MLB Player News

Murphy (hip) will have his rehab assignment delayed until Tuesday due to a personal matter, Chad Bishop of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Murphy is home tending to a family matter and will miss the entire weekend series for Triple-A Gwinnett. After missing all of spring training, Murphy is expected to have an extended rehab assignment before being cleared for MLB action.

Realmuto (foot) is back in the starting lineup at catcher and batting eighth against the Diamondbacks on Friday.

Realmuto was struck in the foot by a foul tip Tuesday and sat out Wednesday's series finale against the Giants. The off day Thursday provided an extra day of rest for the veteran backstop. Realmuto is slashing .240/.406/.400 with one home run, one RBI, four runs scored and a 5:6 BB:K across 32 plate appearances.

Trevino received a cortisone injection in his back and could start ramping up his rehab Saturday, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 Now Cincinnati reports.

Trevino remains on the 10-day injured list and isn't eligible to be activated until Wednesday, although a return that quickly could be optimistic. The veteran catcher hit .091/.167/.091 with a 1:3 BB:K across 12 plate appearances before going down with the injury.

Moreno went 2-for-2 with two doubles, two RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 7-1 win over the Mets.

Moreno doubled in a run as a pinch hitter and later scored in the seventh inning before adding to Arizona's lead with another run-producing double in the eighth. It was the fifth multi-hit effort in 12 games for Moreno, who is slashing .282/.341/.410 with five doubles and five RBI.

Ramirez went 2-for-5 with two RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 8-1 win over the Reds.

Ramirez singled and scored in the seventh inning before driving in a pair with another single in the eighth to make it an 8-1 ballgame. The 24-year-old backstop is still looking for his first home run of the season and has yet to display much extra-base pop through 12 games, slashing .250/.365/.364 with three doubles, a triple, four RBI, seven runs scored, one stolen base and a 7:11 BB:K across his 52 plate appearances.

Moreno is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Mets.

It's a routine day of rest for Moreno, who has reached base three times and driven in a run in the first two games of the series. James McCann will do the catching and bat sixth for the Diamondbacks on Thursday.

High-A Eugene placed Villarroel on the 7-day injured list April 3 as he recovers from offseason meniscus surgery, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports.

Per Callis, Villarroel will be playing in extended spring training games soon, so he could return in late April or May. The 21-year-old catcher hit .259 with eight home runs and 20 steals in 100 games last year in the lower levels of the Astros system.

Stephenson is not in the lineup for Thursday's contest in Miami.

Stephenson had started each of the last four games for the Reds, so he'll get a breather in Thursday's series finale. P.J. Higgins is getting the start at catcher and batting ninth for Cincinnati.

Kelly went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored in Wednesday's 6-2 win over the Rays.

Kelly extended his hitting streak to four games with the multi-hit effort, and he's now batting .281 for the season with a .705 OPS. The veteran catcher has appeared in 10 games so far, with Miguel Amaya appearing in seven. Kelly has the slight edge for playing time at the moment, though the Cubs can get both bats in the lineup by having one or the other serve as the DH and relying on Moises Ballesteros to serve as the backup behind the plate.

Amaya is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Rays.

Moises Ballesteros will enter the starting nine at designated hitter in place of Amaya, who had been included in the lineup as the Cubs' DH or catcher in six of the previous seven games. Amaya has compiled a .929 OPS through 20 plate appearances on the season and should continue to see fairly steady playing time while he's swinging a hot bat.