MLB Player News

Smith is not in the lineup for Thursday's game against the Brewers.

Austin Barnes will catch and bat ninth versus the Brewers and right-hander Corbin Burnes. J.D. Martinez is serving as the Dodgers' designated hitter and batting cleanup. This appears to be a routine day of rest for Smith, who had started five straight games behind the dish.

Contreras (hip) is starting at designated hitter and batting cleanup versus the Mets on Thursday.

Contreras left Monday's game early with hip tightness after injuring himself while tagging up from first to second base, and he was out of the lineup the past two days. He is slashing .378/.472/.630 with six home runs over his last 119 at-bats.

Single-A Palm Beach placed Bernal on its 7-day injured list Aug. 10 with an unspecified injury.

Bernal, a 19-year-old catching prospect from Panama, is in the midst of his second season at Palm Beach. Over 323 plate appearances prior to landing on the shelf, Bernal slashed .265/.381/.362 with three home runs and four stolen bases. The extent of his injury isn't clear, making it uncertain whether he'll be able to play again in 2023.

Smith went 3-for-4 with two RBI in Wednesday's 7-1 win over the Brewers.

Smith also supplied a sacrifice fly. The catcher had gone just 4-for-22 over his last seven games since his previous multi-hit effort. For the season, he's up to a .277/.378/.469 slash line with 15 home runs, 61 RBI, 62 runs scored, two stolen bases and 18 doubles through 94 games as a consistent presence in the heart of the lineup.

Contreras, who is out of Wednesday's lineup against the A's due to hip tightness, is feeling better and could be available off the bench, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

The 31-year-old is out of the starting nine for the second straight game due to the hip issue, but it sounds like he could make an appearance as a reserve. The Cardinals open a four-game series with the Mets on Thursday, and Contreras' reported improvement is an encouraging development ahead of the series opener.

Gomes is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the White Sox.

Gomes is likely just getting a rest day after he started behind the plate in three of the last four games. With Gomes and Miguel Amaya both out of the starting nine, No. 3 catcher Tucker Barnhart will enter the lineup for the first time since Aug. 1.

Stallings is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Astros.

The playing time at catcher has been tilting in Stallings' favor of late, with the 33-year-old having started behind the dish in three of the previous four games. Stallings will give way to Nick Fortes on Wednesday, but even if one of the two emerges as the Marlins' clear-cut top option over the final six weeks of the season, neither is expected to deliver much meaningful fantasy value.

Contreras (hip) remains out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Athletics, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

He'll be on the bench for a second straight game while he manages a tight right hip. Despite Contreras being banged up, the Cardinals haven't called up another catcher from the minors, so the team is seemingly optimistic the hip issue isn't serious enough to send him to the 10-day injured list. Andrew Knizner will pick up another turn behind the plate Wednesday while Contreras turns his focus toward a return to the lineup at some point during this weekend's four-game series with the Mets.

Sabol will start at catcher and bat sixth in Wednesday's game against the Rays, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

Sabol went 1-for-8 at the dish while starting each of the past three games in left field, but he'll shift behind the plate Wednesday while No. 1 backstop Patrick Bailey rests in the series finale. The Giants seem content to give Sabol a look as their primary left fielder against right-handed pitching while all of Mike Yastrzemski (hamstring), Mitch Haniger (forearm) and AJ Pollock (oblique) are on the injured list.

Murphy is not in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Yankees.

Atlanta will go with Travis d'Arnaud at catcher as it tries to finish off a sweep of the Yankees. Murphy wasn't in the lineup for Monday's game either, as manager Brian Snitker continues to regularly alternate starts for his catchers.