MLB Player News
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Connor Wong C | BOS
Red Sox's Connor Wong: Returns from paternity list
The Red Sox reinstated Wong (personal) from the paternity list Thursday, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
Wong missed the maximum three games while on paternity leave and will rejoin the Red Sox ahead of Friday's series opener versus the Padres. Tyler Heineman was optioned to Triple-A Worcester to clear room on the active roster for Wong, who should settle back in as Boston's No. 1 catcher while Reese McGuire serves as the backup.
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Kyle McCann C | ATH
Athletics' Kyle McCann: On base three times Wednesday
McCann went 1-for-2 with two walks in a loss to the Angels on Wednesday.
McCann made one of his relatively infrequent appearances in the starting nine and once again contributed, qualifying as the only Athletics batter to reach safely on three occasions. However, he was part of an unfortunate sequence in the second inning, when he stumbled and failed to touch home plate when attempting to score and was subsequently called out due to Armando Alvarez making contact with him in an attempt to steer McCann back to the plate. That gaffe notwithstanding, the rookie backstop has now reached safely in four consecutive games dating back to June 16, and he sports a .278 average and .804 OPS across 91 plate appearances (30 games) this season.
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Cesar Salazar C | HOU
Astros' Cesar Salazar: Productive in backup duties
Salazar went 1-for-3 with a double, an RBI and a run scored Wednesday against the Rockies.
Salazar was recalled June 11 to serve as depth behind the plate as Houston dealt with injuries to their top two catchers. With Victor Caratini (hip) likely sidelined through the All-Star break, Salazar should get a couple starts per week for the foreseeable future. He's gone 5-for-11 with three runs scored and four RBI since being promoted.
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Jonah Heim C | TEX
Rangers' Jonah Heim: Goes yard Wednesday
Heim went 2-for-3 with a solo home run during Wednesday's 6-5 loss to Milwaukee in 10 innings.
Heim and Nathaniel Lowe hit back-to-back homers in the fourth inning, snapping a 12-game homerless streak for Heim. The outing was also Heim's first multi-hit game since June 5. The catcher is slashing .234/.288/.344 with seven home runs across 244 at-bats in 2024.
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Yainer Diaz C | HOU
Astros' Yainer Diaz: Three hits in Wednesday's win
Diaz went 3-for-4 with two RBI in Wednesday's 7-1 win over the Rockies.
The 25-year-old backstop extended his hitting streak to seven games, a stretch in which he's batting .407 (11-for-27) with seven RBI. Diaz has yet to go yard since taking a foul tip off his finger and missing a few games earlier this month, but his current hot stretch has pushed his slash line on the season up to .271/.298/.415 with seven homers, 32 runs and 40 RBI in 69 contests.
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Freddy Fermin C | SD
Royals' Freddy Fermin: Drives in two in Wednesday's win
Fermin went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI in Wednesday's 5-1 win over the Marlins.
The Royals' offense was stuck in neutral until the eighth inning, but Fermin capped a five-run outburst with a two-run single. The 29-year-old had been on the bench the prior three games with Michael Massey serving as the DH in his return from a lower-back strain, which kept Salvador Perez behind the plate. But playing time should open up for Fermin again once Massey is ready to resume defensive duties at second base. On the season, Fermin is slashing .294/.340/.434 with four homers, 18 RBI and 21 runs in 48 contests.
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Ryan Jeffers C | MIN
Twins' Ryan Jeffers: Taking seat Wednesday
Jeffers is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Diamondbacks.
The 27-year-old and Christian Vazquez have alternated starts over Minnesota's past 21 games, and that trend will continue after Jeffers went 1-for-3 with a three-run homer Tuesday.
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David Fry C | CLE
Guardians' David Fry: Heading to bench Wednesday
Fry is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles.
After leaving Sunday's 6-5 win over the Blue Jays earlier due to elbow inflammation, Fry returned to the lineup as a designated hitter for both of the Guardians' first two games in Baltimore, going 2-for-8 with two doubles and an RBI. The Guardians haven't indicated that Fry is dealing with a setback with the elbow, so his absence from the lineup Wednesday is likely just a pre-planned maintenance day.
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Bo Naylor C | CLE
Guardians' Bo Naylor: Taking seat Wednesday
Naylor is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game in Baltimore.
Naylor will get some rest in the series finale after he caught both of the Guardians' last two contests while going 4-for-8 with two doubles, one triple, three runs and two RBI. Austin Hedges will pick up the start behind the plate Wednesday.