MLB Player News

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.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts indicated Tuesday that Forsythe (shoulder) could begin a minor-league rehab assignment this weekend, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Forsythe had his throwing program pushed back multiple times since going on the disabled list April 15 with right shoulder inflammation, but now appears to be making progress. Assuming the 31-year-old can avoid any setbacks, a return sometime during next week's homestand against the Diamondbacks and Reds seems possible.

Hernandez is not in the lineup Tuesday against the Diamondbacks.

With Corey Seager out for the rest of the season, Hernandez is expected to see frequent time in center field while Chris Taylor covers shortstop. However, Hernandez will sit out Tuesday night as the Dodgers deploy Joc Pederson in center field.

Tomlinson figures to see more starts at second base following Joe Panik's placement on the disabled list with a thumb injury.

Alan Hanson (1-for-3 with a steal) got the start at the keystone Monday with Tomlinson (0-for-3) filling in at short on Brandon Crawford's rest day. The two might platoon at second base moving forward, with Tomlinson at least getting all of the starts against left-handed pitching. The 27-year-old has stolen 19 bases in 580 career plate appearances, so he could be a cheap source of steals without being a negative in batting average (career .282 hitter) while Panik is sidelined for at least six weeks.

Hernandez is in line to see regular playing time in center field with Chris Taylor moving to shortstop, J.P. Hoornstra of the Los Angeles Daily News reports.

Corey Seager (elbow) was diagnosed with a sprained UCL on Monday and will undergo Tommy John surgery, resulting in him missing the rest of the season. Because of this, Chris Taylor will serve as the Dodgers' everyday shortstop, making room for Hernandez in center field. Hernandez has appeared in 23 games this season, over which he's hit .254/.347/.476 with three home runs.