MLB Player News

Plawecki had sinus surgery in December, opening up his blocked right sinus, which doctors believe was the cause of the dizzy spells that plagued the catcher in the past, the NY Daily News reports.

Plawecki is already at the Mets' spring complex to prepare for his role as the team's backup catcher and possibly a small role at first base. If Travis d'Arnaud is sidelined again this season, then Plawecki will step in as the Mets' starting backstop.

D'Arnaud will see action at other positions during the spring in an attempt to increase his versatility and potentially find a way to get his bat in the lineup when Kevin Plawecki is behind the plate, the New York Post reports.

Those other positions are likely first base and left field, though d'Arnaud's main work will come behind the plate. D'Arnaud has suffered a variety of injuries while catching, so moving him out from behind the plate has been discussed for a while, but his bat plays much better as a catcher than at another position.

Plawecki will see action at first base during the spring in an attempt to increase his versatility and potentially find a way to get him in the lineup when Travis d'Arnaud is behind the plate, the NY Post reports.

Plawecki saw some time at first base in the minors, so playing the position won't be that foreign to him. It's unlikely he sees much time there, though he could possibly play against lefties when Lucas Duda sits and Wilmer Flores is deployed elsewhere in the infield.

Grandal (shoulder) was cleared to swing from both sides of the plate Friday, Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Grandal continues to work his way back from left shoulder surgery, and clearance to swing certainly represents a step in the right direction. Fortunately, the left shoulder issue really only impacts the backstop in the batter's box, as he throws with his right hand like nearly every other catcher. Barring something unforeseen, the 27-year-old should be on track to serve as the Dodgers' primary catcher once again in 2016 despite an underwhelming second half in 2015.

Mesoraco remains on track to be ready for the first day of camp on Feb. 18, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports. "I've done everything," he said. "I've been hitting for a couple of months. Catching-wise, I've been blocking, throwing, receiving and doing just about everything with no pain."

Mesoraco has reached the final stages of his recovery from season-ending hip surgery, which was undertaken on June 29 to repair a labrum and remove a spur. With hitting and some catching duties already behind him, his next test will likely be manning catcher in exhibitions. When healthy, he'll serve as the Reds' No. 1 backstop, from which he logged 100-plus games in both 2013 and 2014.

Monell resigned with the Mets on a minor league contract on Friday, Matt Eddy of Baseball America reports.

Monell had a solid year with Triple-A Las Vegas last year, batting .324 with seven home runs and 51 RBI. He also got a taste of the majors, but only managed to hit .167 in 52 plate appearances. With Travis d'Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki pretty well entrenched as the backstops at the major league level, Monell will likely serve as organizational depth once again. However, if he continues to destroy Triple-A pitching, the Mets may need to reevaluate him a bit.

Grandal agreed to a one-year, $2.8 million contract with the Dodgers on Friday to avoid arbitration, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reports.

Grandal was the centerpiece of a trade that brought sent Matt Kemp to the Padres in 2014. While his first half of the season was promising, he tanked in the second half to finish with just a .234/.353/.403 batting line. Despite the downfall, he should once again serve as the Dodgers' primary catcher in 2016.

Stewart agreed to a two-year deal with the Pirates on Thursday.

Despite his age (33), Stewart remains arbitration-eligible, and now will stay with the club through the 2017 campaign. The veteran backstop has posted two straight solid seasons at the dish, and will look to keep things rolling in 2016 in a limited role behind Francisco Cervelli.

Sanchez was unconditionally released by the Pirates on Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Tribune's Rob Biertempfel reports.

He was designated for assignment last week, and will likely seek a minor league deal with an invite to spring training with another club. Sanchez doesn't offer much in terms of offense, so he can be largely ignored in most fantasy formats.

Sanchez was designated for assignment on Wednesday.

Sanchez was the fourth overall pick in the 2009 draft, but things just haven't worked out for him at the big league level. Francisco Cervelli and Chris Stewart were firmly ahead of him on the organizational depth chart, and the Pirates presumably prefer Elias Diaz to Sanchez as well. The career .259/.303/.378 hitter could catch on as a depth piece with another organization, but he will likely spend most of 2016 at Triple-A.