MLB Player News

Altuve (shoulder) is not in the lineup Thursday against the Indians, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.

The stud second baseman left Tuesday's contest after a collision with outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, and it appears that Altuve's ailments still haven't subsided. He'll get another day off with the hope to return Friday, allowing Marwin Gonzalez to land a start at the keystone Thursday.

Ngoepe singled in his first major-league at-bat Wednesday, going 1-for-2 with a walk against the Cubs.

His hit off Jon Lester was the first ever by a major leaguer born in South Africa. Ngoepe, who served as a second base replacement for Phil Gosselin, has primarily played shortstop in the minors. The fielding whiz holds a minor-league line of .232/.322/.347 in nine seasons.

Motter is batting second and playing first base Thursday, Bob Dutton of The News Tribune reports.

The rising 27-year-old had mostly batted fifth or sixth in his outings this year and had played third base the past two games while Kyle Seager (hip) was resting. Motter had two previous appearances at first base this year, and if Seattle keeps moving him around the diamond, he could boast exciting positional eligibility the rest of what could be a breakout season.

Andrus went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored in Wednesday's 14-3 win over the Twins.

After scoring no more than six runs in any of their last eight games, the Rangers finally broke out of the offensive doldrums Wednesday, with Andrus being one of five batters in the lineup to record multiple hits. While it's looking increasingly likely that the eight extra-base hits Andrus accrued in the first nine games of the season were fluky -- he's delivered only singles in his subsequent 12 contests -- the veteran shortstop should remain a quality source of batting average, runs and stolen bases as the season wears on.

Solarte went 2-for-5 with a two-run double and another two-bagger in Wednesday's 8-5 win over the Diamondbacks.

Solarte gave the Padres some breathing room with a shot to deep right center in the eighth that extended San Diego's lead to 8-5 at the time. The switch-hitting 29-year-old had cooled off after a hot start to the season but has rediscovered his stroke, with Wednesday's production marking his third straight multi-hit effort and extending his current hitting streak to seven games. The two-run double also brought his RBI total to four over the last three contests and extended his team lead in that category to 15.

Arroyo went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run -- the first of his major-league career -- in Wednesday's 4-3 win over the Dodgers.

The rookie was calm in the face of adversity Wednesday, smacking a clutch two-run homer that got the Giants back into a game that they would eventually walk off in extra innings. Arroyo isn't known for his power, but he did hit three long balls in 69 plate appearances with Triple-A Sacramento this season after needing 517 to reach that same mark with Double-A Richmond last year. At just 22 years of age, he hasn't fully developed as a hitter, so there may be more pop in his bat than initially anticipated. With the Giants sticking him in an everyday role, Arroyo is worth a flyer in most formats to see what type of hitter he will become in his rookie season.

Drury exited Wednesday's game prematurely with a jammed right knee.

Drury was 1-1 with two walks before Nick Ahmed subbed in at shortstop and Chris Owings slid over to fill in at second base. The injury doesn't appear to be overly serious, as the Diamondbacks are considering him day-to-day, but Owings and Ahmed would likely stick to those respective roles should Drury miss any time.

Drury was lifted from Wednesday's contest against the Padres after landing awkwardly on his right leg, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Drury was 1-for-1 with two walks before being forced out of the game with the injury. Nick Ahmed subbed in at shortstop while Chris Owings slid over to fill in at second base. It's unclear how serious the injury is at this point, so consider him day-to-day until the Diamondbacks release more information about his status.

Tomlinson was recalled from Triple-A Sacramento on Wednesday, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Tomlinson was added as infield depth, as starting shortstop Brandon Crawford was placed on the bereavement list earlier Wednesday. He'll likely come off the bench with Eduardo Nunez set to fill in at shortstop, though he could see some occasional starts at second base.

Ngoepe was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday.

The 27-year-old Ngoepe should give the Pirates some extra depth in the infield with David Freese (hamstring) unavailable Wednesday and Adam Frazier (hamstring) on the disabled list. It's not expected that Ngoepe, the first native African player to reach the major leagues, will be in store for an everyday role after submitting a .308 on-base percentage at Triple-A, but his ability to play multiple infield positions could prove valuable off the bench.