Espinal will start at third base and bat eighth in Wednesday's contest against the Astros.

Espinal has started two straight and five of the last eight games at third base, as it's looking like he has leapfrogged Noelvi Marte on the depth chart at the position. The 29-year-old Espinal is slashing .398/.436/.580 since the All-Star break and should continue to receive regular reps while he's swinging a hot bat.

Marte is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game versus the Astros.

Marte has now been absent from the Reds' lineup for two straight games and five of the last eight. Santiago Espinal has been scorching hot since the All-Star break and is garnering another start at third base.

Bohm (hand) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays, Todd Zolecki of MLB.com reports.

While the Phillies are still expecting Bohm to avoid a stint on the injured list, he'll end up missing out on a fifth straight start while he continues to deal with swelling on his left hand. Kody Clemens will fill in at third base for Bohm, who can be considered day-to-day heading into Thursday's series opener in Miami.

Barger (knee) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.

Barger went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI in Tuesday's 10-9 loss to the Phillies but left the contest early with left knee discomfort. With the Blue Jays and Phillies wrapping up their series with a day game after a night game, Barger will unsurprisingly find himself on the bench. With a team off day on tap Thursday, he'll have two full days to recover from the knee injury before potentially returning to the lineup for Friday's series opener in Atlanta.

The Royals released Alexander on Tuesday.

Alexander was removed from the 40-man roster and is now out of the organization. The 28-year-old infielder has slashed .306/.354/.566 with 17 home runs this season at the Triple-A level, so he should be able to find a gig elsewhere on a minor-league contract.

Chapman went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Tuesday's loss to the Diamondbacks.

Chapman took Ryne Nelson deep in the sixth for his only hit of the night, extending his hitting streak to four games. He now has five RBI over his last four games and is on track for his highest RBI total since he had 91 in 2019. For the year, Chapman is slashing .247/.333/.445 with 22 homers, 69 RBI, 90 runs, 13 steals and a 61:141 BB:K in 579 plate appearances.

Devers will bat second in the order Wednesday, Bill Ladson of MLB.com reports.

Devers is slumping, and the Red Sox hope moving him up in the order, behind speedy leadoff batter Jarren Duran, will give him a lot of fastballs. Since returning from a three-game stint to rest his shoulders, Devers is 1-for-21 (.048) over five games.

Jung went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, an additional RBI, a stolen base and a hit-by-pitch in Tuesday's 7-4 win over the Yankees.

Jung opened the scoring with a fourth-inning homer and contributed to the Rangers' comeback push with an RBI single in the eighth. The third baseman has gone 13-for-40 (.325) with two homers and three steals over his last 10 contests. That productive stretch has him up to a .276/.295/.455 slash line with six homers, four steals, 14 RBI and 16 runs scored through 34 games overall.

Barger was removed from Tuesday's game against the Phillies due to left knee discomfort.

Barger went 1-for-3 with a two-run home run before his knee caused him to come out of the game ahead of the seventh inning. There's no telling if he'll be available for Wednesday's contest, but an extended absence seems unlikely.

Vargas was removed from Tuesday's game against the Orioles due to a right eye abrasion.

Vargas suffered the injury on a collision with Andrew Benintendi while chasing down a pop fly during the second inning of Tuesday's contest. Should Vargas need to sit out Wednesday's game, Lenyn Sosa would be the favorite to pick up a start at third base.