MLB Player News

Shelved Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon, who has been sidelined all season with knee and oblique injuries, took batting practice Saturday for the first time since going down, per CSNWashington.com.

Rendon is still quite far away from returning to the team, however. He still must participate in similated games starting early next week before heading out on a rehab assignment. There remains no timetable for him to rejoin the Nationals.

"He feels good where he is at right now," manager Matt Williams said about Rendon. "We'll assess again tomorrow and see. After yesterday, he reported today feeling great."

Rays third baseman Evan Longoria connected for a three-run homer off Scott Kazmir in the fifth inning of Friday's game against the Athletics, helping propel Tampa Bay to a 5-2 win. 

"He was throwing the ball really well, and it was a little bit different than what we had seen in the video," Longoria said, per MLB.com. "He was up as high as 96 [mph], which you knew he had that, and you know he was capable of doing those things, but it was something that we hadn't really seen.

"There were two strikes, and I was just trying to put the ball in play. I had a similar situation earlier in the game, where he threw two fastballs and they were both down in the zone, and I grounded out to third. The plan was just to try and drive the ball into the outfield and score one run, and I ended up getting three out of it."

Longoria, who went 2 for 3 with one walk and one stolen base, has a .270/.345/.473/.818 slash line through 20 May games. He also has three doubles, four home runs and 17 RBI this month.

Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson returned to the starting lineup Saturday against the Mariners after he was sidelined by calf soreness Friday. Donaldson did make a pinch-hit appearance Friday.

Donaldson heads into Saturday's game with a .299/.342/.507/.850 slash line over his last 18 games. 

Left-hander James Paxton is on the mound for Seattle. Donaldson is batting .389 with one double, three home runs and six RBI in nine games against left-handed starters in 2015.

Cubs Opening Day third baseman Mike Olt is making progress in recovering from a fractured wrist, suffered in the second week of the season. 

Olt got the cast off of his wrist last week and took batting practice for the first time this week. 

When Olt returns, he'll find out that his spot has been filled by rookie Kris Bryant. 

"Kris is doing a great job right now, and I’m just making sure I get this back to 100 percent and be able to play with that team wherever they need me," Olt said, per the Chicago Sun Times.

There's a possibility Olt may play the outfield when he returns to the Cubs. 

Twins utility man Eduardo Escobar is back in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the White Sox. Escobar did not start the last two games with the team in a National League park, but he's starting as the designated hitter and batting sixth on Friday.

Escobar has been hitting well lately, batting .346 with a home run and 11 RBI over his last 11 games. 

Rockies slumping slugger Nolan Arenado will occupy the second spot in the order Friday against San Francisco for just the second time this season.

Arenado, who began the season on fire, has just 10 hits in his last 51 at-bats with one home run during that stretch. His average has fallen from .314 to .270 while he has fanned 12 times in the last 10 games.

Nationals third baseman Anthony Rendon's knee is 100 percent and he feels no pain in his oblique, general manager Mike Rizzo told MLB Network Radio on Friday. However, Rizzo still doesn't have a timetable for Rendon's activation off the disabled list.

Rendon is fielding grounders and taking swings in the batting cage, but he is not quite ready to resume a rehab assignment, manager Matt Williams said Wednesday. Rendon was on a rehab assignment in early May before having to stop because of an oblique strain.

Williams said Friday that Rendon fielded around 40 grounders and turned some double plays at second base. He also took part in live batting practice for the first time since suffering his oblique injury.

Blue Jays third baseman Josh Donaldson will get his first day off this season, as he is being held out of the lineup on Friday against the Mariners. Donaldson has hit well lately, batting .270 with two home runs and seven RBI over his last 10 games, batting solely out of the top two spots in the lineup.

Manager John Gibbons said Donaldson, who has started each of the team's first 43 games this year, has been playing on a "bad calf" and was looking to give him a day off, acording to SportsNet.

Danny Valencia will get the start at the hot corner, while Ezequiel Carrera will move up to the leadoff spot the batting order. 

With the Brewers looking more and more like eventual sellers, rival teams are saying pitchers Matt Garza and Kyle Lohse have limited trade value, according to CBSSports.com Baseball Insider Jon Heyman.

Early on, teams seem to be preferring Lohse due to his pending free agency at the end of the season, and his excellent clubhouse presence. Both pitchers have struggled this season, each with an ERA over 5.00 in nine starts. 

Heyman also notes that teams are unsure if the Brewers would consider trading young shortstop Jean Segura, who is currently on the disabled list with a broken finger. There seems to also be uncertainty whether catcher Jonathan Lucroy or outfielder Carlos Gomez would be available, though Gomez would probably be the most likely to go since his contract is up after the 2016 season. 

The hot streak that sent the numbers soaring for Braves second baseman Jace Peterson is decidedly over.

Peterson went on a 20-for-51 tear in late April and early May to catapult his average from .171 to .293 and increase his on-base percentage to .362. He has not gone into a slump, but he has certainly cooled off. Peterson has just five hits in 27 at-bats since.

His slash line is now at .269/.346/.328.