MLB Player News

Grandal was slotted fourth in the lineup Monday, going 0-for-4 in a 2-1 loss to the Giants.

In a surprising move, manager Dave Roberts slotted his catcher ahead of Adrian Gonzalez in the batting order. Grandal had gone 1-for-6 against Matt Cain prior to Monday's game, so the move doesn't appear to be a matchup play. The 28-year-old's .442 slugging percentage (over 100 points higher than Gonzalez's) may have something to do with the lineup shift. We will have to see if this lineup shift sticks past Monday, as it would be a boon to Grandal's fantasy value.

Hedges went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and two RBI in Monday's 7-6 loss to the Diamondbacks.

After a terrible start, Hedges now has six home runs in his last eight games and has his average up to .183. The 24-year-old was always a defense-first backstop, but he made considerable strides with the bat in the minors last season, giving the Padres and fantasy owners hope that he could contribute at the plate in his first full season as the starter. The homer binge won't last, but it's a reminder that he can provide offensively for stretches in two-catcher and deep NL-only leagues.

Mesoraco (hip, shoulder) is targeting a Friday return from the DL, MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reports.

Mesoraco's final day of his rehab assignment is Tuesday, but the Reds won't activate him until after their off day Thursday. The big question for the Reds is whether they'll keep three catchers or otherwise try to sneak Rule 5 pick Stuart Turner through waivers, assuming the Twins simply don't claim Turner when he's offered back.

Barnhart is not in the lineup Monday against the Brewers, C. Trent Rosencrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

It appears to be just a normal day off for Barnhart. The 26-year-old catcher has gotten off to a decent start this season while filling in for the injured Devin Mesoraco, slashing .275/.327/.333 in 57 plate appearances. He'll most likely be back behind the plate by the end of the series.

Contreras is out of the lineup Monday against the Pirates.

Manager Joe Maddon will rest Contreras for the second consecutive day, as Miguel Montero draws another start behind the plate. It's still expected that Contreras will take on the bulk of the catching duties going forward, so fantasy owners shouldn't read too much into the second-year player receiving two games off in a row. Contreras has gotten off to a fine start to the new season, hitting .269 with two homers, four doubles and 10 RBI.

Smith started at second base and homered twice Sunday for High-A Rancho Cucamonga against Inland Empire.

Rancho Cucamonga is carrying three catchers on the active roster right now, affording the club the luxury of moving Smith -- a first-round pick in 2016 -- to another position. Smith is now hitting .333/.421/.625 in 58 plate appearances.

Grandal went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Sunday's win over the Diamondbacks.

Sunday's homer was just the switch-hitting catcher's fifth extra-base hit of the season and first long ball since going deep twice in the season opener. That said, with a .250 batting average and three homers, fantasy owners should have little to complain about from the catcher position.

D'Arnaud (wrist) is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Nationals.

It was recently reported that d'Arnaud was still dealing with wrist pain, so he'll remain out of the lineup Sunday. With d'Arnaud out, the Mets will start Kevin Plawecki behind the dish. There's yet to be any indication that d'Arnaud will land on the DL, so consider him day-to-day for the time being.

Hedges is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Marlins.

The red-hot Hedges, who has hit a home run in three consecutive games, will head to the bench Sunday and be replaced by Luis Torrens. The young catcher should be back in the lineup Monday against the Diamondbacks.

Mesoraco (hip, shoulder) got knocked in the knee a couple of days ago in a game at Double-A Pensacola, and the team is monitoring his status with that in addition to his hip and shoulder before activating him from the DL, Zach Buchanan from the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

On the bright side, Mesoraco was able to catch a full game the day after the incident. On the down side, Mesoraco isn't hitting very well against Double-A pitching during his rehab assignment, with a .167/.268/.250 line over 41 plate appearances. While we can say stats don't matter on a rehab assignment, it's been over two years since Mesoraco has had a healthy season in the majors, so his performance off of his breakout 2014 season is far from guaranteed.