Player Notes

Pablo Sandoval is out of Wednesday's lineup against the Nationals due to illness.
Advice: Tuesday's hero should be back in there following Thursday's scheduled off-day. Joaquin Arias will make the start at the hot corner.
More: Andrew Baggarly on Twitter

Daniel Descalso went 3-for-3 with his first career grand slam and an RBI double in the Cardinals' 10-2 rout of the Padres on Tuesday.
Advice: Descalso's slam followed an intentional walk to Jon Jay. Descalso entered the game with an ugly .197/.265/.289 line, and he probably wouldn't have been in the lineup if not for David Freese's thumb injury. The home run was his seventh in 813 major league at-bats.

Jonathan Herrera is batting .283/.327/.370 through 49 plate appearances.
Advice: If his slash numbers hold, Herrera will finish with the best offensive season of his career, topping the .694 OPS he mustered in 2010. Unfortunately, the utility infielder has scuffled in the field recently, recording three errors in his last 12 games.

Jack Hannahan grounded out as a pinch-hitter in Monday's victory against the Mets.
Advice: The Minnesota native is miscast as a pinch-hitter and is no threat to Todd Frazier's job, despite the latter's struggles. Hannahan is known for his glove, not his stick, but Cincinnati likely hoped for more than a .222/.317/.278 slash line when they inked him to a two-year, $4 million contract over the offseason.

Ty Wigginton went 0-for-2 with a walk in Monday's loss to the Padres.
Advice: He was also caught stealing. Wigginton doesn't draw many starts, and he doesn't do much with them when he does, slashing .194/.286/.226 with no homers or steals and one RBI through 31 at-bats. St. Louis doesn't often make mistakes, but the two-year, $5 million deal they gifted Wigginton in mid-December certainly qualifies.

Nationals prospect Anthony Rendon started at second base Monday night for Double-A Harrisburg.
Advice: It's interesting given Danny Espinosa's struggles, but Nationals manager Davey Johnson doesn't think Rendon is ready to play second base at the major league level yet. "We like him - we like him a lot," said Johnson. "But putting him at second at the major-league level, he's not there yet. He's not (playing second) specifically. He's just occasionally going over there." Rendon is hitting .390 (23-for-59) with four home runs and 16 RBI since his demotion earlier this month. Nothing appears imminent, but it would be a good idea to continue to monitor his progress in fantasy leagues.
More: FOX Sports

Miguel Tejada's first homer since July 16, 2011 was a three-run shot off the Astros' Dallas Keuchel on Monday.
Advice: Tejada has started just seven games this season, even though the Royals have gotten terrible production at third base, second base and first base. What's the harm in giving him an expanded role for a bit? For what it's worth, he's gone 9-for-27 with six RBI in his limited action.

Alex Rodriguez (hip) fielded grounders and took 25 swings in an indoor batting cage Monday at the Yankees' minor league complex in Tampa, Florida.
Advice: Kicking off his third week of on-field activities following hip surgery, Rodriguez also ran from pole to pole near the warning track four times. "Not bad," said Rodriguez. It's not clear when he'll begin playing in games, but the Yankees hope to have him back around midseason.
More: ESPN New York

Yan Gomes slugged two home runs -- including a 10th-inning walkoff -- in Monday's 10-8 defeat of the Mariners.
Advice: Gomes hit a solo shot in the bottom of the second inning and then played the hero by cranking a three-run blast in the bottom of the 10th with the Indians trailing by two. Gomes finished with four RBI and now has nine RBI in 17 games this season to go along with a cool .951 OPS. He should start seeing a bit more regular playing time.