MLB Player News

Murphy will receive a bone scan Friday in Arizona to assess the healing progress of his broken right wrist, Nick Groke of The Denver Post reports.

The backstop's last significant update came about two weeks ago, when it was reported he was not yet doing fielding drills. Murphy could return in the coming weeks to join an already crowded Rockies catcher pool, though his performance against live pitching and eventually minor-league hurlers will determine his immediate timetable. Still, in deep two-catcher fantasy leagues, he's a useful stash for his offensive potential at hitter-friendly Coors Field in the event he runs away with majority playing time.

Bethancourt will focus on pitching while at Triple-A El Paso, Dennis Lin of the Union-Tribune reports.

The Padres outrighted Bethancourt off the 40-man roster Tuesday after his struggles as both a reliever and as a hitter while with the big-league club. According to Lin, Bethancourt will leave open the possibility of going back behind the plate down the line, but wants to train primarily as a pitcher for the time being. Bethancourt has strong velocity on his fastball, sitting at 94.1 miles per hour, but he'll need time to hone in on his command. He walked a whopping eight batters in just 3.2 innings while with the Padres, but it's clear that the organization is confident enough in his upside to where they believe he can develop as a pitcher down the line.

Hedges is out of the lineup Thursday against the Diamondbacks, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.

Hedges has shown tremendous power at the plate lately. Over the last seven games he's slugged four home runs and notched nine RBI across 22 at-bats. He'll get the night off as the Padres opt to start Luis Torrens at catcher.

Barnes is in the Dodgers' Thursday lineup against the Giants, hitting sixth and playing catcher, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Barnes replaces Yasmani Grandal during the afternoon game against southpaw Matt Moore. He could be a sneaky daily fantasy play considering the platoon advantage.

Grandal is not in the Dodgers' Thursday lineup against the Giants, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Austin Barnes takes his place against southpaw Matt Moore. It's also probably a day off in the afternoon game for the starting backstop. Grandal should be back in action Friday.

Mesoraco (hip, shoulder) was activated from the 10-day disabled list Thursday.

The backstop may not play the workload of a starter, but even with his health issues, he still carries upside at the plate -- perhaps the pace of a 20-homer season the rest of the way. Mesoraco should eventually overtake Tucker Barnhart, as long as he's healthy, and deserves a pickup or activation in two-catcher mixed leagues. Strong progress could put him in the discussion to start in single-catcher games later in the season.

Mesoraco (hip, shoulder) will be activated by the Reds on Friday, C. Trent Rosencrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Mesoraco completed his rehab assignment with Double-A Pensacola on Tuesday and it appears the long-awaited return is finally in sight. The 28-year-old hasn't played in a major-league game in over a year and hasn't made it through an entire season since 2014, so expectations should be greatly tempered regarding his durability. Additionally, the Reds will keep catchers Tucker Barnhart and Stuart Turner on the roster as Mesoraco eases back into action, meaning he won't be playing in an everyday capacity right away. The veteran catcher hit just .170/.291/.255 over 13 games with Pensacola.

Okey went 3-for-4 with a double Tuesday night at High-A Daytona, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Despite the big game Tuesday, he is hitting just .170/.254/.264 there.

We've often seen catchers slow to develop at the plate, but the second-round draft pick out of Clemson last year has shown some disturbing signs. He had a 29 percent strikeout rate at Low-A Dayton last year, and that rate is up to 35.6 percent this year with the level bump. While Okey isn't known as a high-ceiling offensive player, his defensive tools won't get him to the big leagues if he can't master the strike zone at lower levels of the minors.

Bethancourt cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A on Tuesday.

It wasn't the ideal start for Bethancourt, who allowed nine runs (six earned) through 3.2 relief innings while going 1-for-7 as a hitter. He went unclaimed through waivers and will report to Triple-A El Paso, where he'll look to get back on the mound and at the plate.

D'Arnaud (wrist) is catching and batting eighth Tuesday against the Braves.

D'Arnaud has been dealing with wrist pain over the past week, causing him to be held out of the starting lineup for the last four games (though he was able to make brief appearances in each game). His wrist is feeling well enough to throw, Matt Ehalt of The Record reports, prompting manager Terry Collins to reinsert him as the Mets' backstop. The 28-year-old is slashing .244/.326/.488 with two homers and nine RBI through 41 at-bats.