Higashioka went 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, three RBI and two total runs scored in Friday's 7-0 win over the Mets.

Over his previous nine games, Higashioka had gone just 3-for-24 (.125) with two RBI. The catcher made a bigger impact in this series-opening game, hitting a two-run homer in the second inning and plating another run in the third with his second double in three contests. Higashioka is up to a .226/.271/.516 slash line with 15 homers, seven doubles, 42 RBI, 24 runs scored and one stolen base over 200 plate appearances this season, but his recent slump has dropped him back into a timeshare behind the plate with Luis Campusano.

Amaya went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer and two runs in Friday's 6-3 win against the Marlins.

Amaya went deep in consecutive games for the first time in his career after hitting a grand slam in Thursday's win over the Tigers. The 25-year-old has taken over as the Cubs' regular catcher, starting 15 of 19 games in August while slashing .271/.286/.563 with four of his seven home runs on the season, and 13 RBI of his 31 RBI.

Stephenson went 2-for-3 with a solo home run, a walk and an additional run scored in Friday's 6-5 loss to the Pirates.

Stephenson launched his sixth August home run 436 feet in the top of the first inning. The catcher has hit safely in nine of his past 10 games, going deep three times and driving in seven runs. On the season, he is hitting .254 with 17 homers, 51 RBI and 56 runs scored across 393 plate appearances.

Bailey (oblique) will resume baseball activities this weekend, Andrew Baggarly of The Athletic reports Friday.

Bailey is expected to return from the 10-day injured list before the calendar flips to September, but a clearer idea of where he is in the recovery process is now emerging. Bailey becomes eligible for activation Aug. 29.

Casali isn't in the Giants' lineup for Friday's game against Seattle, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Casali will get a breather Friday after going 3-for-9 with an RBI and three runs scored during San Francisco's last series against the White Sox. While he rests, the newly signed Andrew Knapp will catch for Hayden Birdsong and bat ninth.

The Giants signed Knapp to a major-league contract Friday, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports. He's catching and batting ninth against the Mariners on Friday.

Knapp hasn't seen any MLB action since 2022, spending the 2023 season at the Triple-A level in the Astros and Tigers organizations and appearing in 81 games for the Rangers' Triple-A affiliate this season before opting out of his minor-league deal July 1. He slashed .294/.383/.457 at Triple-A this year and will serve as the backup to Curt Casali while Patrick Bailey (oblique) is on the shelf. Bailey is expected to return by the end of August.

Bailey (oblique) is likely to return from the 10-day injured list before the end of August, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

There's been no word yet on Bailey's progress after he was placed on the IL on Tuesday with a right oblique strain. However, he's eligible for activation Aug. 29 and it would appear the expectation is he will be ready by that date or shortly after. Curt Casali and Jakson Reetz are currently handling the Giants' catching duties.

Romo is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Yankees.

For a fourth straight game, Colorado will be facing a left-handed pitcher. Romo started the first two matchups with southpaws but will yield to Jacob Stallings behind the dish Friday for a second consecutive time. Romo is 1-for-11 with six strikeouts since being called up Aug. 16.

The Reds transferred Wynns (shoulder) to the 60-day injured list Friday.

The move doesn't officially end Wynns' season, though the catcher won't be eligible for reinstatement until Sept. 27 -- two days before the Reds' regular-season finale. Wynns sustained a right teres major strain in late July and has been on the shelf since. Luke Maile should continue to work behind Tyler Stephenson at catcher for Cincinnati.

Amaya went 3-for-4 with a grand slam and an RBI single during Thursday's 10-2 win over Detroit.

Amaya started and finished the Cubs' scoring barrage, getting the team on the scoreboard in the second inning with a two-out grand slam off Kenta Maeda before plating Pete Crow-Armstrong in the seventh for Chicago's 10th run. Amay has a .767 OPS through 14 games in August is slashing .221/.277/.333 with six home runs in 275 plate appearances for the season.