MLB Player News

Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus, who has struggled with the bat and the glove recently, will get a chance to clear his head Sunday. He is out of the lineup against the host White Sox.

Andrus has been hitless in three of his last six games. He has also committed a whopping 14 errors this season, including two Saturday.

Nationals second baseman Anthony Rendon has been benched Sunday against Pittsburgh in favor of Danny Espinosa.

Rendon, who had started every game since June 4, is in a 2-for-16 mini-slump and owns a disappointing slash line on the year of .233/.333/.311.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Astros second baseman Jose Altuve remains out of the starting lineup on Saturday against the Mariners. Altuve has been bothered by a sore hamstring for about a week now, which has caused him to miss a good chunk of playting time, including three straight games.

Altuve was said to be feeling better, but it seemed unlikely he would return for Saturday's game, and his status for Sunday remains unclear at this point.

"They [talk] like I’m ready but like I say yesterday, it’s their call, so whenever they decide," he said, per MLB.com. "I don’t want to do anything stupid. But I feel like I’m great but like I said I’m going to be patient."

Jake Elmore is not in the Rays lineup on Saturday. Elmore had started the previous eight games at first base. 

Nick Franklin gets the start ahead of Elmore. It's his fifth start of the year and the first since June 11. 

Danny Espinosa will start at shortstop for the second straight game. Espinosa is in the Nationals' lineup, replacing Ian Desmond. 

Espinosa has started two previous games at short, the only two games that Desmond has missed this season. 

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve is not ready to rejoin the lineup, as he is on the bench for Friday's game against the Mariners. Altuve has started just three of the last seven games, playing a full nine innings in just one of those starts.

He is surffering from a sore hamstring that has been bothering him since last week, and there's currently no timetable for his return to the lineup.

Angels second baseman Johnny Giavotella hit his third home run of the season against the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

Giavotella went 2 for 5 with a solo home run in the third inning.

Giavotella boosted his batting average to .271 with the performance. He has three home runs and 22 RBI in 207 at-bats this season.

As expected, Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was not in the starting lineup Thursday against the Rockies after suffering a setback with his hamstring injury Wednesday. Marwin Gonzalez drew the start at second base in his absence.

"It's day to day," Astros manager A.J. Hinch said. "He's already gone through one round of treatments, and he'll go through another round of treatments. He's doesn't feel a lot of discomfort, so that's an encouraging sign. I really don't want to play him until we're certain he can play with the pace of play that we're accustomed to. We'll be very careful with him."

Hinch said Altuve doesn't need to undergo an MRI.

“Right now, the information we're getting indicates that's not necessary, so not at this point," he said.

Altuve is batting .250 (12 for 48) with one double, three RBI, four runs, one walk, seven strikeouts and two stolen bases in 13 June games.

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve was removed from Wednesday's game in the third inning against the Rockies. Altuve exited with right hamstring soreness.

Altuve had to leave the game on Friday and missed the next three games with the hamstring issue. And while he was able to return for Tuesday's action, he apparently was not at full-health on Wednesday. 

Manager A.J. Hinch indicated Altuve would not play on Thursday, according to the Houston Chronicle. 

"He didn't look great yesterday, he didn't look great today," Hinch said. "I didn't want to see anymore. We've got to be so cautious with him, especially here at the high altitude. I don't think he felt great, and I had seen enough and wanted to get him out of the game. I want to err on the side of caution with him."

White Sox third baseman Gordon Beckham will start against the Pirates on Wednesday.

Beckham, who is in the midst of a horrid slump at the plate, will bat in the seventh position.

In his last 10 games, Beckham is hitting .065 with just two hits in 31 at-bats.