MLB Player News

Murphy is absent from the lineup for Friday's contest versus the Mets.

Travis d'Arnaud has started each of the first two games of the series against the Mets and has made four starts to Murphy's three since the All-Star break. Murphy had two hits in his last start Wednesday, but before that he had been hitless across his last five contests.

Murphy isn't in Atlanta's lineup for Thursday's game against the Mets.

Murphy will get a breather after going 2-for-4 during Wednesday's game against the Reds, allowing Travis d'Arnaud to catch for lefty Chris Sale during Thursday's series opener.

Smith isn't in the Dodgers' lineup Thursday against the Giants, Mike DiGiovanna of the Los Angeles Times reports.

Smith will be held out of Thursday's series finale after going 0-for-10 with two walks over the first three games of the series. Austin Barnes will start instead behind the dish, batting eighth.

Stallings went 3-for-4 with a home run, two doubles, four RBI and three runs scored Wednesday against the Red Sox.

Stallings contributed significantly to the Rockies' 20-run outburst, accounting for his first multi-RBI performance since June 12. With Elias Diaz seemingly past his calf injury, Stallings should be relegated to more of a backup role.

Higashioka is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Nationals.

The Padres and Nationals are wrapping up their series with a day game, so Higashioka will get a breather after he caught nine innings while going 3-for-5 with a home run, a double and three RBI in Wednesday night's 12-3 win. Luis Campusano will step in for Higashioka behind the plate.

Sanchez is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Orioles.

After top backstop Nick Fortes committed three throwing errors in Sunday's 4-2 win over the Mets, Sanchez caught the Marlins' next three games, going 0-for-7 with three strikeouts. Despite the rough performance over the weekend, Fortes still looks to be the Marlins' preferred catcher, and he'll be back behind the plate for Thursday's series finale with Baltimore while Sanchez sits.

Moreno entered Wednesday's game as a pinch hitter and finished 1-for-2 with a double, two RBI and a run scored in an 8-6 win over the Royals.

Moreno, who pinch hit for starting catcher Jose Herrera in the seventh inning, delivered a big two-run double in the top of the ninth inning to erase the Royals' lead. He's been productive coming out of the break, going 6-for-17 with five RBI and three runs scored over five games.

Higashioka went 3-for-5 with a two-run home run and an RBI double in Wednesday's 12-3 win over the Nationals.

Higashioka had gone just 2-for-16 over his previous five contests before getting in on the heavy-hitting fun the Padres' offense enjoyed in this game. The catcher has homered 12 times this season, with six of them coming over his last 14 games. He's up to a .226/.269/.540 slash line with 32 RBI, 17 runs scored, five doubles, one triple and no stolen bases across 145 plate appearances. Higashioka's recent success in the power department has helped him see a majority of the starts at catcher in July, relegating Luis Campusano to the backup role.

Bailey isn't in the Giants' lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Bailey will take a seat against Tyler Glasnow and the Dodgers after going 0-for-4 during a loss in Tuesday's contest. Curt Casali will start behind the plate instead while batting eighth.

Moreno isn't in the Diamondbacks' lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals, Jody Jackson of Bally Sports Arizona reports.

After going 1-for-4 with two RBI during Tuesday's victory, Moreno will get a breather Wednesday. Jose Herrera will start behind the plate instead while batting ninth.