NL East update: Anthony Rendon, Lucas Duda, Mike Redmond

The Washington Nationals have received some good news as Anthony Rendon is making progress in his rehab, according to James Wagner of the Washington Post.

Rendon, 24, sprained his right MCL during the early stages of spring training while diving for a ball. After playing three innings in an extended spring training game, the hope is that Rendon can begin playing in rehab games.

Wagner outlines in his piece that Rendon's rehab could be longer than Jayson Werth and Denard Span. When Rendon returns to the Nationals, he will slot back into the third base slot, which leaves manager Matt Williams to make a decision about how to use Yunel Escobar.

In his first full season as a big leaguer in 2014, Rendon played in 153 games sporting a .287/.351/.473 line with 21 HRs and 83 RBIs. The Nationals hope he can return and post similar numbers, to help them catch ground in the National League East.

NL East Standings 4/22:

NL East news & notes 4/22:

• Speaking of Yunel Escobar, he came up big for the Nationals after Drew Storen blew a save in yesterday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

• The biggest winner in this Bryan Price fiasco? Mike Redmond. After rumors circulated about the Marlins skipper being on the hot seat, the attention has shifted away from Redmond to Price, keeping Redmond safe for now despite the Marlins' 3-11 start.

• On the injury front, one of the Marlins young, talented outfielders Christian Yelich has been battled with a back issue for the past week and was scratched again last night.

• Miami Marlins option Jose Urena to Triple-A New Orleans, select Zephyrs' Nick Masset - FOX Sports
  "Urena, one of the organization's top prospects, made two appearances over the course of a week during his first call-up. He tossed a scoreless frame in his debut on Tuesday against the Atlanta Braves and allowed three runs on three hits over two innings against the New York Mets on Saturday."

• Eric Chesterton of The Good Phight tells Phillies fans to "Embrace the Tank".

• The Mets continue to stay hot, extending their winning streak to nine games after defeating the Braves last night. They are doing so without David Wright, Travis d'Arnaud and Jerry Blevins. In their absence, Mets fans are seeing the rise of a star in Lucas Duda.

• David Wright to resume baseball activity soon - Mets Blog - ESPN
  "General manager Sandy Alderson has estimated Wright will miss three total weeks because of the hamstring injury, so he may have two weeks to go. Wright is eligible to return from the DL on April 30."

• Braves recall lefty Thomas from Triple-A -- www.ajc.com
  "The Braves recalled Thomas from Triple-A – he was promoted from Double-A after two appearances – on Tuesday to replace suspended lefty Andrew McKirahan, who’ll be out 80 games without pay after a positive performance-enhancing drug test."