MLB Player News

Miller went 3-for-4 with a solo home run, a double and two total runs scored in Friday's 5-1 win over the Royals.

Miller was a triple shy of the cycle, though he has just one three-bagger in his career. He's hit safely in his last five games, going 8-for-18 (.444) over that span. His homer was his first of the year, and he's added six RBI, three stolen bases and nine runs scored while slashing .323/.348/.435 through 62 plate appearances. He's starting to get a look at leadoff versus southpaws, but he's still in a fairly strict platoon role at second base, with Brice Turang facing most righties.

Altuve (thumb) went 0-for-4 and played seven innings for Triple-A Sugar Land on Friday.

Altuve said after the game that he plans to play Saturday, according to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, and that his timing is still off at the plate, which is to be expected. The second baseman was seeing his first action since breaking his thumb during the World Baseball Classic back in March, and the most important thing is that he's finally getting reps after missing two-plus months. Altuve will likely need a few more rehab games, but it appears as though he could be playing for the Astros and hitting at the top of the order at some point next week.

Merrifield went 1-for-3 with a run scored and a stolen base in Friday's 3-0 win over Atlanta.

He scored Toronto's first run in the fifth inning on a George Springer single, giving Chris Bassitt all the support he would need as the veteran righty tossed a shutout. Merrifield has shrugged off a slow start to the season, and over his last 20 games he's batting .311 (23-for-74) with one homer, eight RBI, nine runs and six of his eight stolen bases on the year.

Lopez (appendicitis) is expected to start a rehab assignment with the Royals next week, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

Lopez didn't travel with the team during its current road trip. The infielder will likely need a handful of games to get back into game shape, and he has a chance to return to the Kansas City lineup near the end of May.

Rojas is not in the starting lineup Friday against the Giants.

Rojas will probably appear off the bench at some point as the Giants go with a bullpen game to help ease southpaw Alex Wood back into action. Emmanuel Rivera is starting at third base and batting second to kick things off for the host Diamondbacks.

Kemp is not in the starting lineup for Friday's tilt against Texas.

Kemp will take a seat against left-hander Martin Perez. Jordan Diaz will start his sixth straight game at second base and hit sixth.

Stott is not in the Phillies' lineup for Friday's game in Colorado.

Stott will take a seat against left-handed Austin Gomber. Josh Harrison is handling second base.

The Cubs placed Hoerner on the 10-day injured list Friday, retroactive to May 9, with a left hamstring strain, Meghan Montemurro of the Chicago Tribune reports.

Hoerner suffered the injury while running the bases in Monday's series opener against the Cardinals and will be sidelined for at least another week. Christopher Morel is covering second base and batting leadoff Friday against the Twins and right-hander Sonny Gray. Nick Madrigal should also get regular looks at the position in Hoerner's absence.

Dubon (hamstring) is starting Friday against the White Sox.

Dubon sat out Wednesday against the Angels after exiting Tuesday's matchup with left hamstring discomfort. However, he was able to recover during the Astros' day off Thursday and will lead off in the series opener at Guaranteed Rate Field. Through eight games in May, he's hit .242 (8-for-33) with one steal, two RBI, four runs and seven strikeouts.

Miller is getting a second straight start out of the leadoff spot Friday versus the Royals.

Both leadoff looks have come against left-handed pitching -- Wednesday against Clayton Kershaw and Friday against Josh Taylor. Miller has batted .370/.400/.407 through 30 plate appearances this year off southpaws. He's slashing .226/.250/.290 in 32 plate appearances versus righties.