MLB Player News

Strange-Gordon was released by the Nationals on Friday, Bobby Blanco of MASN Nationals reports.

Strange-Gordon re-signed with the Nationals on a minor-league deal in mid-July after being released by the team a month prior, and he's once again been let go. The veteran utility man posted a .661 OPS in 23 big-league games and went 4-for-21 in six contests with Triple-A Rochester.

Witt went 2-for-4 with two runs, an RBI and a stolen base in Thursday's 7-3 win against Boston.

Witt singled, stole second and scored in the first inning and brought home the game-winning run with a single before scoring in the seventh for his second straight multi-hit effort. The 22-year-old is one of two players with 15 home runs and 20 thefts and could put together a strong close to his rookie campaign with a .308 average, two home runs and three stolen bases across his last seven games.

Bichette went 3-for-5 with two doubles and a pair of runs scored in Thursday's 9-3 win over the Twins.

Bichette had gone 2-for-16 across his last five games prior to breaking out of the mini-slump Thursday. He was able to score as part of the Blue Jays' rallies in the sixth and eighth innings. The shortstop lifted his season slash line to .260/.303/.419 with 14 home runs, 56 RBI, 57 runs scored, seven stolen bases and 26 doubles through 104 contests.

Smith isn't starting Thursday against the White Sox, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Although right-hander Johnny Cueto is on the mound for the White Sox on Thursday, Smith will head to the bench after he went 3-for-8 with two walks and three strikeouts over the last three games. Ezequiel Duran is starting at third base while Elier Hernandez serves as the designated hitter.

Velazquez will start at shortstop and bat ninth in Thursday's game against the Athletics, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Velazquez will crack the lineup for the fourth time in five games, and he could handle a near-everyday role in the short term if the Angels elect to give Luis Rengifo more exposure to third base rather than leaning on struggling veteran Phil Gosselin at the position. Though the Angels appear to value Velazquez's defense in the middle infield, he's produced an anemic .487 OPS in 262 plate appearances. Velazquez's 12-for-12 success rate on stolen-base attempts has been the only thing propping up his fantasy value.

Fletcher is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Athletics, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

Fletcher is 5-for-17 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI and three runs in five games since returning from the injured list, and he'll take a seat Sunday for the third time in the Angels' past five contests. Luis Rengifo and Andrew Velazquez will start at second base and shortstop Thursday.

Mateo went 0-for-3 with a walk, a stolen base and a run scored in Wednesday's 6-3 win over the Rangers.

Two of the top three base-stealers play for Baltimore, with Mateo (26) and Cedric Mullins (23) trailing only Miami's Jon Berti's (groin) major-league-leading 28. In his last 11 games, Mateo's provided a more well-rounded line with three home runs, four steals, eight RBI and eight runs scored. He's batted .297 in that span to lift his season average to .216 through 97 contests overall.

Edman isn't starting the first game of Thursday's doubleheader against the Cubs, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Edman started Tuesday's series opener against the Cubs and went 1-for-2 with two runs and a walk. Nolan Gorman will take over at the keystone while Brendan Donovan enters the lineup at third base during Thursday's matinee.

Adames went 2-for-4 with a double, four RBI and a run scored in an 8-7 loss to the Pirates on Wednesday.

Adames came up with two timely two-RBI hits to keep the Brewers in the back-and-forth contest. Adames now has 61 RBI on the season. The total marks a new career high despite him hitting only .225 and reaching base at a poor .292 clip.

Arcia went 2-for-3 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 3-1 loss to the Phillies.

The 28-year-old utility player gave Atlanta a 1-0 lead by taking Zack Wheeler deep in the fifth inning, but it was all the offense the home team could muster on the afternoon. Arcia has started five straight games at second base and homered in the last two, giving him seven long balls on the year in 178 plate appearances to go with a .247/.320/.411 slash line, and he'll continue to hold down the fort at the keystone until Ozzie Albies (foot) makes his return.