MLB Player News

Manager Ned Yost announced that Moustakas will get the night off Friday due to a sore hamstring, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reprots.

The Royals will have a different look than usual Friday with Moustakas being replaced at third base by Christian Colon, who will bat eighth in the order. Colon entered Thursday's game as a pinch-runner for Moustakas, but it wasn't immediately apparent that Moustakas was dealing with a hamstring injury. Friday's night off for Moustakas is likely a precautionary measure to keep him fresh and avoid pushing him too quickly after tweaking his hamstring, so look for him to draw back into the order later in this weekend's series.

Moustakas is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the A's.

It's unclear at this point as to why Moustakas, who has played in every game this season, is out of the lineup for Friday's series opener against Oakland. It's possible that manager Ned Yost is simply limiting wear and tear on his cornerstone infielder, or that he merely wanted to get Christian Colon some playing time. It is worth noting, however, that Colon came on to replace Moustakas late in Thursday's contest with Houston. More information on Moustakas' status figures to be made available later Friday.

Peterson is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Marlins.

Peterson, like many other Braves, is off to a poor start this season, hitting a lowly .190/.227/.190. He will take the day off while Gordon Beckham gets the nod at second base.

Hayes, 19, is batting .393/.414/.536 with four RBI through seven games for Low-A West Virginia.

The son of former big-leaguer Charlie Hayes, Ke'Bryan has not shown much power as of yet, but the teenager still has plenty of time to fill out and develop a power stroke. Otherwise, Hayes has an extremely advanced approach at the dish, and ranks as one of the better hitting prospects in the Pirates system already.

Moustakas went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a walk in Thursday's win over Houston.

Moustakas has now reached base safely in all but two games this season and he's up to three home runs in his last six contests. He's firmly entrenched as the Royals' No.2 hitter, and although Alcides Escobar's early season slump is limiting Moustakas' RBI chances, his ability to get on base in front of the likes of Lorenzo Cain and Eric Hosmer ought to give the Moose plenty of opportunities to come around to score moving forward.

Donaldson went 2-for-4 with a double and a three-run homer Thursday in a win over the Yankees.

That's hits in 10 straight games to open the year for Donaldson, and he's homered in half those contests. Last year's insane campaign was no fluke -- he looks perfectly capable of cloning that performance.

Alvarez is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Rangers, according to Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports.

Alvarez will be held out Thursday with the Orioles facing left-hander Cole Hamels. He also sat out the only other time the Orioles have faced a left-hander this year, and owns just a .597 career OPS against southpaws, so don't be surprised is his at-bats against lefties are sparse.

Suarez will start at shortstop for the first time this season in Thursday's game against the Cubs.

Suarez has been primarily playing third base for the Reds, but with Zack Cozart out for the second straight game, the Reds have shifted him to shortstop and Jordan Pacheco will get the start at third base. Suarez is one of the hottest players in the league right now, hitting .400/.471/.800 with four home runs, nine runs, and nine RBI through eight games.

LeMahieu is hitting leadoff Thursday against the Giants.

Charlie Blackmon is out with a toe injury, so LeMahieu moves atop the order. A Rockies stack against righty Matt Cain makes a lot of sense in daily leagues Thursday, although it might be wiser to target the middle of the order, where lefties like Carlos Gonzalez and Gerardo Parra reside.

Peterson is getting his first start of the year in left field and hitting eighth Thursday against the Nationals.

Typically the Braves' second baseman, Peterson got some time in left field during spring training and did some early work there prior to Thursday's game. With Hector Olivera out indefinitely following a domestic dispute, Peterson could see a handful of starts in left field going forward, allowing him to pick up outfield eligibility in certain formats.