MLB Player News

An illness will prevent Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud from crouching behind the plate Thursday in Washington for the first game of a day-night doubleheader. He has been in the lineup just once since Saturday.

d'Arnaud is mired in a 7-for-36 mini-slump, but has a triple in back-to-back games.

Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud was not in the team's starting lineup Wednesday.

d'Arnaud will miss the game due to "ailments." The team did not specify an injury. He's considered doubtful to play Thursday as well. d'Arnaud is hitting .242/.302/.416 over 385 at-bats.

A 19-for-74 stretch might not seem like much, but it's an encouraging run for Padres catcher Yasmani Grandal considering he began it batting .202.

Grandal began the comparative hot stretch on Aug. 26. He has three home runs and 10 RBI in 20 games during that period, but remains a windmill at the plate. He has 19 strikeouts in the last 16 games and has fanned 102 times in 345 at-bats this season.

The Reds have issued a lineup for Wednesday against the host Cubs that one might have expected had they just clinched a playoff spot. Among those set to sit are third baseman Todd Frazier, second baseman Brandon Phillips, shortstop Zack Cozart, center fielder Billy Hamilton, right fielder Jay Bruce and catcher Devin Mesoraco.

None are listed as injured.

The Mets might have an overcrowding problem behind the plate next season, given the progress Travis d'Arnaud and prospect Kevin Plawecki have shown this season.

"If their potential starts to converge at the major league level, and it warrants major league time, then we'll have to make a decision," manager Sandy Alderson told the New York Daily News Tuesday. "But in the meantime, we're happy to have both of them. But Kevin has made a lot of progress, and obviously Travis has done well the second half of this season."

Alderson does not think either player is likely to be used in a backup or reserve role. d'Arnaud is hitting .277/.321/.480 in 177 at-bats since the All-Star break, while Plawecki is hitting .309/.365/.460 in 101 minor-league games while reaching Triple-A. 

The Marlins recalled catcher Jacob Realmuto from Double-A Jacksonville Saturday.

Realmuto is 4 for 20 in seven appearances with the Marlins. He hit .299/.369/.461 with eight home runs, 62 RBI and 18 stolen bases in 375 at-bats.

Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud was given a half day on Thursday because of a sore wrist, ESPN New York reports. D'Arnaud was pulled after four innings for Anthony Recker, who hit a home run in his place against the Nationals.

D'Arnaud is hitting .246 with 13 homers and 38 RBI over 354 at-bats. His status remains uncertain for Friday's game against the Nationals.

The Reds have altered their lineup to include catcher Devin Mesoraco. Brayan Pena has been scratched with an illness.

Hot-hitting Reds catcher Devin Mesoraco is catching a break Thursday. He is out of the lineup against visiting St. Louis.

Mesoraco, who has mostly manned the cleanup spot since late July, has blasted off three times in the last six games. He owns a stat line of .285/.371/.553 with 73 RBI in just 347 at-bats.

Mets catcher Travis d'Arnaud continued his hot-hitting ways Friday, as he led the team to a 14-5 win over the Reds.

d'Arnaud put together his third multi-hit effort in the last four games, as he reached base four times by going 3 for 4 with a walk. He drove in four runs in the game as well, with a first-inning RBI single and then a three-run home run in the fourth, while scoring twice in the blowout.

d'Arnaud is 9 for 16 in four September games, to raise his season line to .243/.306/.412 in 337 at-bats.