MLB Player News

Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez collected a hit for the second straight contest on Wednesday night against the Cubs. He singled in the eighth inning and finished 1 for 4 in the 3-0 win.

Alvarez has gone 2 for 8 (.250) with an RBI thus far.

Rays third baseman Evan Longoria had a nice night at the plate Wednesday in an 8-7 walk-off win over the Orioles in the second game of the season. 

But while Longoria went 2 for 4 in the game, his best asset continues to be his defensive play at third base. Longoria made countless stops that could have saved runs on Wednesday after coming up with a great play in Tuesday's opener. 

Longoria singled twice Wednesday and has started the season 3 for 8 (.375) at the plate with a run scored. 

Brewers shortstop Jean Segura has gone 4 for 7 (.571) through the first two games with two of those hits going to the opposite field. The 23-year-old showed his power hitting the other way during spring training as he slugged a healthy .550 in 60 at-bats.

"It's natural," Segura told MLB.com. "I always seem to hit the ball the other way. Sometimes, I don't try to go over there, and it happens."

Manager Ron Roenicke said he's pleased with Segura's start to the season.

"The guys in the league that hit well for an average, that's where they hit," Roenicke said, referring to the opposite-field approach. "That keeps you on the offspeed stuff. I think if he's going to hit in this league and hit for a high average, he has to do that."

Twins third baseman Trevor Plouffe didn't collect any hits Wednesday in a walk-off win over the Tigers. He stole his first base of the season, however. 

Plouffe went 0 for 2 with two walks and a strikeout in the game. He came around to score on a Wilkin Ramirez double in the seventh. Plouffe is batting .167 on the year after going 1 for 4 with a double and a run scored in the opener. 

Twins shortstop Eduardo Escobar took over at shortstop late in Wednesday's game against the Tigers. He ended up playing the role of the hero. 

Escobar, who took over for Pedro Florimon, the starter, blasted a walk-off double to left-center field off Phil Coke in the bottom of the ninth to send the Twins to victory, 3-2. He drove in the game-tying and winning runs. 

Escobar went 1 for 1 in the game and is now 1 for 2 on the season. The 24-year-old has come off the bench in both games. 

Brewers shortstop Jean Segura has started the 2013 season with multi-hit outings in each of Milwaukee's first two games. Segura is batting .571 (4 for 7) with one walk through two games.

Segura is coming off a productive spring. He hit .367 (22 for 60) with three triple, five doubles, four RBI and five stolen bases in 21 spring games. He also accounted for 10 runs.

Orioles third baseman Manny Machado, who has never hit higher than sixth in his young MLB career, is embracing manager Buck Showalter's decision to bat him second in Tuesday's season opener at Tampa Bay.

"Buck does everything for a reason," Machado said. "He's trusting me and he has faith. He's going to put the best nine guys out there, nine guys who are going to help this team win, so that definitely boosts my confidence going into opening day, knowing that your manager and your teammates have faith in you. It's going to be great. I'm excited for it and I'm excited to get the season going."

The Orioles announced Monday third baseman Manny Machado will hit second during Tuesday's season opener at Tampa Bay. Machado never hit second as a rookie in 2012. He hit sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth.

Machado hit .268 (15 for 56) with one triple, three doubles, one RBI and seven walks in 21 spring games.

When Jean Segura suits up for the season opener Monday against Colorado, he will be the fifth different shortstop to start for the Brewers on opening day over the past five years. Segura, who was immediately added to the starting lineup after arriving in a trade from the Angels last August, will join a list that includes J.J. Hardy, Alcides Escobar, Yuniesky Betancourt and Alex Gonzalez.

The 23-year-old Segura shined during the spring, registering a glossy .367 batting average with eight extra-base hits, including three triples to rank tied for second-most in the Cactus League.

Brewers shortstop Jean Segura -- the pride of the Zack Greinke deal -- is hitting .365 with three steals (fifth among shortstops) and five doubles (third among SS) this spring. 

In the minors, Segura hit for power (.313) and showed some nice speed (career high of 50 steals), while flexing a little bit of power (career high of 10 home runs). His hot spring is encouraging because it's an improvement over his .258 average and four doubles in 45 games last year. Segura still comes with a lot of risk -- he's young, untested and the Milwaukee lineup isn't the most imposing -- but a decent average and 30 steals is well within reach this year.