MLB Player News

Grandal is not in Wednesday's lineup against Tampa Bay, J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group reports.

Grandal is just getting a normal day off, despite his recent power surge. A.J. Ellis will take over behind the plate and will bat eighth.

Grandal went 1-for-3 with his 14th home run of the season Tuesday against the Rays.

That's eight homers in the past month for Grandal, who is just two shy of last season's career-high total. The recent power surge has raised the catcher's slugging percentage to .430, but a dismal .227 BABIP has suppressed his average to a meager .211 mark.

Barnhart is not in the Reds lineup on Tuesday against the Giants, Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Barnhart should be back in the lineup on Wednesday when the Reds take on left-hander Madison Bumgarner and the Giants. The 25-year-old has continued to get better each month, hitting a very respectable .308 in 52 July at-bats. Ramon Cabrera will get the start behind the plate for the Reds on Tuesday.

Contreras is not in the starting lineup for the Cubs on Tuesday.

It looks to be just a regular day off for Contreras, who is hitting only .229 over his past 10 games. The Cubs will return home Wednesday to play the final two games of the series against the White Sox. Contreras' time with the big club has been split fairly evenly between the catcher and left field, with two appearances at first base.

Realmuto is not in the lineup for Tuesday's contest with Philadelphia, Andre Fernandez of the Miami Herald reports.

Realmuto will get his third game off in the Marlins' last 12 as Jeff Mathis fills in behind the dish, batting seventh. While Realmuto has collected hits in seven of his nine starts since the start of the second half, he's failed to record an RBI in any of those contests and is hitting just .237 during that span.

Diaz was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Adam Berry of MLB.com reports.

Diaz was called up to the majors when backup catcher Eric Fryer was placed on the paternity list. Fryer was reinstated from the list on Tuesday, meaning Diaz will head back to Indianapolis. The 25-year-old only played in one game with the Pirates in his short major league stint.

Diaz, who went 0-for-4 with an RBI ground out in his major league debut behind the plate Sunday, impressed manager Clint Hurdle with his defense. "I thought Diaz caught a fantastic game," Hurdle told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review.

A game after Philadelphia stole five bases with Francisco Cervelli catching, Diaz picked off a runner at second base and nailed the only would-be base stealer. It remains to be seen whether Pittsburgh will keep Diaz after backup Eric Fryer returns from paternity leave, but he's already left a positive impression with his manager.

D'Arnaud is not in the lineup for Game 1 of Tuesday's doubleheader with the Cardinals, according to MLB.com's Anthony DiComo.

As was going to be the case before Monday's game was rained out, d'Arnaud will cede the catching duties to Rene Rivera with Noah Syndergaard on the mound for the Mets. The Mets will play again Tuesday night and it seems likely d'Arnaud will start that game so Rivera does not have to catch 18 innings Tuesday.

Rupp (head) passed MLB's concussion protocol for a second straight day Sunday, John Perrotto of CSN Philadelphia reports.

Rupp, who was out of the lineup Sunday, was hit in the left ear flap of his batting helmet on Saturday by a pitch from Tyler Glasnow of the Pirates. It looks like Rupp should be able to return to the starting lineup Monday.

D'Arnaud is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Cardinals.

D'Arnaud will sit for the second consecutive game as Rene Rivera picks up another start behind the plate. According to Adam Rubin of ESPN.com, manager Terry Collins likes Rivera catching Noah Syndergaard, so this could result in a few lost starts for d'Arnaud if the trend continues. D'Arnaud is hitting a measly .238 since the All-Star break, but his job as the starter is still secure.