MLB Player News

Lowe is not in the lineup for Friday's game against Houston, Neil Solondz of the Rays Radio Network reports.

Lowe went 0-for-4 with one strikeout out of the cleanup spot in Thursday's season opener as the designated hitter. The 24-year-old can play both corner infield and outfield spots but will nonetheless take a seat Friday. Austin Meadows will be the designated hitter as Avisail Garcia starts in right field.

Semien went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in a shutout win over the Angels on Thursday.

Semien's 394-foot shot to center off Trevor Cahill extended the Athletics' lead to 3-0, and the shortstop's season-opening hitting streak to three games. The 28-year-old ceded the leadoff spot to Robbie Grossman on Thursday, but manager Bob Melvin is likely to rotate Semien into the top of the order fairly frequently over the course of the season.

Hernandez went 3-for-3 with two home runs, three runs and three RBI to help pace the Dodgers to a 12-5 Opening Day romp over the Diamondbacks.

Hernandez joined Joc Pederson as one of two Dodgers to notch multi-homer days, cranking a fourth-inning two-run blast off Zack Greinke before following that up with a seventh-inning solo shot off Matt Koch. The 27-year-old is expected to be the starter at second base for the Dodgers to start the season, so he should rack up plenty of plate of appearances as he looks to build on last year's .256/.336/.470 slash line he posted over 462 at-bats.

Andrus went 3-for-4 with a home run and two RBI in Thursday's 12-4 loss to the Cubs.

Andrus hit safely in his first three at-bats and picked up where he left off in spring training during which he batted .432. The Rangers' three-hole hitter is healthy after an elbow injury cost him two months and sapped his power stroke in 2018.

Altuve went 2-for-4 with a home run and double Thursday against the Rays.

Altuve went hitless in his first two at-bats, but got things going with a solo home run in the fifth inning. He followed that up with a leadoff double in the eighth frame, but was ultimately stranded there. It's an encouraging start to the season for Altuve, who was hampered in the second half of the 2018 season with a knee injury that required offseason surgery.

Barreto was optioned to Triple-A Las Vegas on Thursday.

Barreto looked to have made the team even after the Japan Series (he did not record an at-bat) until the Kendrys Morales deal Monday. Unfortunately for the 23-year-old, the deal pushed him down the pecking order. Barreto hit .351 in Cactus League play with a .429 on-base percentage, so if he keeps up the good work he'll remain one of the top guys on the callup list.

Drury will start at third base and bat leadoff in Thursday's game against the Tigers.

After slashing .315/.373/.574 in spring training, Drury will be rewarded for his performance with a spot atop the lineup to begin the season. The assignment won't come with much job security, however, so Drury may need to get off to a hot start in order to avoid dropping down in the lineup. While the leadoff duties should provide a temporary boost to Drury's fantasy stock, his season-long outlook is still somewhat hazy given the expectation that top prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (oblique) will eventually settle in as the Jays' everyday third baseman.

Albies, who is hitting sixth Thursday against the Phillies, will lead off against lefties this season, Gabe Burns of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Albies hit .335/.357/.548 against southpaws last year, so it was already assumed he'd bat somewhere high in the order against lefties this year. Ender Inciarte will lead off against righties.

Polanco (arm) will start at shortstop and bat second Thursday in the Twins' season opener against the Indians, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Polanco dealt with arm fatigue in the latter stages of camp but will get the green light to enter the Opening Day lineup after experiencing no setbacks coming out of a minor-league game Tuesday. It's possible the Twins may give him an extra off-day or two early in the season for precautionary reasons, but the 25-year-old should still be expected to handle the overwhelming majority of starts at shortstop.

The Rangers selected Forsythe's contract Thursday and will include him on the Opening Day roster.

Forsythe was one of three non-roster invitees to break camp with the Rangers, joining reliever Jeanmar Gomez and outfielder Hunter Pence. The 32-year-old is projected to serve as a utility infielder for Texas this season.