MLB Player News

Rutschman went 2-for-5 with a run scored in Thursday's 6-3 victory over Milwaukee.

The 25-year-old is now batting .372 (16-for-43) with a .903 OPS over his last 11 games. Rutschman has played nearly every day in his sophomore campaign, serving as the DH when taking a break from catching duties. He's slashing .283/.399/.425 with eight homers, 21 runs scored and 28 RBI while tallying more walks (45) than strikeouts (38).

Grandal is not in the lineup for the first game of Thursday's doubleheader against the Yankees.

It will be the second straight game on the bench for Grandal, although he will surely catch during the nightcap. Seby Zavala will be behind the plate for the matinee.

Garver is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.

Garver will get a day off after he went 6-for-16 with three extra-base hits and a pair of walks while starting each of the past four games. Though Jonah Heim is entrenched as Texas' top option behind the plate, Garver should remain the Rangers' preferred designated hitter while he's wielding a hot bat.

Jansen (groin) is on track to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Buffalo over the weekend and could be activated from the 10-day injured list as soon as Tuesday, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports.

After he was able to do sprinting work on the field Monday, Jansen took another incremental step forward in his recovery from the left groin strain by running the bases Wednesday. He'll likely get reassessed Thursday, and if he checks out fine, the Blue Jays could map out a minor-league rehab schedule for him. Whenever he's ready to return from the IL, Jansen will likely resume sharing catching duties with Alejandro Kirk.

Maldonado is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays.

Maldonado will give way behind the plate to Yainer Diaz for the second time in the series. Though the Astros laud Maldonado for his work as a game caller and pitch framer, his .577 OPS and career-worst 31.8 percent strikeout rate have made it difficult for fantasy players to wring much value from him.

Kirk is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Astros.

Kirk gets a breather after going 1-for-7 with a home run in the first two contests of the series. With Kirk on the bench Wednesday, Tyler Heineman will handle catching duties for the Blue Jays.

Bethancourt is out of the lineup Wednesday versus the Twins, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Bethancourt and Francisco Mejia have now alternated catching duties over the past six games, with both backstops drawing three starts apiece. The playing time has generally tilted in Bethancourt's favor this season, so he should still be viewed as Option 1A behind the plate for Tampa Bay.

Vazquez is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

Vazquez continues to work in a roughly even timeshare with Ryan Jeffers at catcher. The two backstops have now alternated turns behind the plate over the past 14 games, drawing seven starts apiece.

Grandal is out of the lineup Wednesday against the Yankees.

Seby Zavala will catch and bat ninth after slugging two home runs and tallying three total RBI to help the White Sox win 3-2 over the Yankees on Tuesday. It seems like a case of manager Pedro Grifol simply riding the hot hand, as Grandal has far out-hit Zavala over the course of the year.

Basallo is hitting .291 with five home runs, a 22.4 percent strikeout rate and a 126 wRC+ through 46 games with Single-A Delmarva.

The second-youngest qualified hitter in the Carolina League behind Anthony Gutierrez, Basallo has handled his first full-season assignment very well. The 18-year-old catcher/first baseman has a 22.8 percent line-drive rate and a groundball rate under 40 percent, so his quality of contact has been strong. The Orioles believe Basallo is a good enough defender to stick behind the plate, but the fact he is already playing first base roughly a third of the time suggests he will play other positions besides catcher as he continues to climb the ladder.