MLB Player News

Maldonado homered, a solo shot, in a 2-for-4 game Tuesday against the Pirates.

Maldonado is in the majors for his excellent defense, not his bat, but he has been showing some solid power this season. He tied a career high with his eighth home run Tuesday and is now slugging .351 despite just a .194 batting average. Unfortunately, Maldonado has managed an OPS over .700 just twice in five MLB seasons and is unlikely to provide much fantasy value aside from running into the occasional home run.

Stewart (knee) underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left knee Tuesday, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Given that the Pirates had ruled him out for the season, Stewart decided to get a head start on his recovery process and undergo surgery prior to the end of the campaign. The recovery time for this procedure is typically 6-to-8 weeks, so as long as everything goes as planned, the veteran backstop should be back in time for spring training.

Grandal (elbow) is in the lineup for Monday's game against the Giants.

Grandal will return to action Monday after missing the last couple games with his elbow injury. He will be behind the plate and hit seventh in the Dodgers' batting order.

D'Arnaud is not in the lineup for Monday's game against the Braves, according to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo.

D'Arnaud has spent plenty time on the bench of late, and that will again be the case Monday, as Rene Rivera will start for the fourth time in six games.

The Pirates expect Diaz (leg) to be ready for the start of spring training, GM Neal Huntington said during his Sunday radio show.

After working through an elbow injury, Diaz came down with an unrelated cause of cellulitis on his leg. Although the catcher missed an opportunity for playing time in 2016, Huntington remains encouraged about his future, saying Diaz's arm strength is the best in the system and his offense is coming along. Given Francisco Cervelli's checkered history of spotty health, Diaz could easily work his way into the mix behind the plate.

Grandal (elbow) is not in the lineup Sunday against Arizona, Andy McCullough of the LA Times reports.

Grandal will sit for the second straight day as he continues to battle soreness in his right elbow, an ailment that's plagued him for much of the season. The expectation seems to be that Grandal will continue to play through the discomfort down the stretch, but he could require periodic rest.

Realmuto is out of the lineup Sunday against the Phillies.

Realmuto had been behind the plate for six days in a row, so he's due for a day off in the series finale. Jeff Mathis will replace Realmuto behind the plate and bat seventh in the order.

Contreras is not in the lineup Sunday against the Brewers.

Contreras caught the last two games, going 3-for-8 with two doubles in that span, but he'll take the day off Sunday to rest now that the division title is already locked up. Miguel Montero will take over behind the plate in his stead.

Hernandez was recalled from Double-A Mobile on Saturday.

Hernandez will provide the Diamondbacks with an insurance policy behind the plate with Welington Castillo battling some quad tightness in recent days. The 23-year-old's offensive numbers fell off dramatically after he made the jump from High-A Visalia to Mobile, with his OPS falling nearly 260 points between levels.

Grandal is out of the lineup Saturday due to lingering soreness in his right elbow, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports.

This is the first word of any arm troubles for Grandal since April, but manager Dave Roberts suggested this issue has been bothering Grandal for awhile. There has been no indication that Grandal won't be able to continue playing through the discomfort, but it seems the injury may be affecting his performance at the plate (.191 average this month).