Barnes will start at catcher and bat ninth in Thursday's game against the Nationals.

Barnes will pick up his sixth start of the season while top backstop Will Smith gets a breather as the Dodgers and Nationals close their series with a day game after a night game. Over 19 plate appearances to date, Barnes has batted .250 with no extra-base hits, one RBI and one run.

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

Smith will get a breather for the day game after he pounded out four hits, scored twice and drove in a run in Wednesday night's 11-2 win. Austin Barnes will fill in for Smith behind the plate.

Gomes is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Astros.

The 36-year-old is on the bench for the seventh time in 10 games and appears to have moved into the No. 2 catcher role behind youngster Miguel Amaya, who draws another start Thursday. Gomes is a trusted game caller behind the plate but has taken a big step back with the bat in 2024, posting a .486 OPS while striking out at a career-worst 35.1 percent rate through 37 plate appearances.

The Nationals optioned Millas to Triple-A Rochester on Thursday.

Washington no longer had a need for Millas as a backup catcher after the team reinstated Keibert Ruiz (illness) from the 10-day injured list in a corresponding move. During his week-and-a-half-long stint with the Nationals, Millas appeared in two games and went 1-for-6 with a stolen base.

The Nationals reinstated Ruiz (illness) from the 10-day injured list Thursday. He'll start at catcher and bat fifth in the Nationals' series finale versus the Dodgers.

Ruiz missed the Nationals' last 11 games while recovering from a case of influenza. He checked out fine after making two rehab appearances with Double-A Harrisburg earlier this week and should settle back in as the Nationals' No. 1 catcher now that he's been activated from the IL. Washington optioned catcher Drew Millas to Triple-A Rochester in a corresponding move.

Bart will start at catcher and bat cleanup Thursday against the Brewers.

Bart has been included in the lineup in four of the past six games and appears to have surpassed Henry Davis on the depth chart at catcher. The eventual return of Yasmani Grandal (foot) from the 10-day injured list could cost Bart some playing time, but for now, the 27-year-old should garner the lion's share of starts behind the dish while he's swinging a hot bat. Bart heads into Thursday's game with a 1.119 OPS over 23 plate appearances on the season.

Davis is out of the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Brewers.

He has now started just two of the previous six games and will give way to Joey Bart behind the dish Thursday. Davis is slashing just .180/.288/.230 with a 31.1 percent strikeout rate this season, and with Yasmani Grandal (foot) nearing a return, he could find himself back in the minors soon.

Stephenson is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Phillies.

Stephenson will get a well-deserved breather for Thursday's day game after he started in each of Cincinnati's last seven games, with six of those starts coming behind the plate. Luke Maile will get the nod at catcher Thursday and form a battery with starting pitcher Nick Martinez.

Diaz went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to the Padres on Wednesday.

Diaz accounted for half of the Rockies' runs in the contest with his solo shot to center field in the eighth inning. The blast snapped a 19-game homerless drought for the backstop, who belted 14 long balls last season. Despite the modest power output thus far, Diaz has had a nice start to the campaign with a .312/.357/.429 slash line and 11 RBI.

Murphy (oblique) was able to catch bullpen sessions Tuesday and Wednesday but has yet to resume swinging a bat, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Murphy's ability to throw at full strength while donning his full catching equipment represents a positive step forward in his recovery from a Grade 1 left oblique strain, but until he starts swinging the bat again, his return from the 10-day injured list shouldn't be viewed as imminent. The backstop has been on the shelf since March 30 with the injury.