MLB Player News

Wendle will sit Saturday against the Blue Jays, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Wendle will head to the bench against lefty Robbie Ray. Mike Brosseau starts at third base while Taylor Walls will make his major-league debut at shortstop.

Diaz left Friday's game against the Rangers with left hamstring tightness, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

If "tightness" is code for a strain, Diaz will likely require a stint on the 10-day injured list. He went 1-for-2 with an RBI double before exiting and was replaced by Carlos Correa.

Franco, who's slashing .283/.333/.533 with eight extra-base hits and 10 RBI across 66 plate appearances at Triple-A Durham, is presumably one step closer to a big-league promotion after Willy Adames was traded to the Brewers on Friday.

As those numbers indicate, Franco is more than holding his own in his first exposure to Triple-A arms, and the fact he's only struck out at a 13.6 percent clip further supports the notion he's ready for his next challenge. However, Taylor Walls has posted even better numbers, slashing .327/.468/.490 over 62 plate appearances for Durham, and is the one getting the call to replace Adames on the Rays roster. Franco will continue getting regular reps at Durham for the time being, but Adames' departure represents the removal of one obstacle from his path to the majors.

Correa is not in the lineup Friday against the Rangers. Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.

Correa is 12-for-30 over his past eight games but will take a seat for the third time this season. Aledmys Diaz will work at shortstop for the Astros on Friday.

Wendle went 4-for-6 with two solo home runs Thursday against the Orioles.

Wendle opened and closed the scoring for the Rays on Thursday by slugging a home run in the second and eighth innings. It was the first time Wendle has gone yard since April 18. However, he now has three multi-hit games in his last four starts, and he's racked up six runs scored, four RBI and one stolen base in that same four-game span. Despite his lack of recent power production, Wendle has maintained an impressive .309/.354/.537 line with 28 runs scored and 20 RBI across 147 plate appearances.

Adames is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Orioles, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Adames will sit out the series finale after he went 5-for-15 with a home run, two doubles, five walks, five runs and four RBI while starting at shortstop in the Rays' previous five games. That represents one of the best stretches of the season for the 25-year-old, who is still sitting on a career-worst .197/.254/.371 batting line for the campaign. With multiple highly-regarded middle-infield prospects waiting in the wings at Triple-A Durham, Adames will need to continue to excel at the plate moving forward to ensure he holds down an everyday role for the balance of the season.

Correa went 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI in Wednesday's 8-1 win over Oakland.

Correa has turned around a rough patch earlier this month and hit safely in five straight games (7-for-17). His average dipped to .239 on May 11, but the shortstop reversed that trend and is batting .264 with 14 extra-base hits and 21 RBI for the season.

Fletcher (groin) is playing second base and batting ninth in Wednesday's game against the Indians.

Fletcher has been out of action since May 15 with a groin issue. The brief absence may have come at a good time for Fletcher, who was 0-for-17 in his last four games before suffering the injury.

Wendle is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

With a tough southpaw (John Means) on the hill for the opposition, Rays manager Kevin Cash has elected to give three key left-handed hitters in Wendle, Austin Meadows and Ji-Man Choi the day off. Wendle's move to the bench opens up third base for Mike Brosseau, who will bat ninth in the order.

Wendle went 3-for-5 with a triple and two runs in a win over the Orioles on Tuesday.

Wendle now has a combined seven hits over two of his last three games, leading to a quick 25-point boost in his batting average to .292. Wendle also garnered his first three-bagger of the season Tuesday and has now laced 17 of his 38 hits this season for extra bases, having also compiled 13 doubles and three home runs.