MLB Player News

Espinosa is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the A's.

Cliff Pennington will make his season debut with Espinosa getting the afternoon off against Oakland's Andrew Triggs. Espinosa is just 2-for-11 to start the year, but he's made the most of them with five RBI.

Drury went 1-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI in Wednesday's 8-6 win over the Giants.

Drury has occupied the sixth spot in the lineup in all three of the Diamondbacks' games, and it appears he'll stick there against both left- and right-handed pitching. After Drury's standout spring allowed him to claim an everyday role at second base, there was some optimism that he might occupy a more favorable spot in the lineup between A.J. Pollock and Paul Goldschmidt, but shortstop Chris Owings has instead assumed those duties and has been reaping the benefits. As a result, Drury's opportunities to rack up runs may be a bit more limited than expected, but so long as he's able to keep making steady contact against left- and right-handed pitching while routinely flashing his burgeoning power, fantasy owners shouldn't be too disappointed.

Espinosa went 1-for-3 with two RBI from a second-inning single in Wednesday's 5-0 victory over the A's.

The veteran slugger continues to demonstrate a penchant for timely hitting in the early going of 2017, with Wednesday's second-inning run-scoring single extending his RBI total to five over the first three games. In fact, Espinosa's only two hits over 11 at-bats have been run producers, after he smacked a go-ahead three-run home run in the top of the ninth in Tuesday's 7-6 victory. The 29-year-old's Achilles' heel -- strikeouts -- are still very much a presence as well, though, as four of the nine outs he's made on the young season have come on whiffs.

Andrus went 2-for-4 with a solo homer in Wednesday's loss to Cleveland.

It's always nice to get some unexpected slugging out of the ninth spot in the order, and Andrus' homers are among the most unexpected of all. He's never cracked double digits in that category, with last season's eight representing his career high. Andrus is off to a strong start with the bat, having cracked two singles, a double, a triple and a homer over the course of this season-opening three-game set. His fantasy owners will be thrilled if he can approximately replicate last year's strong .302 batting average while continuing to provide his usual complement of steals.

Young will start the season with Triple-A Iowa, Jim Callis of MLB.com reports.

Young slashed .303/.376/.387 last season at Double-A, and he continued to hit well in spring training. There's no doubt the 24-year-old can handle the bat; the question is where he'll play at the MLB level, as the Cubs' infield is pretty stacked at the moment. Look for Young to spend the year at Triple-A, but he could be an option if the Cubs deal with any injuries to guys like Addison Russell, Javier Baez or Ben Zobrist.

Frazier is getting the start at designated hitter and hitting ninth Wednesday in Boston.

It says a lot about what the Pirates think of the lefty-hitting Frazier's bat that they batted him leadoff in the opener against righty Rick Porcello and kept him in the lineup against southpaw Chris Sale in the second game of the season. His playing time should see a major downturn when the Pirates get back to National League play this weekend at home against the Braves, but if an opportunity for more playing time opens up, it's nice to know that Frazier has the full confidence of the field staff.

Franklin was claimed off waivers by the Brewers on Wednesday, Roger Mooney of The Tampa Bay Times reports.

Franklin is on the move quickly after being DFA'd by the Rays earlier this week. The switch-hitter provides defensive versatility but also a somewhat inconsistent offensive skill set. Franklin hit .270/.328/.443 with Tampa Bay last season, adding six home runs and 26 RBI over just 60 games. He'll likely be utilized as a reserve bat off the bench.

Rosario is expected to play third base every 10-to-12 days this season, Betsy Helfand of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

The mantra of the Mets' Triple-A affiliate appears to be versatility-centric, so even the organization's top prospect will get time at a different position at times throughout the year. Rosario is still expected to be brought up as a shortstop, but the added versatility won't hurt as he works for a promotion to the big leagues.

Guillorme will begin the season with Double-A Binghamton, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reports.

The 22-year-old took a step backwards last season with his bat at High-A St. Lucie, hitting .263/.332/.315 in 123 games, and after stealing 18 bases the year before for Low-A Savannah, he only went 4-for-6 on the basepaths in 2016. He's got the defensive chops to reach the majors as a shortstop, but Guillorme will need to offer a little more offense if he's going to become anything more than a bench player at the top level.

Polanco isn't included in the Twins' lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.

Despite reaching base three times in the season opener, Polanco will be left on the bench in favor of Eduardo Escobar on Wednesday. Polanco is still viewed as the Twins' primary option at shortstop, and could close off Escobar's path to regular at-bats if he's able to continue his hot start to the season when he eventually returns to the lineup.