MLB Player News

Nationals manager Davey Johnson said he held second baseman Anthony Rendon out of the lineup Sunday against the Phillies for precautionary reasons to rest his left forearm, according to The Washington Post. Rendon was seeing flexing and rotating his left forearm after his final at-bat Saturday.

Rendon was deemed to have no problems with his forearm after being evaluated by team physician Dr. Wiemi Douoguih.

"He’s fine," Johnson said.

Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez, who was spiked on his left index finger Saturday, swung in the batting cages Sunday morning and reported feeling fine, according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He is wearing a bandage, but doesn't have to wear a splint.

Alvarez was in the starting lineup Sunday against the Rockies.

Nationals infielder Anthony Rendon managed two RBI for a second straight game Saturday against the Phillies. He now has at least one RBI in six of eight August games.

Rendon is batting .308 (8 for 26) with a .577 slugging percentage, .932 OPS, one double, two home runs and eight RBI in August.

Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez left the clubhouse after Saturday's game against the Rockies without speaking to the media. Manager Clint Hurdle said Alvarez was spiked on the left index finger Saturday and had a bandage on it.

Alvarez hasn't homered in 11 games and has just one multi-hit game since July 12, batting .184 in his last 25 games.

Phillies infielder Cody Asche made his presence felt at the dish as he launched his first big-league home run Thursday afternoon against the Cubs.

Asche took reliever Eduardo Sanchez deep for a two-run home run to extend the lead for the Phillies. He fell a triple shy of the cycle and finished 3 for 5 with two runs scored and two RBI in a 12-1 win. He has five hits over his last nine at-bats and is hitting .231/.286/.423 through his first 26 at-bats this season.

Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu singled three times in four at-bats Thursday against the Mets. It was his second three-hit game of August.

LeMahieu is batting .296 (8 for 27) with two doubles and no RBI in seven August games.

FOX Sports reports among the players accepting 50-game suspensions for their connection to the Biogenesis investigation are Rangers outfielder Nelson Cruz, Tigers shortstop Jhonny Peralta, Phillies reliever Antonio Bastardo, Mets infielder Jordany Valdespin , Padres shortstop Everth Cabrera, Yankees catcher Francisco Cervelli, Mariners catcher Jesus Montero, Mets outfielder Cesar Puello, Astros reliever Sergio Escalona, Padres reliever Fautino De Los Santos, Yankees outfielder Fernando Martinez and free-agent pitcher Jordan Norberto.

The report also states Athletics starting pitcher Bartolo Colon, Padres catcher Yasmani Grandal and Blue Jays outfielder Melky Cabrera will be dealt no additional discipline. Also, no violations were found against Nationals pitcher Gio Gonzalez and Orioles infielder Danny Valencia.

Phillies infielder Cody Asche was in the starting lineup Wednesday at third base, but the Phillies are expected to move him around the field to keep him in the lineup. According to MLB.com, manager Charlie Manuel said the team is considering putting him in right field at times to test his versatility.

"I don't know if we will, but we will talk about it," Manuel said.

Asche has only played third and second base in his professional career, but the team's organizational depth at third base could force him to move if he wants to stick in the majors. General manager Ruben Amaro thinks Asche is up to the task, even if they aren't going to force the issue right now.

"We haven't really talked about it extensively," Amaro said. "He's athletic enough to do that, but he's our third baseman today and that's where we'll keep him for now."

Nationals infielder Anthony Rendon will start at third base Wednesday against the Tigers.

With the team playing an AL opponent, Ryan Zimmerman will serve as the designated hitter. Steve Lombardozzi will fill in at Rendon's usual slot at second. Rendon is hitting .256/.307/.384 in 203 at-bats. He'll take on Justin Verlander.

The Phillies promoted third baseman Cody Asche to the big leagues Tuesday, presumably to take over for Michael Young, who some have speculated will go to the bench even if he's not traded. Anytime a new starter emerges, Fantasy owners should take notice, particular when it's a prospect. In Asche's case, though, I use the term pretty loosely.

His numbers at Triple-A Lehigh Valley -- specifically, the .295 batting average and 15 home runs -- are decent enough. But his .837 OPS is nothing special at that level, and his 95 strikeouts to 35 walks are downright discouraging. If he had a Christian Yelich-like pedigree, I could overlook the numbers. Talent is talent, and as Wil Myers is showing, it counts for more than Triple-A numbers. But unless you count the Phillies-specific ones, Asche wasn't appearing on any top prospect lists that spring.

Granted, I'm probably being a little overly critical of him just because, with any midseason call-up, the hype has the potential to get out of control. I've actually had Asche stashed in an NL-only league in anticipation of this move, so I think he can be useful. But nothing more than that. Personally, I'm expecting Trevor Plouffe-like production from him as a rookie.