MLB Player News

Nationals second baseman Danny Espinosa will see a specialist in Baltimore for his fractured right wrist after being placed on the disabled list Tuesday. According to MLB.com, surgery is not an option for either his wrist or his torn left rotator cuff, and he will just rest while on the disabled list.

The team will also likely send him to the minors once he's healthy to fix his swingt. Espinosa is batting .158 with three home runs.

"We finally put Danny on the disabled list to clean up all the wrist questions that we had, and for him to rehab and then go down to the minor leagues, with a healthy wrist, go down there and work on the mental side of hitting," general manager Mike Rizzo told MLB.com. "[We want to] see if we can get him back here because he's a guy that we need -- that's going to be a guy that we're going to count on some time this year. So we want to get him right."

The team called up top prospect Anthony Rendon to replace Espinosa on the active roster. 

With his promotion to the Nationals, Anthony Rendon is sure to draw plenty of interest from mixed-league owners because he should get regular starts at second baseman. That means that Nick Franklin is no longer the latest prospect to join the ranks at the position, but he's still widely available and no less valuable in Fantasy than Rendon.

Since the Mariners made Franklin their man at 2B, he has shown the same patient approach he displayed in the minors, averaging 4.0 pitches per plate appearance, and he's even had a two-homer game. Owners shouldn't expect more than moderate home run power from Franklin, but he can provide doubles along with a high batting average and on-base percentage. Although Rendon is probably the better bet for homers, Franklin has the better potential for steals.

Given Rendon's injury history and relative lack of professionial experience, I'd prefer Franklin as my second baseman in standard mixed leagues. He's still owned in only 53 percent of the leagues on CBSSports.com, so in those formats, you should still be able to get him.

Nationals second baseman Danny Espinosa was placed on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday, as his right wrist injury continues to bother him.

Espinosa has been dealing with bone chips and a fracture in his right wrist for the last few weeks, but was planning to play through it before being placed on the disabled list.

Espinosa has struggled all season, batting just .158 with a .465 OPS. He has also been dealing with a torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder. His timeline is not yet known. 

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve extended his hitting streak to six games Monday against the Angels. However, they have all been one-hit affairs, which has dropped his average from .306 to .296.

Altuve has been in a slump for several weeks. He has just three multi-hit games in his last 20 starts, batting .210 (17 for 18) in that span. His batting average was .345 before his recent 20-game slide.

"I don't worry about Jose Altuve because this guy can hit," manager Bo Porter said, per MLB.com. "Altuve can go 3-for-10 and it may be 1-for-3, 1-for-3, 1-for-4 and everyone will be like, 'What's wrong with Altuve?' Because we are used to him getting two hits per game. We also know he can go 12-for-15. It's all going to even out and at the end of the year, he's going to be near the top of the American League in hits and average."

The White Sox announced Monday second baseman Gordon Beckham was reinstated from the 15-day disabled list following a rehab assignment with Triple-A Charlotte. Beckham has been sidelined since mid-April following surgery on his left hand.

Beckham hit .333 (12 for 36) with five RBI and seven runs scored in eight games for Charlotte.

The White Sox are expected to reinstate second baseman Gordon Beckham from the 15-day disabled list Monday, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Beckham played seven games in the majors before getting hurt. He is hitting .333 (12 for 36) with seven runs scored and five RBI in eight minor-league rehab games with Triple-A Charlotte.

White Sox manager Robin Ventura told MLB.com Saturday that second baseman Gordon Beckham could return "in the next week, if not sooner."

"It's up to him, really -- we'll welcome him any time," Ventura said. "It's just, when's the right time, does he feel he's ready to come up and ready to play? .. I let him know that I'm ready for him whenever he thinks he's ready."

Beckham is hitting .343 (11 for 32) with two doubles and four RBI in his rehab assignment. He has played just seven games with the White Sox this season.

Astros second baseman Jose Altuve went 1 for 5 with a run, RBI and his ninth stolen base Friday against the Angels.

Altuve has at least one hit in seven of his last eight games, but he's watched his average steadily decline after a hot start to the season. He takes a .300/.341/.390 line into June.

Amazingly, Danny Espinosa is still rostered in 38 percent of leagues, to which I can only ask: Why?

As if attempting to play through a torn rotator cuff wasn't destructive enough to his batting average, he's back from a week off to rest his aching wrist. And why does it ache? There's a piece of bone floating around in there. Ouch.

For some injuries, "rub some dirt on it, kid" just doesn't apply, and I'm afraid Espinosa might be toughing it out to his own detriment. The shoulder and wrist are usually what make or break a swing, and neither is right for him -- a hitter who was destined to hit .240 even if completely healthy.

I'm not expecting much from the Nationals second baseman the rest of the way, and neither should you.

Hey, this Nick Franklin guy was a pretty big prospect, and he's getting a chance to play every day for the Mariners. Blah, blah, blah. Better add him. Blah, blah.

By now, I think we all know where I stand on top prospects who get the call. They're always worth a shot in Fantasy, provided what you're dropping is similar to what's already on the waiver wire. Franklin is no exception.

But he's not my favorite of the midseason call-ups. His power was spotty throughout his minor-league career, even in the more hitter-friendly leagues, and it's not like his four homers in 142 at-bats at Triple-A Tacoma earned him the promotion.

So I wouldn't read too much into his two homers Thursday. They're encouraging, sure, but keep in mind Nolan Arenado, whose minor-league career was similarly hit-or-miss, hit three home runs in his first seven major-league games only to hit .190 with one homer over his next 23.