MLB Player News

Rendon went 2-for-5 with a double and a run scored in Thursday's loss to the Marlins.

He's got just three hits through three games to begin the season, but Rendon's capable of heating up at any time. Given his career .471 OBP in 17 plate appearances against Miami starter Tom Koehler, he could be producing a lot of RBI opportunities Saturday for Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman.

Donaldson did not take ground balls on the new dirt infield at the Rogers Centre on Thursday, but manager John Gibbons expects him to start Friday against the Red Sox, the Toronto Sun reports.

If the third baseman can play Friday, he'll have a nice matchup with Red Sox pitcher Joe Kelly on the hill as Donaldson is 8-for-14 against the right-hander in his career. Also, it will be the home opener for the Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre, where Donaldson did most of his damage last season, slashing .330/.398/.647 while hitting 24 home runs.

Segura hit an inside-the-park home run as well as one of the more traditional variety in Thursday's loss to the Cubs.

Unfortunately for the Cubbies, that in-the-parker cost them more than just a run, as power-hitting left fielder Kyle Schwarber was hurt in a collision with center fielder Dexter Fowler when the two tried to run down Segura's fly ball deep into the gap. For Segura's part, he's collected four consecutive two-hit games (including three homers, a triple and a steal) to open the year. After two consecutive seasons of unimpressive production, it could be that a change of scenery into Arizona's supercharged lineup was just what Segura needed to jump-start his once-promising career.

Escobar went 2-for-4 with a double -- his fourth in three games -- and a run scored Thursday against the Twins.

Escobar's cleared 30 doubles in consecutive seasons already, and he's off to a fine start in his pursuit of accomplishing that for the third straight time. If last year's power improvement (he doubled his previous career high in homers with 12) can be sustained, he'll have value as a low-end starting shortstop in deeper mixed leagues.

Machado went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's win over Minnesota.

The sixth-inning shot was the first for Machado htis season, but it surely won't be the last for the young star, who busted out with 35 long balls last season. It's worth noting that Machado's struck out five times in the first three games of the year, including twice Thursday, but he's also hit safely in each game.

Suarez went 2-for-5 with a grand slam in Thursday's win over the Phillies.

Suarez's fourth-inning grand slam was his second home run in as many days. Suarez was one of the few bright spots in the Reds' miserable 2015 season, heisted from the Tigers in the Alfredo Simon deal. The 24-year-old shortstop appears locked in and ready for a breakout season.

Manager John Gibbons thinks that Donaldson (calf) has a good chance of returning to the lineup Friday and that Donaldson "is feeling better today," Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports.

Donaldson left Wednesday's game against the Rays in the seventh inning due to the ailment, although between the team's off day Thursday and how much the team downplayed the issue, a Friday return for the third baseman is seeming to be more realistic as game-time approaches. Of course, how he's feeling on the day of the game is most important and a start isn't set in stone until the lineup is released, but this development is definitely an encouraging sign for the Blue Jays and Donaldson's fantasy owners.

Manager John Gibbons said Thursday that Donaldson (calf) could be back in the lineup for Toronto's home opener Friday but noted that there won't be further confirmation until closer to game time, Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet reports.

Donaldson remains in a holding pattern for the time being after leaving Wednesday's game when he tweaked his calf during an at-bat. Fortunately, the Blue Jays seem cautiously optimistic that Donaldson's calf injury won't cause him to miss additional time beyond Wednesday's early departure. More information on Donaldson's status should be made available early Friday.

Ramirez will bat second as the Indians' left fielder for the second consecutive day Thursday, Jordan Bastian of MLB.com reports.

Ramirez moved out of the infield and into left for Wednesday's contest against the Red Sox and he moved up to second in the order as well. He answered by going 2-for-5 with a run and an RBI, so manager Terry Francona will keep the order the same for Thursday's series finale.

Longoria went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in Wednesday's 5-3 victory over the Blue Jays.

The veteran third baseman now has two multi-hit games over the first four contests of the season, and has reached based in three of those outings overall. Although he's only driven in one run so far, Longoria should have plenty of RBI opportunities this season if he continues to slot into the three-hole in the Rays lineup.