MLB Player News

Julien will start at second base and serve as the Twins' leadoff hitter in Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.

After being called up from Triple-A St. Paul on Saturday, Julien stepped into the table-setting role in the Twins' 9-4 win and went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, a stolen base and a run. While Jorge Polanco (hamstring) is on the injured list, Julien will have a clear path to everyday playing time at the keystone, and the on-base skills he's demonstrated at every stop of the minors should allow him to gain traction atop the lineup.

Altuve is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians, Julia Morales of AT&T SportsNet Southwest reports.

Due to the early start time (12:40 p.m. ET) for the series finale coupled with an off day Monday, the Astros appear to be holding out a number of lineup regulars for rest purposes. Along with Altuve, shortstop Jeremy Pena and catcher Martin Maldonado will be riding the pine Sunday. Mauricio Dubon will man the keystone and hit leadoff in Altuve's stead.

Rojas is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Tigers.

The lefty-hitting Rojas will take a seat for the series finale and for the second straight game while the Tigers bring another lefty (Joey Wentz) to the hill. Evan Longoria will step in for Rojas at third base.

Short is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Diamondbacks, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.

Short will hit the bench for the series finale after starting at second base in each of the past four games while going 3-for-14 with a double and three RBI. Nick Maton will step in for Short at the keystone.

Dubon went 2-for-5 with a run, an RBI and two stolen bases against Cleveland in a 6-4 win Saturday.

Houston was a perfect 6-for-6 on stolen-base attempts in the victory, with Dubon nabbing a pair out of the leadoff spot. The 28-year-old also recorded multiple hits for the fourth straight game and extended his current hitting streak to seven contests. During that stretch, he's slashing .382/.371/.559 with a three doubles, a home run, five RBI, five runs and two steals.

Torres went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 3-1 win over the Red Sox.

Torres has gone 4-for-9 with two homers and three RBI over his last three contests after snapping an 0-for-16 drought. The second baseman was back at leadoff Saturday after playing both games of Thursday's doubleheader in the No. 2 spot and starting Friday's contest on the bench. The 26-year-old has bounced back to a .256/.332/.434 slash line with 11 homers, 28 RBI, 39 runs scored and six stolen bases over 65 contests this year. Torres continues to hold down a starting role at the keystone.

Rodgers (shoulder) is fielding grounders and showing better range of motion, Patrick Lyons of TheDNVR.com reports.

Rodgers has been out all season after undergoing shoulder surgery. The surgery once appeared to be potentially season-ending, but the Rockies seem optimistic that he could return late this season. Any potential return is still months away, but he's at least taking steps in the right direction.

Polanco's hamstring strain is worse than the one he just recovered from, Betsy Helfand of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Polanco missed two weeks in late May with a left hamstring strain and made it less than 10 days before injuring the same muscle. The strain is reportedly in a different spot and is "somewhat more severe" according to manager Rocco Baldelli, though an exact timeline for Polanco's recovery is not yet clear. Edouard Julien was recalled Saturday and should serve as the Twins' primary second baseman.

Gimenez will be on the bench for Saturday's game against the Astros, Andre Knott of Bally Sports Ohio reports.

Gimenez has shown more life at the plate recently, hitting .333/.372/.487 over his last 10 games, though that's only been enough to raise his OPS to .656. He'll rest Saturday with Tyler Freeman starting at second base.

Urias will be on the bench Saturday against Oakland.

Urias returned from the 60-day injured list Monday but has so far not been asked to start more than two games in a row. He hasn't done much at the plate in four games since returning from his hamstring strain, going 1-for-13 with five strikeouts. Owen Miller starts at third base Saturday.