MLB Player News

Clarke isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Mariners.

Clarke will get a day off after going 1-for-6 with a walk and a run scored in his first two games back from the injured list. Zack Gelof, Henry Bolte and Lawrence Butler will start across the outfield for the A's while Clarke is on the bench.

Mesa is not in the lineup Thursday against the Rangers.

Mesa has gone 3-for-8 across the two games he's played in since returning from a strained left hamstring Tuesday. He'll receive some rest Thursday while Jonny DeLuca gets the start in right field and bats fifth.

Rafaela (quad) isn't in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Orioles, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.

Rafaela was pulled from Wednesday's game in the seventh inning due to quad tightness, and he'll need at least a day to recover before making his return to the starting nine. His absence will allow Eli White to start in center field and bat eighth Thursday.

Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Thursday that Santander (shoulder) has been facing live pitching this week at the team's spring training complex in Florida and could be ready for a rehab assignment next week, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports.

Santander had surgery in February to repair his left shoulder labrum, but he's given himself a chance to return before the end of this month with his recent progress. Still, the odds are long that he's able to make it back in the coming weeks and contribute offensively following an extended layoff.

Smith is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game versus the White Sox.

Smith had started the last four contests for the Astros, but this will be the third time he's been out of the lineup the last five times his team has faced a righty. LaMonte Wade and Taylor Trammell will be in the corner outfield spots in the series finale.

Bolte went 3-for-4 with a walk, two home runs, four RBI and a stolen base in Wednesday's 9-2 win over the Rangers.

The rookie outfielder wasn't getting fooled by lefty Cody Bradford, touching him up for two-run blasts in the third and fourth innings as the A's put the game away early. Bolte snapped a 16-game power drought with the performance, but he stayed productive during that span with a .299/.373/.358 slash line. Through his first 375 big-league plate appearances, Bolte is batting .274 with a respectable .739 OPS, eight homers, 15 steals, 30 RBI and 41 runs.

Bellinger went 3-for-5 with one RBI and two runs scored in Wednesday's 6-3 extra-inning win over the Angels.

Bellinger has back-to-back three-hit games to start September, and he's logged multiple hits in four straight contests. The outfielder is giving it a good effort to finish the regular season strong, especially if he can sustain this momentum throughout the rest of the campaign. He's batting .267 with a .769 OPS, 12 home runs, 60 RBI, 61 runs scored, 22 doubles, three triples and 10 stolen bases across 113 contests.

Peters went 2-for-3 with a triple and a stolen base in Wednesday's 2-0 loss to the Astros.

Peters had a five-game homer streak in late August, but since it ended, he's cooled off by going just 4-for-18 with one extra-base hit over his last six games. The outfielder was able to provide a little speed boost in this contest, though that hasn't been a steady part of his production throughout the year. He's 8-for-10 on the basepaths this year while hitting .279 with an .813 OPS, 12 home runs, 52 RBI, 54 runs scored, 27 doubles and four triples over 134 contests.

Varsho went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in Wednesday's 2-0 win over the White Sox.

Varsho had gone 0-for-11 over his previous three games. The outfielder was given some rest Tuesday and broke the short slump in Wednesday's contest while picking up his first steal since Aug. 5. Between Houston and Toronto this year, Varsho is batting .228 with a .653 OPS, 10 home runs, 11 steals, 36 RBI, 46 runs scored, 22 doubles and two triples over 125 contests.

Clark went 3-for-4 with two walks, three doubles, an RBI and three runs scored in Wednesday's 11-6, extra-innings win over the Twins.

Clark came into the contest batting just .179 in his previous 10 games, but he broke out of his slump in a big way Wednesday. The rookie outfielder became the first Detroit player with three doubles in a game since Miguel Cabrera back in 2018. Clark has been a bit up and down since making his MLB debut back on July 31, though the 21-year-old has certainly flashed signs of his immense potential with a .766 OPS through his first 30 contests.