MLB Player News

Rays third baseman Evan Longoria went 2 for 4 with a home run and two RBI in his team's 6-3 loss to the Blue Jays Saturday.

Longoria put his team up early with an RBI groundout in the first inning, and he was able to tie the game 3-3 with a solo home run in the sixth, but that would be the Rays' final run of the game. Longoria has hit .252/.320/.406 with 21 home runs and 87 RBI in 579 at-bats.

Rays infielder Evan Longoria belted his 20th home run Wednesday against the Yankees.

Longoria struck in the ninth inning. With the bases empty, Longoria belted an 89 mph cutter out to left for the solo shot. He finished 1 for 4, with two runs scored and one RBI. 

Pirates first baseman Pedro Alvarez is dealing with a stress reaction in his foot.

Alvarez will be sidelined four to six weeks due to the injury, effectively ending his season. He's hitting .231/.312/.405 over 398 at-bats.

The Nationals lineup Wednesday against Atlanta is sans shortstop Ian Desmond and third baseman Anthony Rendon.

The former is out with back tightness that forced him out of the game Tuesday. The latter is simply getting a day off with Kevin Frandsen playing third instead.

According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez has suffered a setback in his recovery from a sprained left foot, leaving the Pirates to reassess his status. As of now, he continues to travel with the team, but he may need to be re-evaluated at some point.

"The initial diagnostic tests gave us reason to move forward as we did," general manager Neal Huntington said. "He's feeling more pain. He's not progressing the way he was before the pinch-hit at-bat. As a result, we need to re-evaluate things and see where we go from there."

Alvarez's status for the rest of the season is at this point unknown.

Pirates first baseman Pedro Alvarez and outfielder Travis Snider are not in the starting lineup for Saturday's regularly-scheduled game against the Cubs.

Alvarez hasn't played since Aug. 26 while recovering from a foot injury. Snider has been limited to two pinch-hit appearances since Aug. 27 while battling a hamstring issue.

Indians rookie shortstop Jose Ramirez has flourished in the second spot in the lineup since taking over the starting job upon the trade that sent Asdrubal Cabrera to Washington.

Ramirez, whose production might be keeping premier prospect Francisco Lindor at Triple-A for now, is 35 for 123 since returning to the team in late July for a .282 mark. He has scored 14 runs during that time.

What was expected is now official - the Cubs have recalled third base prospect Mike Olt from Class A Kane County.

Olt revealed that he has incorporated a new swing in which he uses the entire field, per MLB.com. The pull-happy Olt was not a success in his stint in the bigs earlier in the year. He compiled a disturbing stat line of .139/.222/.353 and was hitless in his last 14 at-bats with the Cubs before his demotion.

Third baseman Pedro Alvarez (foot) and outfielder Travis Snider (hamstring) remain out of the lineup Friday for the Pirates against the host Cubs.

The former has been sidelined since Aug. 26. The latter has not started a game since a day later, though he did pinch-hit twice, including on Wednesday.

Rays third baseman Evan Longoria went deep Wednesday against the Blue Jays.

Longoria didn't strike until the eighth inning. With a man on, Longoria belted a two-run shot on a 95 mph fastball. He also singled earlier in the game. Longoria finished 2 for 4, with one run scored and three RBI.