MLB Player News

Contreras went 3-for-3 with two doubles in a split-squad loss to the Dodgers on Saturday.

Contreras is one of the best prospects in the Cubs' system, and with David Ross retiring at the end of this season and Miguel Montero not getting any younger, Contreras could be behind the plate for the Cubs on Opening Day 2017. Though Saturday's hits were his first this spring, Contreras has also walked four times in his 10 plate appearances. The walks aren't a fluke - Contreras has been improving his walk rate every year he's been in the minors. If you have a reserve-list dart to throw this year, you can do worse.

Manager Terry Collins admitted Saturday that there's a chance Plawecki is left off the Opening Day roster, Matt Ehalt of the Bergen Record reports.

Plawecki smacked a two-run homer off Tyler Lyons during Saturday's spring game with the Cardinals, but the skipper offered up a sobering dose of reality after the exhibition. While some sort of timeshare with Plawecki and top option Travis d'Arnaud would make sense to keep both players healthy for the long haul, near-everyday at-bats in the minors would allow Plawecki to stay sharp until there's a more pressing need for his services at the major league level.

Grandal is dealing with a right arm contusion and will receive several days off, MLB.com's Ken Gurnick reports.

Manager Dave Roberts said Grandal may be able to return to action Monday, so he will be held out through the weekend, and possibly beyond. However, given that he is dealing with only a bruise, his status for Opening Day should not be affected.

Mesoraco (hip) can be expected to play in games mid-to-late next week, per manager Bryan Price, the Cincinnati Enquirer's C. Trent Rosecrans reports.

He has restarted catching drills, and should play exclusively behind the plate when he does get into games, as he doesn't have time to get sharp at two positions due to his late start this spring. Mesoraco would need to return next week and be setback free from then until Opening Day in order to be ready for the start of the season.

Mesoraco (hip, groin) has resarted catching drills, with bullpen catching being the next step. When he eventually sees game action, he probably will be exclusively behind the plate, because of the late start, eliminating outfield action when he needs a day off from catching as an option in the near term.

There still isn't a date for when Mesoraco will see spring training game action, but that would be the second step after bullpen catching duty. It's still possible that he could get a late start to the season, but he's progressing on the right path for now.

Rupp went 2-for-3 with two solo home runs in Wednesday's win over the Twins.

Rupp wasn't the only Phillie to homer twice Wednesday. Darin Ruf also went deep twice against the Orioles in a split squad game. Rupp hit his shots off of Tommy Milone and Casey Fien. He is expected to open the regular season with a larger share of the playing time behind the plate over Carlos Ruiz.

Mesoraco (hip) has resumed taking batting practice, Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

After some starts and stops to his recovery from season-ending hip surgery last year, Mesoraco has taken another step in the right direction recently by logging some batting practice sessions. There is still no timetable for when he'll begin playing in games, but stringing some batting practice sessions together without any incident will put him on the right path toward his exhibition debut.

Maldonado is 3-for-9 with a double and run scored through four games this spring.

This is a good start for a player who hit just .210/.282/.293 in 2015. However, the only way he sees significant playing time this year will be if Jonathan Lucroy suffers another injury-plagued season, or if Lucroy is traded to another squad.

The Diamondbacks optioned Hernandez to High-A Visalia on Monday, Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic reports.

Hernandez spent all of last season with the big club as a Rule 5 pick, but he appeared in just 18 games with the big club, and his assignment to High-A indicates the team still believes he has plenty of developing to do.

Mesoraco's spring debut will be delayed due to a minor groin injury, MLB.com reports. "I would say we've slowed things down a little bit. It's not anything alarming," Mesoraco said Saturday. "It's a little bit slower just to give me a little more time to do everything a little more. I would say within the next seven to 10 days, I will be out there."

The 27-year-old tried his best to ease any concern, describing the discomfort as "a very small minimal amount of groin and hip flexor tightness, soreness" and adding that it's something doctors said would probably happen. Now more than eight months removed from surgery to repair a torn labrum in his left hip, Mesoraco has been able to hit and catch on the side and participate in team drills throughout the early stages of camp.