MLB Player News

Donaldson will head to the bench for the first time this season Saturday against the Marlins.

Donaldson started at third base and batted second in each of the Braves' first seven games. He hasn't looked great over that small sample, hitting just .154 with no extra-base hits. Johan Camargo will play third base Saturday, while Ozzie Albies will move up to the second spot in the order.

Urshela was called up to the Yankees and signed to a major-league contract Saturday.

Thairo Estrada was sent back down to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a corresponding move, as Urshela will now head to the big club with shortstop Troy Tulowitzski (calf) on the injured list. The 27-year-old has a .225/.274/.315 slash line over 466 career at-bats at the big-league level with the Indians and Blue Jays, and he posted a .321/.345/.679 line for the Yankees over 28 at-bats in spring training.

Chapman (wrist) went 1-for-4 in a loss to the Astros on Friday.

After a one-game absence, Chapman was back at the hot corner and hitting second. The 25-year-old has been impressing with both the bat and glove thus far this season, as he's now reached safely in nine of the first 10 games he's suited up for.

Ramirez (foot) is hitting second Saturday against the Blue Jays, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports.

He suffered a foot contusion Thursday and sat Friday but is ready to get back at it against lefty Thomas Pannone.

Suarez is not starting Saturday against the Pirates.

Suarez will sit for the first time this season. He's gotten off to a bit of a slow start at the plate, as he's just 5-for-22, though he does have a home run and five walks. Kyle Farmer will start at third base in his absence.

Escobar is likely to remain the everyday third baseman with Jake Lamb (quadriceps) expected to miss up to six weeks, Richard Morin and Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Escobar's frigid start (.121/.147/.152) and manager Torey Lovullo's desire to get first baseman Christian Walker into the lineup were the motivating factors leading to Lamb occasionally moving across the diamond from first to third. With Lamb out of action, Escobar has breathing space to break out of his slump while getting regular at-bats. Ildemaro Vargas was called up after Lamb was placed on the 10-day injured list and will be the primary backup.

Arenado went 1-for-3 with a walk, two RBI and a run scored Friday against the Dodgers.

Arenado knocked home a run in the third inning on a sacrifice fly and plated another in the seventh on a single to left field. The 27-year-old slugger remains without a home run on the season, though he'll have the luxury of hitting at Coors Field for the next five contests.

Moncada went 2-for-4 with a double and four RBI in Friday's win over the Mariners.

Moncada plated a pair of runs in the first inning on a double to center and drove home two more in the seventh on a single to give his team a 9-8 lead. Following an impressive performance in the series opener, the 23-year-old third baseman is now 11-for-24 with two homers, 10 RBI and nine runs scored through six contests in 2019.

Muncy went 3-for-4 with a home run, a triple, three RBI and a walk to help the Dodgers to a 10-6 victory over the Rockies on Friday.

Muncy had a monster day at the dish against Colorado, as he fell a double short of the cycle. It was a welcome showing for the 28-year-old, who was off to a slow start to the season coming off last year's breakout 35-homer campaign. With this performance, he bumped his slugging percentage up to a healthy .542 through 24 at-bats.

Machado went 1-for-2 with three walks and a run in San Diego's 5-3 win over the Cardinals on Friday.

Machado reached base in his first four appearances before grounding out in his last at-bat to snap a streak of seven straight trips to the plate where he got on base. He's the first Padres to achieve that feat since Jose Pirela in 2017, per Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union Tribune. Machado only has one home run through his first eight games, but he's now got a .394 on-base percentage, and the patient approach is a good sign he's seeing the ball well as he looks to consistently find his power stroke.