MLB Player News

Barnhart is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Pirates.

Barnhart caught the past four games, so he'll head to the bench to rest for a day. Ramon Cabrera will fill in behind the dish in his stead.

Murphy went 2-for-4 with his second home run Wednesday in a win against the Giants.

Through his first 11 at-bats in the majors this year, Murphy's racked up six hits. He made a strong debut last season, and any Rockies hitter is worth owning when he's in the lineup consistently. Unfortunately, Murphy's just one man in a three-catcher rotation right now, so he'll need to win more regular starts before meriting a pickup for the stretch run.

Grandal is out of the lineup Wednesday against the Diamondbacks.

The Dodgers are clearly loading Wednesday's lineup with righties against southpaw Robbie Ray, as lefties have give them trouble all season long. To that end, Carlos Ruiz will start behind the dish and hit sixth Wednesday.

Maldonado is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

Maldonado is just 1-for-13 (.077) at the plate this month, so manager Craig Counsell decided to give him a day off Wednesday. Manny Pina will serve as the Brewers' catcher in Maldonado's place.

Diaz has been shut down for the rest of the season due to a bacterial infection in his leg that required surgery, the Pittsburgh Tribune's Travis Sawchik reports.

At best, Diaz could have served as the third or fourth catcher for the Pirates in September. Instead, he will take time to recover from surgery to take care of a bacterial infection. It sounds like he will be ready to go when pitchers and catchers report to spring training.

Rupp is not in the lineup Wednesday for the second straight day, according to CSN's Jim Salisbury.

Rupp has been in a prolonged slump at the plate that has dropped his average from .277 on Aug. 14 to .259 as of Wednesday, so manager Pete Mackanin decided to give him back-to-back days off for the second time in a week. A.J. Ellis will start behind the plate again Wednesday in Rupp's place.

D'Arnaud is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Reds, according to Adam Rubin of ESPN.com.

D'Arnaud will get the day off Wednesday with the Mets playing a day game following a night game. Rene Rivera will get the start behind the plate in d'Arnaud's place.

Contreras is not in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Brewers.

Manager Joe Maddon has started to get creative with his catchers, as Miguel Montero will start for the second straight day Tuesday on the heels of Contreras getting two straight starts and David Ross starting the two games prior to that. It remains to be seen what Maddon's plans for the catcher position will be moving forward, but he figures to keep using all three players.

Rupp is not in the lineup Tuesday against the Marlins.

This seems to be another routine day off for Rupp, although it is notable to point out that it's the third time since August 31 that he'll be taking a seat on the bench. A.J. Ellis will be taking his place behind the dish against Miami for the evening.

Realmuto went 1-for-4 with an RBI in Monday's loss to the Phillies.

Realmuto has been a bright spot for the Marlins this season, hitting .311 with nine home runs and 11 stolen bases. The backstop has been very consistent this year, hitting at least .284 in every month. Just 25, Realmuto should continue to produce through September and into 2017.