MLB Player News
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Ji-Hwan Bae 2B | NYM
Pirates' Ji Hwan Bae: Swipes 14th bag
Bae went 0-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Friday's 4-0 loss to the Blue Jays.
The young utility player continues to do his best Jon Berti impression, stealing his 14th base in 31 games to begin the season, with nine of them coming in the last 10 contests. Bae is also batting .333 (9-for-27) over that stretch, and while he offers little power -- he has just two homers and nine RBI on the year -- he could become more than just a one-dimensional fantasy asset if he keeps stringing together hits.
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Whit Merrifield 2B | ATL
Blue Jays' Whit Merrifield: Runs wild in Friday's win
Merrifield went 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and three stolen bases in Friday's 4-0 win over the Pirates.
The 34-year-old made life miserable for Pittsburgh catcher Austin Hedges every time he reached base, swiping third after a fourth-inning double then taking second and third after a sixth-inning single. Merrifield is still looking for his first homer of the year, but that's about the only blemish on his line to begin his first full season as a Blue Jays -- he's slashing .301/.356/.398 with 10 RBI, 11 runs and seven steals in eight attempts through 26 games.
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Luis Arraez 2B | PHI
Marlins' Luis Arraez: Three more hits Friday
Arraez went 3-for-4 in Friday's 4-1 loss to the Cubs.
The Marlins only managed eight hits in total, all singles, so Arraez's latest barrage of knocks didn't amount to much on the scoreboard. The 26-year-old's latest hit streak now stands at eight games, and he's produced a blistering .437/.491/.544 slash line through his first 116 plate appearances with Miami -- leading the majors in both batting average and OBP.
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Luis Garcia 1B | NYY
Nationals' Luis Garcia: Smacks third homer of season
Garcia went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Friday's loss against the Diamondbacks.
Garcia's 344-foot shot to left gave the Nationals a 1-0 lead in the first inning. The infielder is off to a hot start this month, slashing .294/.368/.529 since May 1. The 22-year-old is currently on pace to pass his career high of seven long balls in a season, which he hit across 93 games last year.
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Brendan Donovan 3B | SEA
Cardinals' Brendan Donovan: Sitting against lefty
Donovan is not in the lineup Friday against the Tigers.
Tommy Edman will play second base and bat leadoff with left-hander Matthew Boyd on the mound for Detroit. Paul DeJong is handling shortstop duties and hitting seventh.
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Nolan Gorman 3B | STL
Cardinals' Nolan Gorman: Sitting out Friday
Gorman (back) is not in the lineup Friday against the Tigers.
Gorman was pulled from Thursday's series finale against the Angels due to lower back tightness, though he might have been on the bench anyway Friday with left-hander Matthew Boyd set to toe the slab for Detroit. Willson Contreras will take a turn at DH and bat third. Andrew Knizner is catching and batting ninth.
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Brandon Lowe 2B | PIT
Rays' Brandon Lowe: Out with back issue
Lowe is absent from the Rays' lineup for the second straight day Friday due to a slight back issue, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.
Lowe missed a large chunk of the 2022 campaign with back problems, although manager Kevin Cash said this issue is unrelated. The second baseman plans to go through a full workout Friday and be available off the bench, so it sounds like he should return to the lineup soon.
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Alan Trejo SS | COL
Rockies' Alan Trejo: Not in lineup Friday
Trejo is out of the lineup Friday against the Mets.
Harold Castro will start at second base and bat eighth with right-hander Kodai Senga on the mound for New York. This has formed into a bit of a platoon in recent weeks, though Trejo should still get starts against some righties. Trejo and Castro are both currently under .600 in the OPS department.
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Adam Frazier 2B | LAA
Orioles' Adam Frazier: Gets Friday off
Frazier isn't in the Orioles' lineup for Friday's game against Atlanta, Roch Kubatko of MASNSports.com reports.
After going 2-for-3 and scoring four times Thursday against the Royals, Frazier earned himself a day off for Friday's series opener. Ramon Urias will take over at second base and bat sixth in Frazier's absence.