MLB Player News
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Ryan Jeffers C | MIN
Twins' Ryan Jeffers: Returning to action Sunday
Jeffers (hand) is starting behind the plate and batting fifth Sunday against the Cardinals.
The 27-year-old wasn't in the lineup Saturday after he exited Friday's contest due to hand soreness, but X-rays came back negative and his absence will be limited to one game. Jeffers has carried a hot bat of late and has gone 10-for-28 with four homers over his past nine games.
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Austin Hedges C | CLE
Guardians' Austin Hedges: Filling in for resting Naylor
Hedges will start at catcher and bat ninth in Sunday's game against the Rangers.
With top backstop Bo Naylor getting the afternoon off with a lefty (Cody Bradford) on the mound for the Rangers, Hedges will get the nod behind the dish. Hedges, who is hitting .152 over 105 at-bats this season, will likely continue to see limited usage down the stretch while Naylor is healthy.
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Bo Naylor C | CLE
Guardians' Bo Naylor: Resting against lefty
Naylor is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rangers.
With the Guardians concluding their series against the Rangers with a day game and with Texas sending a lefty (Cody Bradford) to the bump, the lefty-hitting Naylor will get the afternoon off. Austin Hedges will check in for Naylor behind the plate.
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Carson Kelly C | TEX
Rangers' Carson Kelly: Losing work to Heim
Kelly is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Guardians.
Kelly appeared to have worked his way into a timeshare at catcher with Jonah Heim earlier this month while the latter was slumping, but the playing time behind the dish seems to be tilting back in Heim's favor. Heim will pick up his third start at catcher in four games while Kelly returns to the bench after he had caught in Saturday's 13-5 loss.
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Austin Wells C | NYY
Yankees' Austin Wells: On bench versus lefty
Wells is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rockies.
For the second time in the series, Wells will give way to platoon mate Jose Trevino behind the dish while southpaw Austin Gomber toes the rubber for the Rockies. Wells should continue to see the bulk of the starts at catcher when the Yankees face right-handed pitching.
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Jake Rogers C | DET
Tigers' Jake Rogers: Productive in win Saturday
Rogers went 3-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored and three RBI in Saturday's 13-4 win over the White Sox.
After getting Friday off, Rogers returned with a bang Saturday to help power the offense. The 29-year-old is splitting time behind the plate with rookie Dillon Dingler, who will likely get Sunday's matinee contest. Rogers has taken a step back from 2023, when he blasted 21 home runs and posted a .730 OPS. This season, Rogers has nine long balls and a .603 OPS through 78 games, and Dingler may see his role grow down the stretch if the Tigers fall out of contention and want to take a look at younger players.
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Ryan Jeffers C | MIN
Twins' Ryan Jeffers: Clean X-rays on right hand
X-rays on Jeffers' injured right hand were negative, MLB.com reports. He did not play in Saturday's game after being removed late in Friday's game due to the injury. "He was having a little trouble gripping the bat downstairs, so we got him out of the game," manager Rocco Baldelli said. "That was why he came out. But he should be OK going forward."
Jeffers was lifted for a pinch hitter in the ninth inning of Friday's loss to St. Louis due to a sore hand. He took balls off his hand twice while behind the plate but was able to continue playing defense. It sounds like he could return to the lineup Sunday, but he may need another day or two off.
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Bo Naylor C | CLE
Guardians' Bo Naylor: Pops 10th homer
Naylor went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in Saturday's 13-5 win over the Rangers.
Naylor's up to 10 homers on the year, three of which he's hit over his 18 games in August. Despite the slight uptick in power, he's batting just .226 (12-for-53) this month, though that's a little better than his .207 batting average for the year. The catcher has added a .626 OPS, 36 RBI, 34 runs scored and four stolen bases over 311 plate appearances. The Guardians have mostly stuck to a strict platoon at catcher between the left-handed Naylor and right-handed Austin Hedges in August, so Naylor should continue to see a healthy share of playing time.
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Ben Rortvedt C | TB
Rays' Ben Rortvedt: On bench Saturday
Rortvedt is out of the lineup for Saturday's game against the Dodgers.
Rortvedt was reinstated from the family emergency list Saturday, but he's absent from the starting nine against Clayton Kershaw and the Dodgers. Alex Jackson will bat ninth and fill in for Rortvedt behind the dish.