate, Semien finishes the first half with a .269/.348/.441 slash line to go along with 14 homers and 47 RBI in 372 at-bats.

Rengifo will start at second base and bat ninth Sunday against the Astros, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Rengifo looked poised to lose playing time when Andrelton Simmons returned from the 10-day injured list June 27, but the rookie's playing-time outlook appears stable again after Tommy La Stella was recently ruled out for 8-to-10 weeks with a fractured tibia. With La Stella on the shelf, the Angels will likely rotate Matt Thaiss and David Fletcher at third base, which should open up the keystone for Rengifo on a near-everyday basis.

Castro is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Red Sox.

Though he lacks a clear path to an everyday role at any position, Castro had started each of the past nine games thanks to his versatility. He saw action at six different spots, including his first career start at first base in Saturday's 10-6 loss, when he went 3-for-4 with a walk. Expect Castro to continue seeing at least semi-regular work coming out of the All-Star break.

Torres is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.

He'll sit after a string of 11 consecutive starts, during which he went 13-for-40 (.325 average) with a home run, nine runs and five RBI. Torres' hot finish to the first half was enough to earn him a second consecutive trip to the All-Star Game.

Merrifield went 1-for-3 with a walk and stolen base in a 6-0 loss to the Nationals on Saturday.

The 30-year-old hasn't stolen a lot of bags recently, but he's still getting on base plenty. The opportunities for steals should come. He's 13-for-20 in stolen-base attempts with a .307 average, 11 home runs, 44 RBI and 62 runs in 378 at-bats this season.

Andrus went 1-for-3 with a solo homer in a 7-4 loss to the Twins on Saturday.

Andrus accounted for the only run off Michael Pineda with his home run leading off the sixth inning. Over his last 13 games, the 30-year-old is 18-for-50 with one homer and five steals. For the season, Andrus has a .307/.344/.460 slash line with 19 stolen bases.

Drury is starting in right field and batting seventh Saturday against the Orioles.

Drury has been swinging a hot bat lately, going yard twice in the midst of a three-game hitting streak. He'll have a chance to keep that going, starting in place of Randal Grichuk, who is nursing a back injury.

Arraez will start at third base and bat fourth Saturday against the Rangers.

Arraez will get a bump up in the order with C.J. Cron (thumb) being placed on the injured list, drawing his third start of the season at the cleanup spot. Arraez is hitting .413/.477/.547 across 86 plate appearances in his first season in the majors.

Drury went 1-for-2 with a walk and a solo home run in a loss to the Orioles on Friday.

The utility man has started seven of the last nine games, going 7-for-21 with two doubles and two homers along with a 4:3 BB:K. With Lourdes Gurriel (wrist) and Randal Grichuk (back) both less than 100 percent, Drury figures to continue seeing consistent playing time in an outfield corner until the rest of the roster gets healthier.

Polanco went 2-for-5 with a two-run homer in Friday's 15-6 rout of the Rangers.

The switch-hitting shortstop celebrated his 26th birthday by going yard for the 13th time this year, part of a 20-hit barrage by Minnesota. Polanco has already tied his career high in home runs, and his .314/.371/.522 slash line would be a personal best in all three categories as well if he can avoid a big second-half slump.