MLB Player News

Murphy is out of the starting lineup for Wednesday's game against the Dodgers, Justin Toscano of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Murphy will get a day of rest for the series finale against the Dodgers. Travis d'Arnaud is getting the start behind the plate and will hit cleanup with Murphy out of the lineup.

Smith went 3-for-5 with a double and three RBI in Tuesday's 8-1 victory versus Atlanta.

Smith plated the game's first run with a single in the first inning and knocked in two more with a two-out double in the second. The 28-year-old had been in a mild slump coming into the contest, going 2-for-14 over his previous five games. As a whole, Smith has been among the league's most productive catchers on the campaign, slashing .310/.406/.552 with seven homers, 25 runs, 27 RBI and a stolen base. He's also drawn 21 walks and struck out just 12 times over 143 plate appearances, giving him a 1.75 BB/K -- the top mark among all major-leaguers with at least 100 trips to the dish.

Alvarez continues to develop at a rapid pace in the majors, and the 21-year-old is making a strong case to stay with the Mets even when the team's other catchers get healthy, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.

Alvarez had a slow start at the plate after being called up in early April, but through 16 games in May he's slashing .271/.364/.604 with four doubles and four homers, and his work with the pitching staff and defensive chops behind the plate are also growing by leaps and bounds. He's currently being backed up by Gary Sanchez, but sometime in the next few weeks both Tomas Nido (vision issues) and Omar Narvaez (calf) figure to get healthy. Alvarez is the only one of the four with minor-league options remaining, but with the Mets finally beginning to meet expectations -- the team saw a five-game winning streak snapped Tuesday -- continuity and performance could well be prioritized ahead of organizational depth, keeping the youngster in the big leagues.

Sabol will start at catcher and bat fifth in Wednesday's game against the Twins, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Sabol will pick up his third straight start at a different spot, after previously manning left field in Monday's series opener and serving as the Giants' designated hitter in Tuesday's 4-3 win. He'll get a turn behind the dish in the finale Wednesday while Patrick Bailey rests after starting each of the past four games. Though top backstop Joey Bart (groin) was recently placed on the injured list, the Giants appear content to give Bailey the bulk of the work behind the plate while Sabol continues to serve as a more versatile bench piece.

Bailey is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Twins, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Bailey will get a breather for the series finale after he started behind the plate in each of the Giants' last four games while going 3-for-13 with a home run, a walk and three RBI. Though Blake Sabol will draw the nod at catcher Wednesday, Bailey appears set to receive a look as the Giants' primary backstop until Joey Bart (groin) is ready to return from the injured list.

Narvaez (calf) expects to begin a rehab assignment by the end of the week, Will Sammon of The Athletic reports.

Rookie Francisco Alvarez is rapidly improving and seems to be locking down a significant role behind the dish for the Mets, so Narvaez could find himself competing with Tomas Nido (vision issues) for one roster spot when both backstops are healthy again. Narvaez played only five games this season before suffering a significant calf strain in early April that landed him on the 60-day IL.

Stubbs will start at catcher and bat ninth in Wednesday's game against the Diamondbacks.

With top backstop J.T. Realmuto receiving a breather for the day game after a night game, Stubbs will crack the starting nine for just the eighth time in 49 contests on the season. Stubbs, who owns a .588 OPS over 30 plate appearances in 2023, will likely remain one of MLB's most lightly used backup catchers so long as Realmuto is healthy.

Realmuto is not in the starting lineup Wednesday versus the Diamondbacks.

Realmuto will get a rare breather Wednesday, heading to the bench after he went 8-for-32 with three doubles, two RBI, a run scored and four walks while starting the last nine games. Garrett Stubbs will take over behind the plate and bat ninth in the series finale with Arizona.

Hedges is out of the lineup Wednesday versus the Rangers.

Hedges will head to the bench after he went 0-for-6 with two strikeouts while starting the first two games of the series behind the plate. Jason Delay will take over at catcher and bat eighth in the rubber match with Texas.

Moreno is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Phillies.

The 23-year-old backstop will get a rest after he caught both of the first two games in the series in Philadelphia while going 1-for-6 with a home run, two walks and two RBI. Jose Herrera will step in behind the dish for the series finale.