MLB Player News

Lowe went 2-for-4 with two runs in a loss to the Royals on Wednesday.

Lowe led off and opened the game at first base, but he shifted over to the keystone later in the game once Joey Wendle had to exit after being hit by a pitch. With Wendle back on the injured list after being diagnosed with a wrist fracture and the domino effect of Matt Duffy's (hamstring) ongoing absence also opening up playing time at first base, Lowe's everyday presence in the lineup seems all but guaranteed for the next month-plus at minimum.

Hoerner was diagnosed with a bruised wrist, Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Hoerner exited Tuesday's Double-A game after being hit by a pitch in the wrist area, but he appears to be fine after initial tests cleared him of any fracture. The 21-year-old shortstop should be considered day-to-day for now. He's off to a hot start with Double-A Tennessee, slashing .293/.288/.483 with a homer and a steal through 17 games.

Hernandez will start at second base and bat leadoff Thursday against the Cubs, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Hernandez has served as the Dodgers' table setter for all three games of the series with the Cubs deploying left-handed starting pitchers in succession. Though Hernandez has historically crushed opposing southpaws, he didn't have much luck through the first two games in Chicago, managing no hits in seven at-bats.

Drury went 0-for-4 with a strikeout in Wednesday's loss to the Giants.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is set to make his big-league debut Friday, which means Wednesday's game might have been the last start Drury gets at third base for a while. It's unclear where the 26-year-old fits into the lineup moving forward -- he could fall into the short side of a platoon with Eric Sogard at second base -- but Drury's .179/.225/.321 and ghastly 4:33 BB:K through 22 games isn't making a strong case for consistent playing time.

Frazier is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Diamondbacks.

Frazier recently overcame a back injury to start each of the first three games of the series, so he's likely just getting some maintenance with Thursday's contest getting underway at 12:35 p.m. EDT. Colin Moran will spell Frazier at the keystone and bat third.

Marte went 2-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI in an 11-2 victory against the Pirates on Wednesday.

Owners looking for average or on-base percentage from Marte aren't going to find it -- he's slashing .247/.275/.495 -- but he does have six home runs and 20 RBI in 97 at-bats. He also has 12 runs and two steals this year. Expect more of the same; last season he posted a career-high 14 homers but only a .332 on-base percentage.

Albies went 1-for-3 with two walks, a solo home run and a second run scored in Wednesday's 3-1 win over the Reds.

He led off the game with his third homer of the year. Albies now sports a .267/.343/.429 slash line through 23 games with three steals, eight RBI and 18 runs as he continues to settle in at the top of the order on a consistent basis.

Merrifield went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, two walks and three runs in a 10-2 victory against the Rays on Wednesday.

It was the first time all season Merrifield reached base safety four times. He's been a bit hot and cold lately, but Merrifield is close to climbing back over the .300 average mark and has 11 extra-base hits in 25 games. He is hitting .298 with four home runs, 11 RBI, 19 runs and five steals in 104 at-bats.

Semien went 2-for-5 with a three-run home run Wednesday against the Rangers.

Semien took Kyle Dowdy deep in the second inning to record his fourth home run of the season. While his power production has been streaky -- he's slugging .505 but this was his first home run since Apr. 24 -- he has batted primarily in the top two spots in the Athletics' order and gotten on base at a .379 clip. That's been buoyed by a 13:12 K:BB, helping him rank among the American League leaders in runs scored with 21.

Forsythe went 2-for-3 with a double, a home run and two runs scored in Wednesday's 6-5 loss to the Athletics.

Forsythe hustled his way into one run when he doubled, advanced to third on a flyout, and scampered home on a groundout against the drawn-in infield. He later got to trot his way around the bags after hitting his second home run of the season. The 32-year-old, who started at shortstop in place of Elvis Andrus (hand) on Wednesday, made the Rangers as a utility infielder but has started 17 of 23 games due to injuries in the infield. Andrus' injury is not considered serious, and as Rougned Odor (knee) and Ronald Guzman (hamstring) near their returns, Forsythe's days as an everyday starter will be coming to close within the week.