Major League Baseball

MLB Quick Hits: Rendon returns

Published Jun. 5, 2015 5:48 a.m. ET

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John Halpin

Anthony Rendon, who had missed the entire season with a sprained left knee, was in the Nationals' lineup on Thursday, batting second and playing second base. Rendon had two hits and two strikeouts in four at-bats, and --  importantly -- was caught stealing once. Getting caught obviously isn't good, but the fact that Rendon made an attempt suggests his knee won't keep him from trying. For a guy who stole 17 bases last season, that matters.

Rendon played mostly third base last year, but carries 2B/3B eligibility. Nationals manager Matt Williams said Thursday that due to Yunel Escobar's comfort level at third base, Rendon will stay at the keystone for awhile (assuming that Escobar's wrist injury isn't serious, anyway). Start Rendon if you've got him.

In other news ...

Mets 2B/3B Daniel Murphy left Thursday's game due to tightness in his left quad. We'll find out today if Murphy needs a DL stint.

Kevin Jepsen closed out the Rays' Thursday win, but only because Brad Boxberger's 32 pitches the night before rendered him unavailable. Nothing to see here.

Kenley Jansen's unavailability for Wednesday's game in Denver was due to high blood pressure. Things appeared back to normal for Jansen on Thursday, when he was cleared to pitch. All is well.

Mark Trumbo batted fifth and played first base in his Mariners debut on Thursday. Logan Morrison was on the bench, 

White Sox rookie southpaw Carlos Rodon may have had a soft matchup against the Rangers on Thursday, but 10 strikeouts in six innings is still very impressive. Rodon is still walking too many batters, but he's up to 35 Ks in 34 2/3 innings, and is owned in just 13 percent of FOXSports.com leagues.

A's C Stephen Vogt left Thursday's game with a cramp in his right leg, and although it doesn't sound serious, SFGate.com calls him "questionable" for tonight's game in Boston.

Reminder: The Brewers expect Ryan Braun (thumb) back sometime this weekend, but they're not quite sure when.

The MRI on Brian McCann's foot was negative, and he's day-to-day. 

New to the DL: D-backs SP Archie Bradley (shoulder), Twins SP Ricky Nolasco (ankle).

Nats C Wilson Ramos missed Thursday's game with a sore right thumb, but it sounds like a minor issue.

Desmond Jennings' knee is not healing well. Remember when he was going to be the next Carl Crawford (and Crawford was good)? Ugh.

Erasmo Ramirez pitched well and got the win as our Thursday streaming starter. The weekend selections are: Boston's Wade Miley (owned in 4.7 percent of FOXSports.com leagues) tonight against the A's; Chase Anderson (8 percent owned) versus the possibly undermanned Mets on Saturday; and Mike Pelfrey (13.6 percent owned) against the Brewers on Sunday. I think Pelfrey's 2.59 ERA is fluky, but there aren't a lot of options that day.

DFS Friday streaming advice (based on 50/50 games, salaries from DraftKings): There are no big favorites or aces on tonight's schedule. I like Jake Odorizzi ($8,600) at the whiff-tastic Mariners, and Edinson Volquez ($7,800) versus the Rangers ... Carlos Martinez has been dealing lately, but the Dodgers are too scary of a matchup ... If you want to be bold in a tournament, note that Cleveland's Shaun Marcum ($4,300) hasn't pitched badly, and faces a Baltimore squad that strikes out plenty vs. RHP ... Jonathan Lucroy's price ($3,600) is low, and he faces a bad starter in Kyle Gibson ... If I can't play Chase Headley ($3,900) at Yankee Stadium against a slop-throwing RHP like Jered Weaver, what is there to live for? ... The lack of premium-priced SPs gives you the opportunity to pay for bats, so Paul Goldschmidt ($5,700) is in play vs. lefty Jon Niese ... Tigers SS Jose Iglesias ($3,300) hits LHP well, and gets Jose Quintana ... Dustin Pedroia is 19-for-40 with two home runs against Scott Kazmir ... You might not be into the BvP game, but Yoenis Cespedes has homered four times in nine at-bats against Quintana ... A cheap 2B/3B option could be Washington's Danny Espinosa ($2,900). If Escobar can't play, Espinosa will be in line for a start, and he hits LHP pretty well (.354 career wOBA).

See you back here Monday morning.

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