MLB Player News

Stephenson will undergo an MRI on his injured back Thursday, Pat Brennan of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Stephenson had to be scratched from Wednesday's Cactus League lineup against the Rangers. Reds manager Terry Francona downplayed the injury at the time, but it seems Stephenson hasn't bounced back as quickly as hoped, necessitating the MRI. Francona said the team should have an update on Stephenson's condition later Thursday or Friday.

Pages adopted a new batting stance earlier this week in which he stands taller in the box and holds his hand higher, Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Pages began to see the changes pay dividends in Wednesday's Grapefruit League game versus the Mets, as he contributed an opposite-field double while also hitting two hard lineouts. The 26-year-old Pages is competing with Ivan Herrera for playing time at catcher and is likely to enter the season as 1B to Herrera's 1A behind the dish.

Stephenson was scratched from Wednesday's lineup because of lower-to-mid back pain, Mark Sheldon of MLB.com reports.

Stephenson was scheduled to be the designated hitter and was replaced by Blake Dunn. Cincinnati manager Terry Francona downplayed the injury, indicating Stephenson will be fine and that there was no need to push him.

Campusano may be trailing Elias Diaz in the battle to be San Diego's No. 1 catcher, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Following the departure of Kyle Higashioka to Texas in the offseason, San Diego's primary catcher role for 2025 appeared to be wide open. That's still the case, as none of the Padres' backstops has hit well this spring. Campusano has gone just 2-for-16 so far, while Diaz is 3-for-18. Meanwhile, San Diego's other backstop options, Brett Sullivan (2-for-15) and Martin Maldonado (0-for-13), have been equally unproductive. Cassavell speculates that Diaz's reputation as a strong defender could have him leading the race to start Opening Day, though the Padres don't appear to have made a decision in that regard to this point. Campusano finished last season at Triple-A and has one minor-league option remaining, so it's not certain that he'll even break camp with the big club.

Diaz "seems to have moderately separated himself" in the competition to be the Padres' No. 1 catcher, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com reports.

Diaz first came to San Diego on a minor-league deal last August and ended up going just 4-for-21 over 24 regular-season games with the Padres. However, the offseason departure of Kyle Higashioka opened up a battle for the team's primary catcher role, and none of the club's backstops has seized hold of the opportunity this spring. Diaz is just 3-for-18 with five strikeouts and one walk, but Luis Campusano has been even less productive with a 2-for-16 line, while Brett Sullivan has gone 2-for-15 and Martin Maldonado is 0-for-13. Ethan Salas is viewed as the catcher of the future for San Diego, but he won't turn 19 until June and has just 33 plate appearances at Double-A under his belt. Cassavell speculates that Diaz's reputation as a good defender could earn him the starting role come Opening Day, though the catcher situation could be fluid throughout the campaign and tilt at any time this spring if one of the backstops goes on a hot streak.

Baldwin was scratched from Atlanta's lineup for Wednesday's Grapefruit League game against the Orioles due to an allergic reaction.

Atlanta describes Baldwin's removal from the lineup as precautionary, so the young backstop can be considered day-to-day moving forward. With Sean Murphy (rib) set to begin the season on the injured list, Baldwin remains the leading candidate to serve as Atlanta's Opening Day catcher.

The Rockies optioned Romo to Triple-A Albuquerque on Wednesday.

Romo's demotion likely solidifies Jacob Stallings and Hunter Goodman as the Rockies' catching tandem heading into Opening Day. The 23-year-old Romo already appears major-league ready from a defensive standpoint, but the Rockies would presumably like to see him show more improvement with his plate skills before giving him an extended run in the big leagues as their No. 1 catcher. Romo hit .297 with 14 home runs while striking out in just 17.8 percent of his 370 plate appearances at Albuquerque last season, but he languished upon getting his first big-league call-up in mid-August. Over 53 plate appearances with the Rockies, Romo hit .176 with a 3.8 percent walk rate and a 34 percent strikeout rate.

The Dodgers reassigned Rushing to minor-league camp Tuesday.

Rushing has breezed his way through the Dodgers' minor-league system and had a real chance to open the year on the Opening Day roster after slashing .273/.396/.511 over 169 Triple-A plate appearances in 2024. Instead, the Dodgers will give him a few more looks in the minors to start 2025, but he could certainly break through into Los Angeles if he continues to dominate in Triple-A.

Moreno went 2-for-3 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Monday's Cactus League game against the Dodgers.

In a lineup predominantly made up by minor leaguers and bench players, Moreno was moved up the order and batted third. He recorded two of Arizona's five hits and launched his second Cactus League home run in the sixth inning. The 25-year-old catcher hit mostly in the bottom third of the order in 2024 and is expected to be there again this coming season. He enters 2025 as the Diamondbacks primary backstop and won't be a cipher (.280/.347/.740 career slash) for fantasy rosters.

Herrera is not expected to miss any time after exiting Sunday's contest against the Rangers with right wrist soreness, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

Herrera is not in the Diamondbacks' lineup Monday, but he was simply not scheduled to play. The 28-year-old is competing to be the club's backup catcher behind Gabriel Moreno.