MLB Player News

Duffy (heel), who officially confirmed last Friday that he will not play before the end of the regular season, believes he'll be ready to go for the 2018 campaign, Bill Chastain of MLB.com reports. "The plan is looking toward instructional league," said Duffy, who began the season on the disabled list while trying to recover from Achilles surgery and later had a second surgery. "The goal is to not have any reservations going into Spring Training, and having as normal an offseason as possible."

Duffy had come into spring training last March with high expectations following September 2016 heel surgery, as he'd figured on being ready to play by the middle of that month and serve as the team's everyday starting shortstop. However, issues started to crop up by late March and led to Duffy's recovery undergoing a series of fits and starts over the next several months. A late-June follow-up procedure that removed a calcium deposit from the heel appears to have been pivotal to finally eliminating the discomfort Duffy had persistently felt, and he's now set to test himself in both the instructional league and winter ball over the coming months.

Alvarez went 3-for-3 with a solo home run, two runs and two walks in Monday's loss to Boston.

For the first time in his eight-year career, Alvarez reached base five times in a single game. He's hitting .333/.429/.667 through 14 plate appearances since being recalled earlier this month. The once prominent MLB slugger has only two starts in his eight games thus far, but Alvarez is a decent value option in daily formats when the veteran is in the lineup.

Longoria went 2-for-4 with two RBI from a run-scoring single and infield single in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Red Sox.

Longoria was nearly a one-man offense Sunday, giving the Rays an early 2-0 lead with his pair of timely hits. The 31-year-old has hits in four straight and five multi-hit efforts overall in September. The one notable difference in Longoria's production in the second half as compared to the first is in his power numbers, as his homer total (six) has been cut in half and his HR/FB rate has dropped from 12.0 percent to 7.8 percent.

Robinson struck out in both of his at-bats in Sunday's 4-2 win over the Angels before being lifted late in the contest for a pinch hitter.

It was the second consecutive start at third base for Robinson, who looks on track to split time at the position with Will Middlebrooks and Joey Gallo while Adrian Beltre remains relegated to DH duties due to a hamstring injury. The likely uptick in at-bats over the final few weeks will give Robinson some appeal in AL-only formats, but the utility man has yet to offer much production when he's received steady playing time this season. The 25-year-old is slashing an unremarkable .208/.322/.403 across 90 plate appearances in 2017.

Candelario went 3-for-3 with two walks, a home run and four RBI in Sunday's 12-0 win over the White Sox.

Candelario was locked in, and he's now got his season line up to a strong .291/.384/.477. The 23-year-old seems to have displaced Nick Castellanos from third base, as the latter has been playing right field and DH lately. Candelario should have the inside track on third heading into 2018.

Moustakas is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Indians.

Moustakas has had a tough time at the dish lately. Over the last seven games, he's gone just 2-for-21 (.095) and struck out five times, bringing his batting average down to .271 from .277 in that stretch. He'll sit out Sunday while Cheslor Cuthbert starts at the hot corner.

Donaldson went 4-for-5 with two solo home runs, a stolen base and four runs scored during Saturday's win over Minnesota.

It's been a monster series for Donaldson, as he's gone 8-for-13 with two homers, five RBI and five runs. He's up to a .931 OPS for the year after posting an .868 mark in the first half of the season. Donaldson's second-half surge has reaffirmed his position as a top fantasy third baseman.

Escobar went 1-for-3 with a solo home run during Saturday's loss to Toronto.

With Miguel Sano (shin) on the disabled list, Escobar has filled in admirably at third base. Escobar entered Saturday's game with six homers, 14 RBI, 11 runs and a .967 OPS through 14 September games, and those numbers only improved after his 19th long fly of the campaign.

Ramirez will spend a few days on the bench to rest his hamstring, Tom Withers of The Associated Press reports.

With Ramirez out of the lineup Saturday and the team having a scheduled off day Monday, it appears likely that the infielder will be back in action for Tuesday's series opener against the Angels. Ramirez has been a little beat up over the past couple weeks with a bruised forearm and this slight hamstring problem, so the Indians want to make sure he's right heading into the home stretch of the season.

Ramirez is not in the lineup for Saturday's game against the Royals.

Following the end of Cleveland's 22-game winning streak, Ramirez will receive a day off in favor of Giovanny Urshela. Over his past 10 games, Ramirez is hitting a scorching-hot .459/.512/1.189 while adding seven home runs and 12 RBI.