MLB Player News

Moreno went 3-for-5 with a double, two RBI and one run scored in Friday's 7-6 extra-inning loss to the Mariners.

Moreno has been swinging the bat well lately, going 16-for-43 (.372) over his last 11 contests. He's added 10 RBI and three stolen bases in that span, providing some unexpected five-category coverage from the catcher position. On the year, Moreno is hitting .268 with a .745 OPS, three home runs, three steals, 19 RBI, 17 runs scored and eight doubles across 126 plate appearances.

Smith went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Friday's 4-2 win over the Phillies.

Smith has three extra-base hits (two homers, one double) over his last three contests. The catcher is batting a modest .235 (16-for-68) in May, but he's hit three of his six homers on the year during the month. He's hitting .255 with a .732 OPS, 23 RBI, 21 runs scored, four doubles and no stolen bases over 181 plate appearances this season.

Goodman went 2-for-4 with a double, a three-run homer and one walk in Friday's 8-6 win over the Giants.

With the Rockies trailing 6-3 in the bottom of the ninth inning, Goodman came up with two on and swatted a towering three-run homer to tie the game off Giants closer Caleb Kilian. It was Goodman's 13th homer of the season and second in his last three games after he snapped a nine-game drought without a long ball. Goodman doesn't hit for average, but he swings hard and hits the ball hard when he does make contact. He entered Friday in the first percentile in chase rate (44.2 percent) and second percentile in strikeout rate (35.2 percent). On the year, Goodman is slashing .244/.307/.487 with 13 home runs, 23 RBI, 32 runs scored, three stolen bases and a 14:75 BB:K across 215 trips to the plate.

Davis is not in the Pirates' starting lineup against the Twins on Friday.

Davis will get a breather Friday while Endy Rodriguez starts behind home plate and bats seventh while catching pitches from Jared Jones. Since May 1, Davis has gone 5-for-47 (.106) with four home runs, seven RBI, five walks and five runs scored.

Bart (foot) has been cleared to resume weight room activity and play light catch, Colin Beazley of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.

Per Pirates senior director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk, Bart is still "weeks away" from returning from the 10-day injured list, but the good news is that the 29-year-old catcher has progressed enough to take the next step in his recovery program. The Pirates should have a better sense of Bart's timeline to return as he continues to increase his baseball activities.

Alvarez (knee) is going through full baseball activities and could be ready for a rehab assignment as soon as next week, Andrew Tredinnick of The Bergen Record reports.

Alvarez is just over two weeks removed from surgery to repair the meniscus in his right knee. He was given an eight-week timetable to return immediately following the operation, but the catcher is poised to beat that timeline by several weeks.

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol indicated Pages will see a downturn in playing time following the promotion of Jimmy Crooks, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Pages leads the team with 34 starts at catcher this season, but he appears in line to serve as the third catcher moving forward behind Crooks and Ivan Herrera. The 27-year-old Pages is a quality defensive catcher but sports a career .230/.273/.366 slash line over parts of three big-league seasons.

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol indicated Friday that Crooks is set to receive the lion's share of playing time at catcher, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Ivan Herrera will continue to serve as the personal catcher for Michael McGreevy and Andre Pallante, but it will be Crooks unseating Pedro Pages as the team's primary catcher for the rest of the rotation. Crooks earned a promotion Friday after slashing .262/.412/.567 with 13 home runs this season with Memphis. The left-handed-hitting Crooks is not in Friday's lineup against the Cubs -- southpaw Shota Imanaga is starting for Chicago and Herrera is doing the catching for Pallante -- but he should be in the lineup Saturday.

The Cardinals recalled Crooks from Triple-A Memphis on Friday.

The 24-year-old will join the big-league roster after posting a .262/.412/.567 slash line with 13 homers in 39 games for Memphis. Yohel Pozo was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move. It's not clear how much playing time Crooks will get, as Ivan Herrera and Pedro Pages have split most of the starts at catcher this season, but Pages' .622 OPS in 125 plate appearances could make him the odd man out.

Davis is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

Davis will be given a break after he started at catcher in the first two games of the series. Endy Rodriguez will fill in for Davis behind the dish Wednesday, forming a battery with starting pitcher Bubba Chandler.