MLB Player News

Frazier went 2-for-4 with a solo home run Sunday against the Brewers.

Frazier has seen consistent playing time since Josh Harrison (hand) went down but has mostly struggled. His home run Sunday was his first extra-base hit since April 26 and first home run since April 12. He has frequently manned the leadoff spot for the Pirates, but that hasn't led to useful numbers as he has scored only 11 runs and is 0-for-2 in stolen base attempts. Fantasy owners have to hope that his past two games are an indication of a turnaround: He has four hits in his last six at-bats with a walk.

Dubon strained his left knee during Saturday's assignment for Triple-A Colorado Springs and is headed to Milwaukee for further examination, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports.

Dubon injured his knee during Saturday night's minor-league game after getting caught in a rundown. He'll be reevaluated in Milwaukee to determine if he'll be required to miss an extended period of time. The 23-year-old shortstop has been tearing it up at Colorado Springs through 26 games this season, putting together a solid .337/.343/.567 line.

Espinosa signed a minor-league deal with the Dodgers, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.

The Dodgers are in need of middle infield help following the season-ending injury to Corey Seager (elbow), and Espinosa will be their latest attempt at a short-term solution. The veteran was cut loose by the Blue Jays after posting a .232 batting average in 13 minor-league games this season but could be the next man up in L.A. if more infield help is needed. According to Eric Stephen of TrueBlueLA.com, the Dodgers have only one position player (Rob Segedin) on the 40-man roster that isn't in the majors or on the disabled list, stressing the need to find an emergency option. Espinosa will immediately take the field for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Hernandez is out of the lineup Saturday against the Padres.

Hernandez started five of the past six games, slotting in at a different position in each game. He'll likely continue to have an increased workload the rest of the way with Corey Seager out for the year after undergoing Tommy John surgery.

Marte is not in the lineup Friday against the Astros.

Despite his 2-for-3 showing Thursday, Marte is hitting just .190 over the past seven games. As such, he'll head to the bench for a night off Friday, allowing Chris Owings to pick up a start at the keystone in his stead.

Albies went 2-for-6 with a three-run home run in Thursday's 11-0 rout of the Mets.

The evolution of Albies into a feared power hitter has been nothing short of extraordinary. Coming into 2017, the switch hitter had only seven homers in 293 career minor-league games, but he swatted 15 in 154 games between Triple-A Gwinnett and the majors last year and now has 10 in 30 games to begin the 2018 campaign. He'll eventually slow down on that front -- his 20.8 percent HR/FB rate seems unsustainable -- but adding even double-digit homers to his offensive profile makes the 21-year-old a legitimate five-category fantasy asset, and he's headed for a lot more than merely double digits.

Marte went 2-for-3 with a walk, RBI, run and a stolen base in the Diamondbacks' 5-2 loss to the Dodgers on Thursday.

Marte was the Diamondbacks' most productive hitter on the afternoon, but he'll probably need to cluster together several solid performances before recapturing his old role as the club's No. 2 hitter, which has fallen to Nick Ahmed of late. A career-worst .250 BABIP has contributed to Marte's sickly .224 average, but with his groundball rate sitting at 62.4 percent, it's difficult to see the 24-year-old's batting line climbing significantly until he adjusts his approach at the plate. Perhaps more troubling than Marte's low average and lack of power is that he hasn't been active as a base stealer, despite ranking in the 86th percentile in sprint speed in 2018, per Baseball Savant. The stolen base Marte collected Thursday was just his fourth (on five attempts) across 379 plate appearances with the DIamondbacks the last two seasons.

Frazier is out of the lineup against the Nationals on Wednesday.

Frazier will retreat to the bench following six straight starts while Max Moroff gets the nod at second base. Over 27 appearances this season, Frazier is hitting .237/.284/.303 with one home run and four RBI.

Dubon is riding a 19-game hitting streak for Triple-A Colorado Springs, over which he has hit .337 with a .940 OPS, 12 extra-base hits, 15 RBI and two steals.

Dubon's numbers speak for themselves, but it is important to note that he has a .970 OPS at home this season compared to a not-as-impressive .797 mark away from the thin Colorado air. Regardless, Dubon is making a strong push to be called up to the big leagues for the first time in his career.

Updating a previous note, it appears that Tomlinson will play on the short side of a platoon at second base alongside Alen Hanson, as reported by Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle.

Tomlinson retreated to the bench Tuesday against Padres right-hander Tyson Ross, which should be the norm while Joe Panik (thumb) is sidelined for the next six weeks. The utility infielder should still receive two or three starts per week (as he had prior to Panik's surgery), but those in need of a fill-in at the middle infield position should look more at Hanson, who started at the keystone Tuesday and recorded his second steal.