MLB Player News

Murphy is not in the starting lineup Friday versus the Rockies.

Murphy will get a day off Friday after he went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored Thursday. Travis d'Arnaud will take over behind the plate and bat cleanup against Colorado.

Murphy went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored in Thursday's win over Colorado.

Murphy had been slumping a bit coming into Thursday's contest, going 4-for-26 (.154) over his last eight games -- his three-hit effort was his first multi-hit game since June 3. Overall, the 28-year-old backstop is still slashing a strong .285/.384/.535 with 12 homers, 33 runs scored and 42 RBI through 232 plate appearances in his first season with Atlanta.

Diaz went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Thursday's loss to Atlanta.

Diaz opened the scoring with a solo shot off AJ Smith-Shawver in the second inning. It's the catcher's seventh homer of the year and first since May 25. The 32-year-old has cooled off after a red-hot start to the season, batting just .170 (9-for-53) with a .549 OPS in his last 14 games. Through 235 plate appearances on the season however, Diaz is still slashing an impressive .294/.349/.467 with 34 RBI and 23 runs scored.

Moreno went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 5-4 loss to the Phillies.

Moreno played a big part in Arizona's four-run third inning, driving in Jake McCarthy with a single then coming home on Ketel Marte's three-run home run. Moreno returned to the lineup after getting three days off, a decision manager Torey Lovullo attributed to the young catcher being "a little fatigued," per Jesus Cano of MLB.com. The move appeared to have the desired effect of recharging Moreno, as he had batted .192 over his prior 18 games. The break also gave Lovullo a chance to reintegrate Carson Kelly, who was activated off the 60-day injured list Monday, into the lineup. The duo will share catching duties while both are healthy, but as yet the split in playing time between them isn't clear.

Ruiz went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and an additional RBI in Thursday's 4-1 extra-inning win against the Astros.

Offense wasn't exactly abundant in the contest -- neither team scored until the ninth frame -- but Ruiz still finished with a big night at the plate. He accounted for the game's first run with a solo blast off Ryan Pressly in the top of the ninth, and after Houston countered with a run in the bottom of the frame, the backstop capped a three-run 10th for Washington with an RBI single. Ruiz finished with his fifth three-hit performance of the campaign, and the long ball gave him eight homers, establishing a single-season career high.

Colorado optioned Serven to Triple-A Albuquerque on Thursday.

Jorge Alfaro has been brought up by the Rockies in a corresponding roster move to help at catcher and mix in at DH. Serven, 28, is batting just .130 with a .304 OPS in 23 plate appearances this year at the major-league level.

Sanchez is not in the lineup Thursday against the Guardians.

Austin Nola is catching and Nelson Cruz is serving as the Padres' designated hitter versus the Guardians and left-hander Logan Allen. Sanchez will grab some rest after delivering a .936 OPS with six home runs and 15 RBI across his first 14 games with San Diego.

Realmuto is out of the lineup Thursday against the Diamondbacks, Matt Gelb of The Athletic reports.

It's a planned day off for Realmuto, who went 7-for-12 with two home runs, two doubles and two triples over the first three games of the four-game series at Arizona. Garrett Stubbs will start behind the plate in Thursday's matinee.

Hedges went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Wednesday's loss to the Cubs.

Hedges took Drew Smyly deep in the fourth inning for his first home run of the year, extending Pittsburgh's lead to 5-1. The 30-year-old backstop has been relatively productive of late, going 7-for-27 (.259) with a .730 OPS over his last eight games. Still, Hedges isn't likely to provide much fantasy value outside of very deep leagues. He's slashing just .183/.240/.252 with 12 RBI and 10 runs scored through 131 plate appearances this season.

Barnes went 1-for-3 with a walk and one RBI in Wednesday's 8-4 loss to the White Sox.

Barnes had been out for nearly a week tending to an injured right wrist. The backup catcher has hit safely in five of his last 11 games dating back to May 8, but his playing time will remain limited behind Will Smith. Barnes owns a poor .111/.207/.136 slash line with five RBI, four runs scored and two stolen bases over 28 contests this season.