MLB Player News

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.

Lino has received an invitation to Phillies spring training.

Lino hasn't improved enough offensively since breaking into the minors in 2011 to earn a big league roster spot, but his strong arm behind the plate keeps him in consideration. It seems highly improbably that the 22-year-old will land in the majors, but perhaps the small taste of it during spring training will provide a jump-start to his season.

Monell was designated for assignment by the Mets on Friday.

He was a distant third on the depth chart behind Travis d'Arnaud and Kevin Plawecki. The Mets, having re-signed Bartolo Colon to a one-year deal, decided to bump Monell and will now risk losing him to waivers. Monell has done little with his major-league opportunities thus far, but he has hit .279/.356/.455 in parts of four seasons at Triple-A, making him a serviceable depth piece for an organization.

Bethancourt (knee) was traded to the Padres on Thursday in exchange for Casey Kelly and Ricardo Rodriguez, MLB.com reports.

The 24-year-old has done little with the bat in 80 games at the major-league level, slashing .219/.245/.283 while walking at a 2.9 percent clip. However, Bethancourt's athleticism and exceptional arm should afford him plenty of opportunities down the line, though there is not a clear path to a 2016 role with Derek Norris, Austin Hedges and Josmil Pinto all in San Diego.

Mesoraco (hip) said Friday that he is "feeling great" and expects to report to spring training as normal, C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Hip issues derailed Mesoraco's 2015 season early on, and after a failed attempt to acclimate him to left field, the Reds sent the 27-year-old for surgery. Mesoraco was cleared to resume squatting about a month ago, and he said Friday that he's had no problems getting in and out of the catching position. He will start adding more drills to his routine early next month.

Schlehuber signed a minor league contract with the Braves that includes an invitation to spring training.

Schlehuber reached Triple-A for the first time last season, but struggled mightily at the plate, slashing .158/.224/.193 in a mere 128 plate appearances at that level. With other options at catcher ahead of him, this signing appears to be nothing more than a move for more organizational depth at catcher.