MLB Player News

Moreno was removed from Game 2 of the Diamondbacks' NL Wild Card Series matchup against Milwaukee on Wednesday after being hit in the head on a backswing, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.

Moreno was initially able to remain in the game after taking Brice Turang's backswing to the head in the second inning, but he was later replaced behind the dish by Jose Herrera in the third. Moreno will presumably undergo further testing, and the D-backs should have an update on his status in the near future.

Stallings is starting at catcher and batting ninth in Game 2 of the NL Wild Card Series on Wednesday versus the Phillies.

Nick Fortes started behind the plate in Game 1 on Tuesday and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout as the Marlins lost 4-1. Stallings will get the nod Wednesday at Citizens Bank Park with Miami trying to avoid elimination in the best-of-three series.

Stallings is not in the lineup for Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series against the Phillies on Tuesday.

Nick Fortes will start behind the plate and bat ninth for the visiting Marlins. Stallings slashed just .191/.278/.286 across 276 regular-season plate appearances this year with Miami, though Fortes wasn't really any better at .204/.263/.299 in his 323 plate appearances.

Fortes will start at catcher and bat ninth Tuesday in Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series versus the Phillies.

Fortes and Jacob Stallings both struggled offensively this year for the Marlins, but Fortes will get the call behind the plate in Tuesday's NL Wild Card Series opener as Stallings rides the pine.

Alvarez (heel) felt better Monday and the Mets are unconcerned about the catcher's health going into the offseason, Tim Britton of The Athletic reports.

Alvarez had to exit Sunday's regular-season finale after taking a ball off his heel, but it appears that it will be a non-issue heading into the winter. Although he faded after the All-Star break, Alvarez still finished with 25 home runs in his rookie season, which ranked second only to Cal Raleigh among catchers.

Stubbs went 2-for-3 with a walk, one RBI, a stolen base and two runs scored in Sunday's 9-1 win over the Mets.

Stubbs got into just seven games after the start of September, serving as backup to workhorse catcher J.T. Realmuto. The multi-hit effort Sunday was just the second such game for Stubbs all season. He slashed .204/.274/.283 with one home run, 12 RBI, 15 runs scored and two stolen bases across 125 plate appearances. Stubbs will likely see minimal playing time in the postseason.

Ruiz went 3-for-5 with a double, three RBI and a run scored in Sunday's 10-9 win over Atlanta.

Ruiz plated two runs with a ground-rule double in the first and added an RBI-single an inning later as part of his fifth multi-hit effort over the last six games. During that span, the 25-year-old went 13-for-27 while striking out only twice. Ruiz finishes with a slash line of .260/.308/.409 with 18 home runs, 67 RBI, 55 runs scored and a 31:58 BB:K over 562 plate appearances. Though he remains in a rebuilding Nationals' lineup, Ruiz's ability to make contact along the increased power he displayed this season gives him a nice floor heading into 2024.

Moreno is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Astros, Alex Weiner of ArizonaSports.com reports.

It's a well-deserved day off for Moreno, who started Arizona's previous 14 contests for the playoff push. The rookie backstop is poised to close the campaign with seven homers, 50 RBI, 33 runs and a .284/.339/.408 slash line in 111 games.

Murphy is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Nationals, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Atlanta has locked away the top seed in the National League, so Murphy will sit for the third time in four games to close out the season. The 28-year-old finished this season with an .843 OPS and career highs in home runs (21) and RBI (68) despite playing in just 108 games.

Realmuto is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Mets.

The Phillies have the No. 1 wild-card seed locked up, so it's not a surprise Realmuto is on the bench for the regular-season finale. The 32-year-old's .762 OPS in 135 games this year will be the lowest since his first full MLB season in 2015.