MLB Player News

Stephenson is absent from the lineup for Wednesday's contest in Atlanta.

It's a routine day off for Stephenson, who had started the last six games for the Reds. It will be Will Banfield doing the catching on Wednesday.

Smith went 1-for-4 with a solo home run Tuesday in a 7-0 win against the Padres.

Smith put the finishing touch on a dominant Dodgers win with his solo blast to left field in the seventh inning. The backstop has gone deep in each of his past three starts. Smith missed nearly three months due to a neck issue, and he initially struggled upon returning to action Sept. 1. However, he's perked up with the bat of late, going 7-for-18 with three homers, a double, four runs and five RBI across his past five games.

The Cardinals believe Bernal can be "an everyday, workhorse catcher," per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and are giving him a heavy workload down the stretch to prepare him to be the everyday catcher in 2027.

Bernal has started all 19 games since being promoted Sept. 1, including 13 starts at catcher. The 22-year-old rookie has slashed .299/.341/.494 with four home runs and 17 RBI and has also drawn rave reviews for his work with the pitching staff. St. Louis is overloaded with catching depth, but it's become clear that it sees Bernal opening 2027 at the top of the depth chart at the position. Ivan Herrera, Pedro Pages, Jimmy Crooks and eventually Rainiel Rodriguez are also in the mix at catcher for the Cardinals, though they could move Herrera off the position permanently at some point.

Moreno went 1-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored in Tuesday's 7-2 win over Colorado.

Moreno delivered one run on a single during the team's three-run first inning. He later had a sacrifice fly to knock in another. The two RBI put him at a career-high 77 over 126 games in what has been a breakout season for the 26-year-old catcher. Most of the breakout has happened during the second half, as Moreno sports a .312/.383/.529 slash line with nine home runs, 19 doubles and 45 RBI across 57 contests since the All-Star break.

Alvarez is starting at DH for Tuesday's matchup against Texas, per Anthony DiComo of MLB.com.

After recording back-to-back multi-hit games against the Phillies, Alvarez will slot in as designated hitter for Tuesday's series opener against the Rangers. Luis Torrens will catch and bat ninth for the Mets while Alvarez bats seventh.

Alfonzo was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Monday.

Alfonzo is a roster casualty following the return of both Roki Sasaki (finger) and Andy Pages (hand) from the injured list. Alfonzo logged one at-bat after being promoted Sept. 6.

Contreras went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and a walk in Sunday's 3-0 win over the Orioles.

Contreras has hit safely in his last nine games, going 11-for-36 (.306) with four homers and 14 RBI in that span. The catcher has been given a couple of full off days down the stretch, and that may continue as the Brewers are running out of things to clinch. Contreras is batting .271 with a .765 OPS, 18 homers, 88 RBI, 82 runs scored, 27 doubles, one triple and one stolen base across 142 contests.

Goodman went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Sunday's 2-1 loss to the Mariners.

Goodman supplied the lone run for the Rockies, launching a solo homer in the ninth inning. The slugger has mostly slumped in September, slashing .167/.233/.407 with three homers, nine RBI and seven runs in 14 games. On the year, the 26-year-old is hitting .245/.312/.528 with 39 homers, 82 RBI, 81 runs and five stolen bases across 132 contests.

Flores went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer and a double in Sunday's 4-3 win over the Royals.

Flores provided the decisive blow in Sunday's victory -- he launched a 426-foot blast off Nate Pearson in the eighth inning to put the Pirates ahead 4-3. The 25-year-old Flores has been on a tear of late, going 20-for-47 (.426) over his last 13 games. Overall, he's batting .286 with a .910 OPS, 22 RBI and 16 runs scored across 147 plate appearances this season.

Smith went 3-for-5 with a solo home run, a second RBI and two total runs scored in Saturday's 10-4 win over the Giants.

Smith has homered in consecutive contests. He went yard in the third inning Saturday and then added an RBI single in the sixth. The catcher had gone 14 games without a multi-RBI game coming into the contest, batting .211 (8-for-38) in that span. For the season, he's hitting .249 with a .756 OPS, nine homers, 33 RBI, 33 runs scored, no stolen bases and nine doubles across 68 contests.