MLB Player News

Ruiz is not in the lineup for Game 1 of Sunday's doubleheader versus Atlanta, Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com reports.

Ruiz was never likely to start both games of Sunday's twin bill, and he'll take a seat for the matinee. Drew Millas will work behind the plate in Game 1 with Ruiz likely to start the nightcap.

Stephenson went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double, a walk and three total RBI in Saturday's loss to the Pirates.

Stephenson was part of an early offensive outburst by the Reds, hitting a solo homer in the first inning and adding a two-run double in the second. He had been struggling coming into the contest, going 4-for-34 over his previous 10 contests. Despite the recent struggles, Stephenson has recorded career-best marks with 12 homers and 53 RBI over 137 games this season.

Smith will sit Saturday against the Giants, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.

The Dodgers have gone with a pattern of two starts for Smith followed by one start for Austin Barnes for most of the last month. If the pattern continues, we'll see Smith start Sunday and then four more times over the final week. The Dodgers are all but locked into the second seed in the National League, however, trailing Atlanta by 4.5 games while leading Milwaukee by 6.5, which could result in additional off days for the team's regulars over the final week.

Alvarez will sit for the second straight game Saturday against the Phillies.

One would expect a 71-83 team to maximize at-bats for its 21-year-old catcher of the future down the stretch, but it's instead been 31-year-old impending free agent Omar Narvaez to start three of the last four games behind the plate. Perhaps the Mets simply don't want to tax Alvarez's knees too much at the end of a long season. The rookie's .213/.286/.433 season slash line is good for a 97 wRC+, a perfectly acceptable mark for a catcher, but he's managed just a .171/.269/.291 line (60 wRC+) since the start of August, which suggests he could use a break.

Rodriguez went 1-for-5 with a solo home run Friday against the Reds.

Rodriguez popped a go-ahead home run in the sixth inning, the third long ball of his career. He's struggled considerably across his last 10 starts, managing only a .167 batting average with three RBI and four runs scored. Positively, he's struck out at only a 20 percent clip in that span, so he could turn things around prior to the close of the regular season.

Campusano is not in the lineup Friday against the Cardinals.

Brett Sullivan will start at catcher and bat ninth in the Padres' series opener versus St. Louis. Campusano was also on the bench for Wednesday's series finale against the Rockies but entered to deliver a pinch-hit RBI single in the bottom of the seventh. He seems to be healthy.

Alvarez is out of the lineup Friday versus the Phillies.

Alvarez has been sharing starts this week with Omar Narvaez, who is behind the plate and batting ninth for the Mets on Friday at Philadelphia. Alvarez went 0-for-3 with an RBI sac fly in Thursday's series-opening loss.

Stephenson isn't in the Reds' lineup Friday against the Pirates.

Stephenson is just 2-for-22 across his last six games, and his offensive woes will now cause him to miss his second start in a row. Luke Maile will start behind the plate Friday and bat ninth.

Gomes is not in the lineup for Friday's game against the Rockies.

Gomes will get a breather after catching each of the previous three contests. Miguel Amaya will be behind the plate for Jameson Taillon.

Caratini went 2-for-4 with a three-run home run in Thursday's 6-0 win over the Cardinals.

Caratini drew his 51st start behind the dish for the Brewers and made the most of it. His seventh homer of the year came in the sixth inning and chased Miles Mikolas from the game. Caratini has provided solid production as William Contreras' backup in Milwaukee with a .253/.327/.382 slash line over 57 games.