MLB Player News

Merrifield went 2-for-3 with two doubles, two walks and two runs scored in Tuesday's win over the Twins.

Merrifield recorded both of his doubles against starter Aaron Slegers, giving him 29 doubles on the year (which ties him for second in the majors). Merrifield has a 12-game hitting streak in the works and is now slashing .306/.375/.435 on the year. The 29-year-old has five homers, 29 RBI, 39 runs and 16 stolen bases this season.

Jones was promoted to Double-A Mobile on Tuesday.

He didn't earn the promotion in the same manner he has earned previous promotions, but after 116 career games at High-A, it seems the Angels wanted to give Jones a trial by fire against Double-A pitching. Jones, who moved from the outfield to second base this year, hit .235/.338/.383 with eight home runs and 13 steals in 75 games at High-A.

Beckham was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma on Tuesday.

Dee Gordon seems to be over his recent back issue but the Mariners decided they'd still like a little extra depth in the infield, so they swapped out outfielder John Andreoli for Beckham. Beckham hit .206/.270/.235 in 12 games (39 plate appearances) with the big club earlier in the season.

Arroyo (oblique) went 0-for-3 with a strikeout in High-A Charlotte's win over St. Lucie on Monday.

Although Arroyo's night at the plate wasn't successful, it's certainly encouraging he got back into game action. The 23-year-old was slashing a solid .264/.339/.396 across 59 plate appearances over 20 games with the Rays before landing on the disabled list on June 16.

Drury was sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.

Drury was demoted following Game 1 of Monday's doubleheader against the Orioles. The 25-year-old second baseman hit just .195 with one homer and seven RBI through 14 games with the big club.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Monday that Torres (hip) could be ready to begin a minor-league rehab assignment during the upcoming All-Star break, Mike Mazzeo of the New York Daily News reports. "Maybe it's [July 18], maybe it's the day after," Boone said while speculating on a target date for Torres to begin the assignment. "Those are discussions that we'll have especially if it's on the shorter side of things and he's good to go."

Torres is eligible to come off the 10-day disabled list Sunday, but with the break beginning a day later, the Yankees seem inclined to give the star rookie the extra time off to recover from the strained right hip. The 21-year-old hasn't experienced any reported setbacks since suffering the injury July 4, so he'll likely only require one or two games in the minors before being cleared to return to the big club. Once he's activated, Torres should settle back into an everyday role at second base, pushing Neil Walker and Brandon Drury to the bench more frequently.

Arroyo (oblique) will begin a rehab assignment Monday with High-A Charlotte, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

The Rays could keep Arroyo in the minors through the All-Star break to give him steady at-bats and help him make up for lost time, following a three-week absence due to his left oblique strain. The 23-year-old could act as a utility man for the Rays once he's ready to return from the 10-day disabled list.

Kemp started in center field and went 1-for-2 with a walk and two stolen bases Sunday against the White Sox.

Kemp swiped both of his bases against Lucas Giolito, bringing his season total to six. He's had a busy weekend on the basepaths, as he stole three bases across his past two games. With Kyle Tucker called up from Triple-A Fresno over the weekend, Kemp will lose playing time as a corner outfielder but will be the primary backup to center fielder George Springer, and his versatility should help him find part-time at-bats.

Altuve went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Sunday against the White Sox.

Altuve recorded his ninth home run of the season, taking Lucas Giolito deep in the fourth inning. He is riding a five-game hit streak, during which he has gone 8-for-20 with two home runs, six runs scored, a stolen base and three RBI. Though he's unlikely to match last season's home run or stolen base outputs, Altuve remains among the league leaders in batting average and runs scored.

Polanco will start at shortstop and bat leadoff Sunday against the Orioles.

Polanco has been included in the lineup in each of the Twins' six games since he was reinstated from suspension July 2, going 6-for-21 with two doubles and a stolen base over that stretch. He'll move to the top of the order with Joe Mauer receiving a breather in the series finale, but Polanco projects to hit in the lower half of the lineup on most occasions.